What have I got here?

[yoerg4]

I recently purchased a shed full of old bikes-several from the WWII era. This is one of the bikes. I removed all the parts that were obviously not correct. Not being at all familiar with this model I have a few questions-Is this a war time VG? If so would it have had blackout hubs? Are the rear fender brackets correct? Is the sprocket a standard size? were these used by the military? I could go on but this is a good start.
Thanks so much for any info!!

 

[rustjunkie]

What does the headbadge say?

 

[yoerg4]

Oh yeah-it is a Columbia. I forgot to post a pic of the badge.

 

[rustjunkie]

http://www.vintagecolumbiabikes.com/id79.html

 

[yoerg4]

Cool, thanks! So it is a mid to late 1942 Columbia light weight. It looks like the USN used this type of bike-is there a serial number designation like on the Army bike or were the bikes basic civilian models?
I hope that I am not asking completely redundant questions and again thanks for your help.

 

[MrColumbia]

It would have been a civilian model. The navy base could use discretionary spending to purchase bikes like this but there was no government contract with Westfield for them like in the case of the MF, MG and MC bikes.

 

[yoerg4]

That makes sense. I am assuming that the hubs were New Departure black outs by late '42?

 

[izee2]

Nice find. Because the bars and headset hardware are blacked out I would bet that the Hubs and BB hardware were also. The rear fender as well as the braces are not correct for this model. Possibly the front as well. Check out the following thread. I had some of the the same questions... There is a lot of info shared from Johan and Mrcolumba. http://thecabe.com/forum/threads/what-do-i-have-here.76650/

 

[yoerg4]

Thanks so much. I am currently restoring a 1941 USN Dodge WC 26 Carryall and do WWII USN living history. My goal is to get this bike correctly restored to what was in use by the Navy during the war.

 

[izee2]

Nice projects you have going. Keep us posted on your progress. Parts for your bike aren't super rare but you have to do some digging to find them. I have been refurbishing a 44' VG and have been lucky to find most parts here or on eBay. Still looking for a couple. If you come across a blacked out handlebar and a stem, like the one on your bike, please let me know.


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