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WINGBAR - Silver King vs. Wards Duralium Silver Streak?

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Very much agree Marty! Were it just a matter of popping the speedo stem on there, maybe, but drilling the truss rod is a step too far.

For me, my Wards Silver Streak wingbar has what I believe to be a repro rack, and since they didn't come standard on that bike, I'm thinking of taking it off. The speedo stem however appears orig, and likely on the bike for a very long time, maybe from new, so I will leave it.

As soon as I get the bike in my hot little hands, I'll post some pix.
 
I can commiserate your conundrum, Justin.
When I got my 36 Hawthorne, Duralium Airflow, i.e. "Flocycle."
I wanted to install the speedometer console stem, but after much consideration, I came to appreciate the bike as it was originally equipped.
I think, that's what separates the fortunate owners of the Monark flagship bikes from the lowly Mongomery Wards bought bikes. Lol!
Besides, I would've had to drill a couple of holes in the truss rod to install the totally cool internal speedometer cable routing.
I typically don't like drilling holes where they were not originally.
So in the end, I came to appreciate the Wards Hawthorne offerings from Monark, Silver King, Inc.
Cool bikes no matter which version you are fortunate enough to have.View attachment 934096
Now I’m confused. This is one of the truss rods from my Hawthorne Duralium Airflow. The holes sure look to be original.
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@STRADALITE I think @cyclingday is saying his Flocycle did not come factory equipped with the speedo console gooseneck nor the holes in the truss rod; to add the speedo rig to his bike would require cutting holes in his original truss rod to accommodate the cable. I believe they made several levels of the Flocycle, his probably was speedo console delete.

If your truss rod has these holes, (they do indeed look factory to me) and it was original to the bike, it very likely has or had the speedo console gooseneck. Post some pix of your bike!
 
@STRADALITE I think @cyclingday is saying his Flocycle did not come factory equipped with the speedo console gooseneck nor the holes in the truss rod; to add the speedo rig to his bike would require cutting holes in his original truss rod to accommodate the cable. I believe they made several levels of the Flocycle, his probably was speedo console delete.

If your truss rod has these holes, (they do indeed look factory to me) and it was original to the bike, it very likely has or had the speedo console gooseneck. Post some pix of your bike!

When I got my bike it had quite a few incorrect parts on it. Seat, stem, handlebars. Fenders were wrong but the braces were correct. I have since acquired the speedo console stem and other missing parts.
I’m in the process of putting it together and restoring a seat for it.
Pics will be posted once I’m done.
 
When I got my bike it had quite a few incorrect parts on it. Seat, stem, handlebars. Fenders were wrong but the braces were correct. I have since acquired the speedo console stem and other missing parts.
I’m in the process of putting it together and restoring a seat for it.
Pics will be posted once I’m done.

Awesome! Can't wait to see it. When I get my bike, hopefully weekend after this, I'll post some pix. Would love to see before and after photos. We'll start a thread and see how many wing bar images people will post. I'm sure it's been done in the past, but would be nice to see who's got 'em today. I know a few folks who added one to their collections last year, just a great bike no matter how you dress it up or down.
 
After a full year of waiting my Wards Silver Streak finally came in. The saga of getting this bike is epic, and I don't wish it on anyone, but I will always appreciate the bike more for what I had to go through to get it. A big shout out and huge thanks to @New Mexico Brant and @fordmike65 along with others for making it happen!

The first two pix are how I received it yesterday, then I spent hours last night fiddling with it, and I think I like this configuration the best, it's the closest I can get to the catalog ad for now. The rack I believe is a repro, and since the Silver Streak seems to have come standard without it I had no problem taking it off. The fenders have a great deal of original paint, and are very straight; the rack only served to hide that rear fender, and took focus from the back of that frame with the "tail fins" at the axle slots. And now the teardrop tail light looks like it's floating all by itself back there. I like the paired down look quite a bit... every bit of focus should be on that frame.

I also removed the speedo/gooseneck console. It could be original, or a repro, I don't really know, but they weren't offered on any of the wing bars, nor show up in the catalog as even an accessory, so off it goes! Removing it de-cluttered the head set, and again makes the eye go to the main event, those wings molded in the aluminum (er, duralium). I also put the winged, deco stem found on the first iteration of the M137 on it, and it brings together the deco elements on the headlight and wings on the main bar too. I really like the horizontal top line of the thing, it really streamlines the bars and headset.

Even changing out the grips to correct ones lightened things up a bit up front. The wheels are original and in really fine shape, and the bike is overall very nicely preserved and original. Everything is now correct/original equipment except the seat has been redone, and the grips are repro. It even has the neat, original cast front hub with hi-lo cooling fins. I'm told these cracked and failed quite often and that few are found actually in service on bikes.

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Congratulations! Now here's a titbit that may enlighten you when speaking about your Silver Streak. The name "Wingbar" was not a factory generated name, but instead, one that was coined by a person I believe you're familiar with – Leon Dixon. In the 70's- 80's, Leon was one of the most knowledgeable bicycle historians and prolific bicycle collector. He also gave us the "HEXTUBE" and “The World’s Fair” names. Unfortunately over the years, Leon's shenanigans and unscrupulous deals has sour many collectors and he has been ostercised from the bicycle community for far too many reasons.

My intentions of this contribution is not to begin a diatribe or a discussion about Mr Dixon (please reserve your comments or park your thoughts elsewhere on the many relevant posts). Instead this nugget of information should be inserted into your "knowledge bank" whenever you are showcasing your beautiful bike.

BTW look again, carefully at the pic in the 1937 Wards catalog...note the shape and the stamped pattern of the stem...it suspiciously looks like the Torrington deco stem with hex handlebars and not the coveted Monark "wing" deco stem. But why get anal now...it's yours to enjoy...relax and congrats again!
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