1956 J.C. Higgins

[yoothgeye]

Awesome bike.

Are you sure it's a 56 ?

I have what I thought was a 56, and was told / read that was the year there was a strike and mine has the euro 3 piece cranks, imported during the said strike.

will have to see if I have a pic, mine's super rough .

great as-is, will be watching to see this one cleaned up .

Same question as my '56 was West German made with the 3 piece crank. (it was my build off bike)

 

[Dr. Tankenstein]

Before I can dig into this one, I need to clean/organize the 'laboratory'. Parts and tools are EVERYWHERE right now.

Hopefully, that will happen this week (got two 15 hour days scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday though ). Once it's cleaned up, I''ll start tearing down and bag/tag parts, I'll get the serial # off of it (I think the Sears catalog page number is stamped on the BB too).

We can go from there, but as you can see in the ad and my bike, it's a one piece crankset on it.

Stay tuned......

Cheers,
Dr. T

 

[ifitsfreeitsforme]

Glad to see you're thinking of refreshing the paint and clearing it instead of repainting it. It looks great as is.

 

[Dr. Tankenstein]

Yeah, couldn't bring myself to tear it up, now I need to find the only missing piece.

The headlight.

I have never see none like it before, is this gonna become my 'Holy Grail'? Guess I could always put a Delta style on there, but this thing is uber-cool!

If anyone has one, PLEASE let me know!

Cheers,
Dr. T

 

[kingfish254]

That looks a little like this one that is for sale
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=63010

 

[Dr. Tankenstein]

It does look similar, the ad is drawing after all, maybe that's the 'artist's impression' of what it would look like. :mrgreen:
Doesn't matter, tough to justify that much on a light right now. So, the search continues!

Cheers,
Dr. T

 

[Rustinkerer]

I have what I thought was a 56, and was told / read that was the year there was a strike and mine has the euro 3 piece cranks, imported during the said strike.

That's true, but there were some Murray built bikes built before and after said strike. If the OP's bike really is a 56, it'll be stamped 'MOS-V' on the BB. i can't see it clearly in the pic. -Adam

 

[yoothgeye]

That's what I was thinking, some of the '56 offerings could've been built in late '55 and some could've been put together with loose stock. How rare are the German made strike bikes exactly? We shall never know.

This light is only "close but no cigar" http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-DELTA-STYLE ... 26&vxp=mtr

 

[Dr. Tankenstein]

Yooth,
That is a cool light! I just wish it was twice as big, I'd even pay twice as much. :mrgreen:

OK, full serial number from BB:
MOTS-V
MOD502 4584
237507

I know it's a 56, but can anyone tell me what month?
Wait, it was made in 1956 which makes it 56 years old, cool. :roll: (dork) :mrgreen:

Cheers,
Dr. T

 

[kingfish254]

And you're gonna finish it within 56 days, right?

 

[big kountry]

Jealous is my name I saw one in Missouri a couple of weeks ago with the headlight on the fender but the guy wanted $650 for it I couldn't convince myself to buy it even with the restoration it had done but I'm a cheapie

 

[Dr. Tankenstein]

kingfish, you know me better than that!... :lol:

Heck, I just woke up at 5:45 AM with yet ANOTHER wheelset combo in my head....:?

bk,
I hear ya, as much as I love my new bike, $650 would be tough to lay down for one, even FULLY restored.

Now, if it was a more iconic model like a Colorflow...... it would still be tough. :mrgreen:

Well, my birthday is next Friday, better start 'working' the Mrs. if I want that kickback hub!

Cheers,
Dr. T

 

[Rustinkerer]

OK, full serial number from BB:
MOTS-V
MOD502 4584
237507

I know it's a 56, but can anyone tell me what month?
Wait, it was made in 1956 which makes it 56 years old, cool. :roll: (dork) :mrgreen:

Cheers,
Dr. T

Only Schwinn had month/week/day info, the year is as close as you can get on a Murray. But again, either MOS-V or also MOTS-V are both 56 codes, and 4584 is the Sears catalog #. -Adam

 

[Dr. Tankenstein]

Thanks Adam, knowing it's an American-made 56 is enough.

Cheers,
Dr. T

 

[Dr. Tankenstein]

Since this has progressed from my 'Fresh Finds' thread to my 'ideas for the build' vs. the 'build thread', I'm looking for your input.

Upon further mental gymnastics, I'm leaning away from a 24" wheelset with 24 x 3 Thick Bricks (I know, I know, mo fatta, mo betta). Instead, since the original wheels are in such great shape (the rear needs trued, but no biggie), I'm leaning toward some 26 x 2.35 whitewalls. Still fatta, but more in keeping with the original size (26 x 2.125).

Also, since I plan on actually riding this bike, I'm gonna need more than one speed. So, 'enter the kickback' (maybe that will be my build thread name, homage to Bruce Lee). The Automatic hub was made from 1960 to 1969. It was last listed in the 1970 Schwinn Catalog. So, it post-dates this bike.

But like the tire size change, it could have been an 'along the way' upgrade. So, your thoughts.... Get a rebuilt Bendix or a new Sturmey-Archer S2C? Please keep in mind, I know NOTHING about rebuilding a hub, so I'm looking for reliability 'out of the box'.


Whatcha think?

Cheers,
Dr. T

 

[kingfish254]

Are 2 speeds enough around hilly Northa ATL?

If you going for a clean resto mod look, then I can see why you are leaning towards a kickback. (I also have no experience with one).

I can't say enough good things about my Nexus 7 hub, but you would have to have some shifter somewhere for it.

 

[Dr. Tankenstein]

Yeah, hopefully two will do. I think I can get away with 'cruisin' the Silver Comet trail on a deuce. If I need to workout harder than that, I've got my 6 speed converted MTB.

I'm with you on the Nexus hubs (3 or 7 or..) but I'm hoping to get the best of both worlds. Retaining the clean look of no cables (HATE cables) and the added gearing.

Gonna stop by an LBS on my way home that sells Bontrager, gonna see if they'll order me a set of 26 x 2.35 whitewall Solanas.

Cheers,
Dr. T

 

[yoothgeye]

I like those, since I'm too lazy to search, about how much do they cost?

 

[Dr. Tankenstein]

Well, pulled the trigger and ordered a pair of the 'fatties', 26 x 2.35. That's the same size as the Schwalbe Fat Frank.
I went with these over the Electra Vintage Diamond because I thought the tread looked more like the original Allstates.

Yooth,
Best yet, they're only $24.99, that's not much more than the Bell stereotypical knobbies at Wal-Mart. Even better, he let me order them and pay when I pick up. I printed the details page, highlighted the part#, I was in and out in less than 10 minutes (not that I was in a hurry to leave).

They should be in next Thursday.

Here's the link to them: http://bontrager.com/model/08885

Cheers,
Dr. T

 

[yoothgeye]

Last question and I'll leave you alone, how is it pronounced? Bon-trager or Bont-rager or some other way?