Post-War ('40s-'50s) Schwinn Superior List

[SirMike1983]

It's funny how every so often someone comes across something really unusual and in great condition. This bike was found by someone more into the later, 10-speed road bikes. Apparently some of this stuff is still lurking "out there", in basements, garages, and storage rooms. It's not the norm to find one of these, but don't give up either.

 

[WillWork4Parts]

I picked this one up for what the parts are worth, but being an odd color Gold, and my first Superior, I think I'll hang onto it.

Odd serial number looks like it is C50827. I'll have to check the axles for dates before concluding a year, but guessing 49 by the catalog color offering for Gold. It has a white undercoat with red pins and white accents and looks consistent with other Schwinn paint jobs so far.

I was worried it was missing the Dural front hub, but it seems the other bikes on the list have the same hub setup, Dural hub with freewheel in rear and Steel Schwinn Script hub in the front. Both brake calipers are Schwinn Script. Not a bad stem to have, but not the double adjustable. The seat appears to be era appropriate, manufactured by 1711 Leatheries in Birmingham England, but not sure if it was factory equipment. If it's not, it'll sure look and ride well on a Klunker!

Edited to add: I just realized this is the bike from the auction house. The Gold one also has Schwinn Stainless S6 rims, but I've only seen the stamp on the rear so far, seems to be absent from the front rim. I got the remnants of the Prewar ladies Superior too, it is actually a dark Dark DARK Blue. With the fork being bent, the chrome in poor blistery shape, the fenders rough in multiple ways, and the bolt on kickstand denting the stays, I can certainly see why this one was parted out! I think the dented stays distracted me from getting a picture of the serial number...

 

[GTs58]

I picked this one up for what the parts are worth, but being an odd color Gold, and my first Superior, I think I'll hang onto it.
View attachment 2086488

View attachment 2086486
Odd serial number looks like it is C50827. I'll have to check the axles for dates before concluding a year, but guessing 49 by the catalog color offering for Gold. It has a white undercoat with red pins and white accents and looks consistent with other Schwinn paint jobs so far.

View attachment 2086487 I was worried it was missing the Dural front hub, but it seems the other bikes on the list have the same hub setup, Dural hub with freewheel in rear and Steel Schwinn Script hub in the front. Both brake calipers are Schwinn Script. Not a bad stem to have, but not the double adjustable. The seat appears to be era appropriate, manufactured by 1711 Leatheries in Birmingham England, but not sure if it was factory equipment. If it's not, it'll sure look and ride well on a Klunker!

View attachment 2086489

Edited to add: I just realized this is the bike from the auction house. The Gold one also has Schwinn Stainless S6 rims, but I've only seen the stamp on the rear so far, seems to be absent from the front rim. I got the remnants of the Prewar ladies Superior too, it is actually a dark Dark DARK Blue. With the fork being bent, the chrome in poor blistery shape, the fenders rough in multiple ways, and the bolt on kickstand denting the stays, I can certainly see why this one was parted out! I think the dented stays distracted me from getting a picture of the serial number...

View attachment 2086524

View attachment 2086525

This is crazy that you ended up with those two auction bikes. Looks like the person that won the prewar Superior was after what I thought, the pedals and rear hub brake. The Gold's C serial number sure throws another kicker in dating these. Another unlisted serial, and it does look machine stamped. That blue one with the A serial can possibly be passed off as a late 1951 stamping but no C numbers during this time period. The Opal Gold was also offered on the 1950 models and probably for the remaining years of the Superior.

 

[SirMike1983]

Those are both nice finds. I could see parting the damaged dark blue one [rear hub should be un-laced rather than cut out if the spokes and nipples can be moved]. The gold one seems kind of nice and complete to part out. A C-series serial number doesn't match much of anything. If it was a miss-struck "G", then that could be 1950. If it was a miss-struck "U", the digits are much lower than the others on the list. See if the axles have a date on the gold one. The serial numbers on these are only marginally helpful anyway.

 

[WillWork4Parts]

I understand that this Blue Superior doesn't belong in this list, but I haven't seen anything posted about it anywhere else. So, for anyone that was curious, the serial appears to be hand stamped B1942. The camera would not cooperate and focus on the numbers and the letter at the same time, so this is the best photo I got.

Looks like it would have to fall in 39 and had a leftover large brake drum in the rear with the new AS&CO sprocket. The crank being stamped Superior is pretty nifty too.

This is one of the better condition sections of the rear fender so you can see the stripes. Too cool!

It's funky too that the front fender is in two pieces, with a splice that joins them under the fork tubes. The front part seems like spring steel, or what did they call out in one of the catalogs? Opalescent metal finish? ...like gun blueing. I've seen a few of these 2pc spliced fenders now, so strange!

Note the uniquely boxy, wide offset spoke bed, Schwinn Superior stamped rims too. What a pain it was to cut the smaller diameter modern size tires off! I think these rims are a lot like my Colson Featherweight from the same era.

 

[SirMike1983]

I have a set of "Superior" marked cranks in my parts bin. My post-war Superior cranks do not have that stamp. I'm thinking it's a pre-war Superior thing.

 

[SirMike1983]

I picked this one up for what the parts are worth, but being an odd color Gold, and my first Superior, I think I'll hang onto it.
View attachment 2086488

View attachment 2086486
Odd serial number looks like it is C50827. I'll have to check the axles for dates before concluding a year, but guessing 49 by the catalog color offering for Gold. It has a white undercoat with red pins and white accents and looks consistent with other Schwinn paint jobs so far.

View attachment 2086487 I was worried it was missing the Dural front hub, but it seems the other bikes on the list have the same hub setup, Dural hub with freewheel in rear and Steel Schwinn Script hub in the front. Both brake calipers are Schwinn Script. Not a bad stem to have, but not the double adjustable. The seat appears to be era appropriate, manufactured by 1711 Leatheries in Birmingham England, but not sure if it was factory equipment. If it's not, it'll sure look and ride well on a Klunker!

View attachment 2086489

Edited to add: I just realized this is the bike from the auction house. The Gold one also has Schwinn Stainless S6 rims, but I've only seen the stamp on the rear so far, seems to be absent from the front rim. I got the remnants of the Prewar ladies Superior too, it is actually a dark Dark DARK Blue. With the fork being bent, the chrome in poor blistery shape, the fenders rough in multiple ways, and the bolt on kickstand denting the stays, I can certainly see why this one was parted out! I think the dented stays distracted me from getting a picture of the serial number...

Did you ever have any luck finding any other date indication on the gold bike? A "C" serial number would be unusual based on the other bikes in the list.

 

[WillWork4Parts]

Did you ever have any luck finding any other date indication on the gold bike? A "C" serial number would be unusual based on the other bikes in the list.

I haven't made it around to that one, but I can pull the axles today and post.

 

[GTs58]

I haven't made it around to that one, but I can pull the axles today and post.

That Superior would be a 1939 model if that is a B serial.

 

[WillWork4Parts]

That Superior would be a 1939 model if that is a B serial.

It's definitely not a 39 model.
It's half of a first letter is what it is...

Certainly looks like the rounded end point of a stamp on the right and the arc of what would be a C continuing up and to the right on the left side of that half letter...before the top half fades out, from an angled stamp, or extra filing. Who knows...