Roadmaster expert please..... w/pic & ser#

[AntonyR]

Unfortunately its just guesswork, without an actual dated store catalog, or something like that to go by. Just looking at it my guess is either very late prewar to early postwar. When I have a bike that could go either way like that, I just call it a 'war time' bike.

 

[militarymonark]

well you can't call it a war time bike because it would have had blacked out hubs and sprocket and prob no tank or rack at least I've never seen a war time bike with all the good stuff on it

 

[AntonyR]

I don't mean it like 'during war', I mean it as in 'around the time of WWII', either near the beginning or shortly after. If you'd rather, just call it a '40s Cleveland Weld. That's probably as close as you're gonna come to dating it anyway.

 

[AntonyR]

well you can't call it a war time bike because it would have had blacked out hubs and sprocket and prob no tank or rack at least I've never seen a war time bike with all the good stuff on it

Here's my 'wartime' Western Flier. It has a prewar headbadge, but it doesn't have the dropstand ears on the rear dropouts like my '41 Roadmaster. It has black-out hubs and pedals, including wooden pedal blocks. CW didn't produce any bikes during WWII, so is it a prewar or postwar bike? I don't know because I haven't seen another one like it. If someone asks, I just call it a wartime bike, and let them figure it out...

 

[Langsmer]

Double post

 

[Langsmer]

AntonyR, did you restore your bike using a stencil kit? Any idea where I might hunt one down? I'm going to start into one of these bikes (exactly like Militarymonark's if you know what I mean) as soon as it comes in in the mail .

 

[AntonyR]

The elusive Roadmaster stencil

AntonyR, did you restore your bike using a stencil kit? Any idea where I might hunt one down? I'm going to start into one of these bikes (exactly like Militarymonark's if you know what I mean) as soon as it comes in in the mail .

I started asking people that were selling stencils of other makes on ebay and never got any responses. I asked Memory Lane. No luck. I finally found a catalog picture of what my bike was supposed to look like, then bit the bullet. I bought some high quality spray paint that matched the colors I was after, along with 4", and 1" 3M blue masking tape, black automotive vinyl pin striping, black acrylic paint and a fine brush. I had the frame and parts bead blasted, I primered everything 2 coats and scotch brited it, then sprayed the light areas, then masked them off while looking at the picture to keep it real(sort of speak) using a razor blade, then sprayed the darker color, removed the masking, then used the pin striping between them. The acrylic is to join the edges of the pin striping and to give it a little tail on the end so it looks semi-hand done. I dunno. I like how it came out. People seem to like it.

 

[Langsmer]

Sounds like thats what I will have to do. It will just be a rider anyway. Thanks for the info!

 

[JOEL]

That frame is earlier than the ones you guys posted. Notice the straight down tube?

 

[AntonyR]

Thanks

That frame is earlier than the ones you guys posted. Notice the straight down tube?

We know. I covered that in my first post. While the pic you posted is a '39-'40, mine, having the only difference from your frame, a curved down tube, making it a '40-42.