Parts Bin Schwinn No. 2: 1958 Cantilever

[CURTIS L LINDGREN]

Nice work................and thinking . It takes some time and consideration to come up with a custom. I like that you showed the various stages and parts you tried. That was a pretty "Out of the Box" thought to change the steer tube on the springer . That was a big change in the stance of the bike. I like a lot of your decisions as far as where you landed . I do feel you should stick with "Schwinn" parts as much as possible due to the name of the bike. The Monark chainguard is a nice one for sure and has more room for graphics ,but you have a black Schwinn guard that I think would keep a good look going with your bike and keep it more Schwinn. What I might do when using that black guard would be to raise the back of the seat just slightly . I think you could find a height that still complements the look of the bike ( it might not even need to be raised an inch......maybe less) considering you're not at the point where it has been secured to the rear fender. Just my two cents here.............Ultimately it's your bike and you have a lot of time and thought into this. Just an idea here. Have fun with your build and thanks for sharing your work with this group. -Curt-

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Nice work................and thinking . It takes some time and consideration to come up with a custom. I like that you showed the various stages and parts you tried. That was a pretty "Out of the Box" thought to change the steer tube on the springer . That was a big change in the stance of the bike. I like a lot of your decisions as far as where you landed . I do feel you should stick with "Schwinn" parts as much as possible due to the name of the bike. The Monark chainguard is a nice one for sure and has more room for graphics ,but you have a black Schwinn guard that I think would keep a good look going with your bike and keep it more Schwinn. What I might do when using that black guard would be to raise the back of the seat just slightly . I think you could find a height that still complements the look of the bike ( it might not even need to be raised an inch......maybe less) considering you're not at the point where it has been secured to the rear fender. Just my two cents here.............Ultimately it's your bike and you have a lot of time and thought into this. Just an idea here. Have fun with your build and thanks for sharing your work with this group. -Curt-

Thank you! I like sharing all the mockups I do on any bike, as it shows my whole thought process for each build, and it gives folks an opportunity to see if one of my ideas might be good for one of their custom bikes, like that flipped springer fork. I got the idea for that when I saw other folks do that on their bikes.

The main reason for the name Parts Bin Schwinn is simply because I'm building this Schwinn frame with whatever parts I have laying around. I thought about using the Schwinn chain guards, but I like how the Monark chain guard flows with the frame's cantilever bars better.

Besides, it's not the only non-Schwinn part on this bike; the handlebars and stem are off a Murray, the fender's an aftermarket part, and I have no idea what the seat's from. I'm not so concerned about matching brands as I am just finding a good overall aesthetic. Nothing wrong with your suggestions, it's just not how I plan to build this bike. As for the seat, yeah, it'll probably need to come up a little in the back. It's just sitting that low because of how I mocked it up at the time. Thanks! Happy to share it with you guys!

 

[Porkchop & Applesauce]

Make your own lucky 7 seat post for it. You can get em really low but they’re still adjustable. Your banana seat will probably hide more of the seat post than my seat does

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Make your own lucky 7 seat post for it. You can get em really low but they’re still adjustable. Your banana seat will probably hide more of the seat post than my seat does

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That's a nice Schwinn you got there! I like your idea to make my own layback seat post, actually did that on a previous bike, but I like the seat's placement where it's at right now. Plus, I'd rather err on the side of caution and have some mounts on the back of the seat so there's more than one point of support.

 

[Schulze]

Love the digital mock ups!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Love the digital mock ups!

Thank you!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Small update on Parts Bin:
I wanted to see what this bike would look like with a few different springer forks. I started with the rat trap springer fork I had in stock, and while it looks good on the frame, there's a potential problem with the fork that's driving my OCD crazy...

It could just be the way these forks were built, or it could be a trick of the eye, but I swear that my fork is bent backwards just a bit; not enough that I can't use it, but enough that it just looks aesthetically wrong. Is my fork really bent backwards, or am I mistaken? If it is bent back, is there a way to fix it?

A little comparison of flipped springer forks on the 2 parts bin Schwinns. It could be the different sized tires and/or the possibility of the rat trap springer being bent, but the flipped Schwinn springer fork appears to kick the front wheel out that much more than the rat trap springer fork.

I also tried out a lowrider springer fork and some plywood dropout extension templates I had, but I can't say I care for either as much as my other options.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

I hate to say it, but I'm falling out of love with this Schwinn frame. As I mentioned before, Schwinn's cantilever frames just aren't the most visually appealing for me, and every time I build this frame up, I find myself wondering if my ideas and parts would look better on a bike I already like, such as a Murray or Huffy. I need to thin the herd again anyway, and this Schwinn, as nice of a starting point as it is, wouldn't be that hard to part ways with.

That said, I want to at least play around with a few more ideas for this bike before I decide to put it up for sale or trade.

Earlier this week, I decided to see what this Schwinn might look like as a klunker. After the last one I built, I wanted an off-roader with some suspension. I know most folks prefer Schwinns due to their welded construction, and I figured it'd make sense to build up this bike to take more of a beating so that I wouldn't have to myself.

I tried a few parts (mostly in pink) because I had some crazy paint scheme ideas, and I wanted to use them up. Some of what I came up with looked... fine, but not good enough to sell me on the concept.

I got a few more ideas for this Schwinn, but so far nothing's sticking. We'll just have to see if anything gets me to fall back in love with this bike.

 

[Porkchop & Applesauce]

This was my favorite version. I think ya need a tank to set it off!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

This was my favorite version. I think ya need a tank to set it off!

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Thanks! I definitely liked that idea, and a tank would certainly be a must, but I just can't ignore the "potbelly" these Schwinn frames have. I can't help but feel like those parts and the overall design would look so much better on a similar (but in my opinion, more attractive) Murray or Huffy middleweight frame.