Cleveland Welding "Red Dart"

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stretch

stretch

Joined
Sep 23, 2008
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Clawson, MI
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so i bought this bike off of sonatageek, and i got it yesterday. it was just what i wanted and more! so i put it together, and decided to see ho tjhe tires aired up. they worked! i only had to patch the front tube and they roll fine! the hubs work, and it all worked good! so i rode it for the day, and decided to take it apart. heres how far i got.
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it used to be red with white scallops, but someone painted it light blue and silver, and then green and black. this is what it SHOULD'VE looked like. im missing the headlight/taillight, the headbadge, the tank, the fork crown cap, the seat, the chaingaurd, and the kickstand.
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that rusty ole cahin was left to loosen up. it had an attitude and fought me. :lol:
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i tried to take a picture of the serial # but i couldnt get the camera to focus right(i even tried the setting for close-ups) it reads J33511 A. can someone help me find how old it is and what model? somebody said it was a roadmaster, but i have no clue
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took it all apart...
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and set the greasy parts aside till im done with paint. ill update as much as possible, and show you guys and gals the whole build. tips, comments, opinions are much appricated. like is it possible to remove the paint that isnt stock? if so, how?
 
Re: 40's Cleveland Welding 24"-er...what to call it?

nice ride stretch! cant wait to see what you do to this one man! you plannin on stretchin it out a little? give us a little sneak peak bro!

Easy E
 
Re: 40's Cleveland Welding 24"-er...what to call it?

Nice ride. It almost looks like John Deer material next to the snow blower. Since you aren't going to call it mine, I'll wait for my 24" Monarch to get here (maybe today) and maybe steal some of your ideas. Naw' I wouldn't do that but I am interested in what your plans are for it. I'll be watching, cause I know it'll be nice.
 
Re: 40's Cleveland Welding 24"-er...what to call it?

no no stretching on this one.. i wanted to but i dont want to buy another skiptooth cahin to accomidate the longer bike.. at $50-$100 i cant afford just 10 more links lol. and i really want to strip the top layers of paint to get to the stock paint job but i dont know how. tips would be great. update: i took both wheels apart and set the rims, tires and rim strips aside, and went to work on the rear hub. after taking it apart, i scrubbed and scrubbed the hub, removing god only knows how old- paint, and 60 years of grime. so here it is, after cleanig all the hardware and putting it alll back together. the only downside is that the chrome on the coaster arm didnt fair so well. i kinda like the worn look, but what you guys think i should do?
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Re: 40's Cleveland Welding 24"-er...what to call it?

looks good. Id paint the brake arm the same color as the bike :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
 
Re: 40's Cleveland Welding 24"-er...what to call it?

Hi,

The bike was produced by the Cleveland Welding Company.

Check after the A in the serial number, I would expect from the details of the bike that the A is followed by a “C” with a small w inside of it.

With respect to dating the bike, I can give you a ball park estimate based on the characteristics of the frame and the serial number.

The dropouts are the third postwar pattern. I believe they were introduced during 1949 along with the stamped plate fender and kick stand bridges. They were used exclusively through most of 1953 and were superseded by dropouts with slots exiting to the front beginning in 1954.

I am collecting prewar and postwar Cleveland Welding serial numbers to build a database for dating individual bikes and frames. Based on the information I have gathered to date, I would guestimate the bike dates to around 1951 but as I gather more numbers I hope to be able to date bikes more specifically.

Thanks for posting your serial number and good luck with the project.

Phil
 
thanks bud. i was really hoping it to be a 1940's bike, because i checked some pictures of a 1940's roadmaster, and they look exactly alike. but i guess the dropouts are different. oh and can anyone help me locate a headbadge, a seat, and a kickstand?
 
not much more progress, but i did go up to the bike shop and get a new front hub, a new crank(this one has threads, old one didnt), and ordered some spokes. is it normal for chrome spokes to cost $30 for enough to do two wheels? or am i gettin jipped? oh and i need some help. i need a seat that looks like this:
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doesnt have to be in perfect condition, doesnt matter the color of the covering, could be old, new, but i really need a seat like it. and i need it to be reasonably priced.
and all due respect to blink, i used his picture because it was the only one i could find anywhere. http://www.ratrodbikes.com/forum/viewto ... =1&t=12444
 
I have several different Hawthorne badges, let me know if the mounting holes are vertical or horizontal and how far apart.
 
oh its not a hawthorne, as far as i know.. its a cleveland welding roadmaster. but if you say otherwise, the mounting holes are vertical, and are approx. 3" apart. and that hub, wow. it took me a long time to scrub it all down. i wish couldve taken a before picture. :lol:
 
Hey stretch I found the cheapest ones are at http://www.bikepartsusa.com/bikeparts/category/spoke I buy the regular ones not stainless and they are $16 for 144 and come with nipples . I use either 10 1/2 or 10 5/8 that I found are the most common size. If you buy double butted ones like came on the old bikes they are pricey. Good luck with your build. Someone said if you spray oven cleaner on the paint it will take it off one layer at a time. Just dont leave it on too long.
 
Cleveland Welding built bikes for Montgomery Wards Stores and those were badged as Hawthornes and if it was sold by Gambles Hardware it was a Hiawatha. The same bike was sold by Cleveland Welding themselves badged as a Roadmaster. Same bike - different headbadge. I know I don't have a Roadmaster badge, I'll check the Hawthorne and Hiawatha ones and get back to you.

http://www.nemontel.net/~gbradbury/badges.JPG
 
thanks guys, that seat looks perfect for the bike!but i kind of wanted one that needed to be re-upholstered, so i could try something i think would look pretty cool. and the spokes, are they chrome, or just bare metal? the headbadges, i dont really know which one should go on there, but i guess it doesnt really matter to me. are there any signs to tell if its for a certian brand?
 

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