Reproduction cruisers?

[dirtman]

I've seen those tires on bikes here, but their just out of my price range.
The last Goodyear knockoffs I bought were $8.99 at a bike shop.
They weren't perfect but they were affordable.
The original Lighning darts are wide, they fill the fenders out very well. I've seen a few bikes
with 2.35" wide Fat Franks that look great but those aren't cheap either.
I generally only buy black tires, they look good longer.

 

[bloo]

I'd like to see actual measurements with a caliper of the Carlisles on a known rim width at a known pressure. I have done some checks like that. I have no Carlisles here, so no data on those. Sometimes width in balloon tires is an illusion. The caliper doesn't lie, and much of what I thought I knew was wrong.

 

[Nashman]

$8.99 for a tire? Heck of a deal. If affordable is the way to roll, makes sense to me. I guess as long as they hold up and don't crack and fall apart fast. False economy if it blows up/you wipe out, ( medical bills and pain and suffering is taxing) or have to replace frequently. Not my choice, but to each their own. You certainly are inquisitive and research savvy.

Funny about the phone without a camera. Personally I don't use a cell phone ( I have a flip cell but only used the crappy camera once testing it) often or at all. But the camera option seems to be the best feature on most modern cells.

Nothing is cheap these days. If you can enjoy life and a hobby on a tight budget, all the better if it suits you or is necessary. I've been there, done that. Now I tend to indulge in my "grey days" as life is too short to scrimp at this stage. I'm lucky I can, for now..ha!!

 

[Archie Sturmer]

I kind of like the style of some of the later 1990’s to early 2000’s beach cruisers from Taiwan ROC, but what to do with them(?).

With a few of the nicer ones, I gifted to relatives, with minor changes, (e.g., tires). Others are kind of on back burner type project plans, (maybe someday).

What I noticed is that I like the repro styling, but kind of enjoy projects that I can actually work on, and have changed my preferences to more classic or antique bicycles. If it is my project, why not start with the real deal.

I got a free Orbic RC-2200L flip phone and have posted a couple of pictures, (I text message them to my email computer), and have found that it is important to realize that the lens is in the non-flipping part; and it helps to hold the phone sideways (landscape view); and to take pictures in good daylight, (in case the flash doesn’t go off).

 

[dirtman]

Most flip phones have very poor cameras, 3.1mp is the highest I've seen, but most are under 2.0mp.
I've not seen any with a flash. The phone they gave me feels really cheap, sort of like cheap plastic toy, but its super light. It can stick the thing in my shirt pocket and not feel it hanging there or pulling my shirt down around my neck.
I had a smart phone for a short while a few years ago, camera and all, but it got dropped a few times and that was all she wrote.
The things are fragile. The screens are made of glass, they're too big to fit into a shirt pocket, and if you put them in your back pocket they get broken in half when you forget and sit down, or they work their way out when your riding and they bounce down the highway. The flip phone was free, I pay $15/m for unlimited phone service. I don't care about anything else, it does text, but I refuse to use it. The way I see it we got away from the text pager era 30 years ago, why go back. Its far faster to just pick up the phone and call, say what you need to say and hang up. I'm not sitting here pecking away at a phone trying to poke out a message to someone when I can just dial and call them. If they choose not to answer, they can check their voice mail.

I have an old Samsung Galaxy S5 that I'm told is too old to use these days, but its got a decent camera, its what I use to take pics most of the time but I have to remember to take it with me.

I didn't make it back to the flea market this week, I drove by but the place looked pretty much empty so I didn't bother.
The sky looked like it was going to rain and the wind was blowing pretty hard so most people likely just stayed home. The holiday weekend also didn't help turnout there either.

I'm not a fan of any of the newer bikes, some may be okay but I'll stick with the vintage bikes.
I only look at the newer bikes if I think I can get them cheap enough for parts, usually tires, handle bars or saddles.

 

[Robert Troub]

Tht Western flyer looks a lot like the JC Higgins bike I saw a couple years ago but the JCH was minus a tank. Same tires, cg, rims, tires, frame etc.

The Hoppy had even cheaper looking rims, they looked like steel versions of the cheap single wall aluminum rims found on many department store bikes. The CG was the correct basic shape but very thin.

The tires were different, more like the old Lightning Darts. They had the chain oval tread down the middle, and the raised diamond pattern along the edge of the whitewalls. The Made In China was partly hidden by the rim's edge like they tried to hide it along the bead.

My cell phone carrier shut down 3G last month, so they sent out a replacement phone, like the last one, this one has no camera. Its only got the carrier name on the cover. Its a rugged phone, it can fall off a roof, bounce 4ft and still work, its slid out of my pocket so many times, I can contest its pretty rugged. If I had one of those all glass phones I'd have been sweeping up the bits long ago.
What saves it I think is that its so light, its not more than a few ounces or so.

Get a cell phone with a camera.....most are like free....

 

[razinhellcustomz]

Did they ever make a reproduction Hop Along Cassidy bike?

I was at the local flea market and a guy had two 26" made in China black cruisers built to look like the old Rollfast Hopalong Cassidy bikes.
They had thin metal fenders, all the graphics were decals, the fender headlight was flimsy plastic, and the rims were already rusting chrome. The saddle was plastic with rubber encased springs.
I'd say less than even Walmart Schwinn quality.
However, the tires were 26x2.125" unbranded copies of the old Carlisle Lightning Darts in white wall. Each had a small Made in China script close to the bead on one side.

I've seen the Schwinn Phantom repro bikes, as well as Columbia, Roadmaster, and JC Higgins, but not a Rollfast. The bikes had a Hopalong Cassidy headbadge decal that was just a metalic looking sticker.
I think maybe the right name for it would be a tribute bike, it certainly wasn't an exact reproduction but my big question was who made the tires?
As far as i know, the last Lightning darts were in the late 70's or early 80's. I remember trying to buy a set where I worked in 1979 and couldn't find a set through any of the suppliers that shop used. I had to settle for a pair of Carlisle whitewall studded tires. At that time old school cruiser tires were getting scarce and most 2.125 tires came only in MTB or BMX style treads.

Maybe there's a source out there making Lightning Dart copies now?

The bikes were likely surplus, the guy had a bunch of department store bikes for sale, all looked like they've been banged around bit, likely by him hauling them on in an old pop up camper trailer with the top removed. He had them piled atop one another like firewood when he left. Absolutely no concern for the paint or about denting fenders.

He had $200 on each of them. I didn't have a camera or I'd have snapped a pic or two but my new cell phone they sent me doesn't have a camera.
I did a google search and couldn't find any HC repop bikes or any talk about one so I have no clue was to who made the tires. I'm fairly certain there was never a made in China Carlisle back in the day either.
If the weather is decent, and I get the chance, and I remember my camera, maybe I'll take a ride to see if he's got them there again.

I have a couple Murray made bikes from the late 80's-early 90's with Swallow made knock off Lightning Dart tires that are Chinese or Taiwan made.. Hope this helps... Good luck... Razin....

 

[bloo]

Swallow made knock off Lightning Dart tires that are Chinese or Taiwan made..

Hey @razinhellcustomz , we love pictures <hint>.

 

[Nashman]

I kind of like the style of some of the later 1990’s to early 2000’s beach cruisers from Taiwan ROC, but what to do with them(?).

With a few of the nicer ones, I gifted to relatives, with minor changes, (e.g., tires). Others are kind of on back burner type project plans, (maybe someday).

What I noticed is that I like the repro styling, but kind of enjoy projects that I can actually work on, and have changed my preferences to more classic or antique bicycles. If it is my project, why not start with the real deal.

I got a free Orbic RC-2200L flip phone and have posted a couple of pictures, (I text message them to my email computer), and have found that it is important to realize that the lens is in the non-flipping part; and it helps to hold the phone sideways (landscape view); and to take pictures in good daylight, (in case the flash doesn’t go off).

I did this one up about 10 years ago. My G/F loves it. Light and easy to ride. BRC imported in the 80's.

 

[razinhellcustomz]

Hey @razinhellcustomz , we love pictures <hint>.

Yeah, thanks in storage...