I'm thinking Elgin?

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late for dinner

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I'm thinking it's an early '40s Elgin, but the chain guard and tank have be scratching my head. :39:
What does the rack and truss rods tell you guys? Possibly Higgins? previous repaint? Thanks.
I have an Elgin badge, guard and suitable saddle standing by in my parts bin if my suspicions are right.
Either way, she's coming home with me tomorrow.:)



 
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Hmmmm, I thought I was starting to answer some of my own questions, but I now have more.
Are both Elgin (prewar) and Higgins (post war) Westfield Columbia built?
I had thought that style chain ring was of Murray origin.
Any info, opinions and clarification is appreciated. Am I on the right track?
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When you disassemble the bike, check the paint color on everything. That might match up some parts. I'd say it's been repainted once or twice, so the inside of the forks and inside of the frame at the BB and the head tube inside part may have the original color. Also, the inside of the chain guard may show the right color with a little scraping or sanding. Same goes for the fenders and rear rack, the undersides are where you are most likely to see original paint. That might answer some questions.
 
A.S.BOLTNUT said:
Looks like Elgin chain ring , and skirts , with Higgins frame and guard , Ratrod.
Lookin girls bike..everything else looks like repops .
~ Rafael ~
Click to expand...

That was my impression of parts too Raf, I suspect bars and grips are more recent. Thanks for your trusted opinion.

Wildcat said:
When you disassemble the bike, check the paint color on everything. That might match up some parts. I'd say it's been repainted once or twice, so the inside of the forks and inside of the frame at the BB and the head tube inside part may have the original color. Also, the inside of the chain guard may show the right color with a little scraping or sanding. Same goes for the fenders and rear rack, the undersides are where you are most likely to see original paint. That might answer some questions.
Click to expand...


Thanks for the tips Wildcat, I highly suspect a repaint at some point. I haven't seen the bike in person yet, but kind of expect there just might be another color (or two) under there.
Salamat :thumbsup:
 
That Columbia tank sure seems to fit like a glove. A good look at the bottom bracket and/or dropouts would probably help i.d. the frame.
 
Thank You Black Monark, that info is appreciated.
The price was right and I'm alright with the variety of manufacturers parts, knowing that the bike doesn't have a pedigree to protect.
I wanted to add a step thru to my collection and this old girl gives me a new variety of parts to play with in my Heinz 57 herd.
 
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Here's a pic of my late '40s JC Higgins. As you can see, the previous owner liked blue spray paint....everywhere...tires, too. I stripped off some of the paint to find it used to be green. In places " where the sunshine never shines" like on the fork tube and underside of fenders showed its true green color
 
1oldbikelover said:
View attachment 19457 View attachment 19455 View attachment 19454 Here's a pic of my late '40s JC Higgins. As you can see, the previous owner liked blue spray paint....everywhere...tires, too. I stripped off some of the paint to find it used to be green. In places " where the sunshine never shines" like on the fork tube and underside of fenders showed its true green color
Click to expand...

That's about as close as you can get, Thanks for sharing your pics 1oldbikelover.

Well she made it home this morning and I spent just a bit of time with her so far.
I haven't discovered any hidden colors anywhere. If it was a repaint it was pretty well done all be it some time ago.
I quickly rubbed her down with some MacGuires and 0000 steel wool/linseed where needed. The oxidation rubbed off easily and left her with a decent gleam.
The pleasant surprises for me are the deco stem and looooong seat post.
It has a broken rear fender brace, which is no big whoop, and mismatched replacement wheels as expected, but still running 1" cog and sprocket.
I replaced the saddle and have another light top to add later.
After lunch, I'll check on the horn unit, measure badge holes, tend to some other details and come up with a plan.



"I love the smell of MacGuires and Linseed oil in the morning"
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Well I gave the bike a once over on our first meeting and I did find a hint of green under a fender. Surprise! :wink1:
The rear sprocket is a home conversion and works just fine, the horn is all there and clean, but no beep yet, changed the front rim to match the rear, replaced rear fender brace, greased her up and gave her a new pair of white boots.
The old stem and bars will be lent to an Elgin twin, which may be revealed shortly.( It's one of six bikes that are sitting in bare metal-to cold to paint, but warm enough to prep!)
Anyway, Thanks for all your help and here she is. It's been a good day!


Tomorrows project....
 
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late for dinner said:
Well I gave the bike a once over one our first meeting and I did find a hint of green under a fender. Surprise! :wink1:
The rear sprocket is a home conversion and works just fine, the horn is all there and clean, but no beep yet, changed the front rim to match the rear, replaced rear fender brace, greased her up and gave her a new pair of white boots.
The old stem and bars will be lent to an Elgin twin, which may be revealed shortly.( It's one of six bikes that are sitting in bare metal-to cold to paint, but warm enough to prep!)
Anyway, Thanks for all your help and here she is. It's been a good day!


Tomorrows project....
Click to expand...
What a beauty....just the way she is! Nice job!
 
Good looking bike! It looks very similar to my wife's 53 J.C Higgins. It's a Murray made frame. Look on the bottom of the crank housing for the serial numbers. If it has MO? stamped in it,then you have a Murray Ohio frame. The third letter tells the year. R is 52, S is 53 and so on. It should also have an MOS stamped on there somewhere which is the Sears designation.

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Hi Jeff,
The serial number on this one would have to be determined by a forensics lab I'm afraid. It has been revealed, but is missing 1/2 of the digits and shows no letters.
I've been looking at the pic of serial # that I took yesterday, but will check on the bottom bracket next time I see it.
Thanks for the information.
 
You're welcome. We have 4 balloon tire bikes. A 52 and 55 Western Flyer jet tank bikes, and a 53 and 56 J.C Higgins, all Murray made. It took me a while to find the serial number info, but once I did, I must be correct. The 52 was bought new by my wife's great Uncle Fred. He bought a 49 Chevy new, drove for 3 years, kept knocking the fenders off of it, parked it, and went to Western Auto and bought the bike. My wife's 53 J.C Higgins was also owned by the same uncle. Your bike favors it quite a bit. Enjoy it.

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