I posted two photos in my build thread of Sears Chief Motorbikes that were listed as made in 1915. My initial reaction is it appears that nearly every Sears Chief I've encountered on the internet was made in 1915. Reason being is I've never seen the year verified via serial number or any identifying factors unique to the bike during the supposed year it was made. This was cause for me to wonder if I'd ever be able to narrow down the year of my Sears Chief. Lucky for me, I stumbled across some very valuable and insightful information about this bike on the Classic & Antique Bicycle Exchange a.k.a. The CABE - http://thecabe.com/vbulletin/showth...919-Sears-Chief-Documentation-amp-Bike-Thread - and had the luxury of looking at Sears Chief ads from 1915-1919.
The bike on the left is from a 1915 ad, and the bike on the right is from a 1916 ad. Right off the bat, you'll recognize that the pulley for the 3 speed cable on both frames is located on the top bar, and that the top and bottom bars on both frames appear to be parallel. The darts on the seat post mast of both frames, though hard to tell in the 1916 ad, are side by side to one another. However, there's one, subtle difference between the two frames. The top and bottom bars of the 1916 frame appear to be slightly farther apart.
Here's my frame. I was unable to find the year via serial number, which leaves me to rely heavily on physical attributes to narrow down the year it was built. As of now, I'm leaning toward 1915 but here's what I'm curious to know. Which ad do you think best resembles the year my frame was made?
The bike in the middle right is from a 1917 ad, which highlights the year when modifications were made to the frame and paint design. Unlike the 1915 & 16 frames, the pulley has been mounted to the seat post mast instead of the top bar. Also, the top and bottom bars do not appear to be parallel, and the point where the bottom bar meets the seat post mast appears to be lower in comparison to earlier frames. The darts on the seat post mast are longer and do not appear to be side by side to one another as well. This now leads me to an interesting observation I discovered a few days ago about photos of a Sears Chief that I recently posted in my build thread.
According to http://www.nostalgic.net/bicycle176,the Sears Chief in two of the photos below was originally built in 1915. Looking at the photo on the bottom left, you'll see the pulley mounted to the seat post mast, and it appears in the photo on the top right, at least from my vantage point, that the top and bottom bars are not parallel just like the frame in the 1917 bike ad. The darts on the seat post mast also are lengthened and do not appear to be side by side to one another just like the frame in the 1917 bike ad.
So what does this all mean? Is it possible that the Sears Chief in the photos above was made in a year later than 1915? There are other variables to consider before coming to that conclusion, and it's one I'm not going to make since I've never seen this bike up close as well as the fact that I'm not an expert. However, it's definitely a possibility that should give one a moment of pause and should never be ruled out.
The bike on the left is from a 1915 ad, and the bike on the right is from a 1916 ad. Right off the bat, you'll recognize that the pulley for the 3 speed cable on both frames is located on the top bar, and that the top and bottom bars on both frames appear to be parallel. The darts on the seat post mast of both frames, though hard to tell in the 1916 ad, are side by side to one another. However, there's one, subtle difference between the two frames. The top and bottom bars of the 1916 frame appear to be slightly farther apart.
Here's my frame. I was unable to find the year via serial number, which leaves me to rely heavily on physical attributes to narrow down the year it was built. As of now, I'm leaning toward 1915 but here's what I'm curious to know. Which ad do you think best resembles the year my frame was made?
The bike in the middle right is from a 1917 ad, which highlights the year when modifications were made to the frame and paint design. Unlike the 1915 & 16 frames, the pulley has been mounted to the seat post mast instead of the top bar. Also, the top and bottom bars do not appear to be parallel, and the point where the bottom bar meets the seat post mast appears to be lower in comparison to earlier frames. The darts on the seat post mast are longer and do not appear to be side by side to one another as well. This now leads me to an interesting observation I discovered a few days ago about photos of a Sears Chief that I recently posted in my build thread.
According to http://www.nostalgic.net/bicycle176,the Sears Chief in two of the photos below was originally built in 1915. Looking at the photo on the bottom left, you'll see the pulley mounted to the seat post mast, and it appears in the photo on the top right, at least from my vantage point, that the top and bottom bars are not parallel just like the frame in the 1917 bike ad. The darts on the seat post mast also are lengthened and do not appear to be side by side to one another just like the frame in the 1917 bike ad.
So what does this all mean? Is it possible that the Sears Chief in the photos above was made in a year later than 1915? There are other variables to consider before coming to that conclusion, and it's one I'm not going to make since I've never seen this bike up close as well as the fact that I'm not an expert. However, it's definitely a possibility that should give one a moment of pause and should never be ruled out.
