GTs58
I'm the Wiz, and nobody beats me!
In '55, the Schwinn catalog advertised the "Hornet Deluxe" as being equipped with the springer fork, chrome s-2 rims, white sidewall Typhoon tires, a Rocket Ray headlight, a rear rack, and a tank, but alas, a detachable kickstand. the standard "Hornet" had painted rims with blackwalls, a torpedo light, and truss rods, the rear rack, and the tank, but once again, the detachable kickstand. The Spitfire was nothing but a bare bike, with a detachable kick stand.
What I did notice was that the bikes with the detachable kickstands were the only models that were not cantilevered frame models. Any significance to this?
Maybe Schwinn's bean counter decided what frames will be involved in the Competitive market. The Flying Star frame went from a single bar to a cantilever frame and it still had the cheap stem, bolt on stand and solid color paint but had chrome rims. The evolution of Schwinn's models is pretty interesting and they were always evolving. The Tornado evolved into the Typhoon and that was the bargain basement model of the day. Then it continued on as one of Schwinn's last Middleweight models, still never having a chrome fork crown.