5 speed schwinn cantillever frame
- Thread starter coastie
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This is the 81 ad. Your serial number should be on the bottom of the frame head tube, the first 2 letters will give the year.
Love these bikes, this is the one I have, one of my favorite rides.
Another possiblity if it has VERY thick spokes is a Spitfire 5.
Here is mine. I am looking forward to putting a stickshift on this.
Here is one of the original Klunkerz, at least from Schwinn's persective. It's a 1979 Schwinn Spitfire 5, and from what I could find out it was Schwinn's first foray into the MTB world. They later changed the name to Klunker and Klunker 5 (and then later Crusier and Crusier 5). Currently it is not in Klunker mode, but it still has the beefy spokes and the 5 speed drum brake rear wheel.
Here is mine. I am looking forward to putting a stickshift on this.
Here is one of the original Klunkerz, at least from Schwinn's persective. It's a 1979 Schwinn Spitfire 5, and from what I could find out it was Schwinn's first foray into the MTB world. They later changed the name to Klunker and Klunker 5 (and then later Crusier and Crusier 5). Currently it is not in Klunker mode, but it still has the beefy spokes and the 5 speed drum brake rear wheel.
thanks for all the input. I checked the serial number, and it matches 1978. The spokes on this are very large diameter, so looks like maybe the spitfire? I'll be anxious to see what this thing looks like under all the dirt.
COOL FIND!
kingfish254 said:Another possiblity if it has VERY thick spokes is a Spitfire 5.
Here is mine. I am looking forward to putting a stickshift on this.
Here is one of the original Klunkerz, at least from Schwinn's persective. It's a 1979 Schwinn Spitfire 5, and from what I could find out it was Schwinn's first foray into the MTB world. They later changed the name to Klunker and Klunker 5 (and then later Crusier and Crusier 5). Currently it is not in Klunker mode, but it still has the beefy spokes and the 5 speed drum brake rear wheel.
I think it was first named Klunker 5 changed to Spitfire 5 and then later to Cruiser 5
tuga said:
You are probably right. I researched this way back when I found mine. Since then I get CRS.
According to this the Spitfire came first or maybe even the same time.
http://mombat.org/MOMBAT/Bikes/1979_Sch ... fire5.html
"The Spitfire 5 was an attempt by Schwinn to ride the mountain bike wave without spending too much money. They added a drum brake, heavy duty spokes and 5 speeds to the regular cantilever frame to make a pseudo mountain bike. The Shimano Positron shifting system used a solid wire cable to push and pull the derailleur which has a series of detents that lined up with the gears. This was a very early attempt at indexed shifting. As the "Klunker" craze grew, this same bike was sold with a Klunker 5 name in certain markets. "
But this one suggests otherwise. That Klunker came first until Schwinn was sued.
http://forums.mtbr.com/vintage-retro-cl ... 79568.html
Either way, chicken or egg, that is a cool bike.
http://mombat.org/MOMBAT/Bikes/1979_Sch ... fire5.html
"The Spitfire 5 was an attempt by Schwinn to ride the mountain bike wave without spending too much money. They added a drum brake, heavy duty spokes and 5 speeds to the regular cantilever frame to make a pseudo mountain bike. The Shimano Positron shifting system used a solid wire cable to push and pull the derailleur which has a series of detents that lined up with the gears. This was a very early attempt at indexed shifting. As the "Klunker" craze grew, this same bike was sold with a Klunker 5 name in certain markets. "
But this one suggests otherwise. That Klunker came first until Schwinn was sued.
http://forums.mtbr.com/vintage-retro-cl ... 79568.html
Either way, chicken or egg, that is a cool bike.
And more from the all powerful and maybe truthful Wikipedia:
"By the late 1970s, a new bicycle sport begun by enthusiasts in California had grown into a new type of all-terrain bicycle, the mountain bike. Originally based on Schwinn balloon-tired cruiser bicycles fitted with derailleur gears (called 'Klunkers'), a few participants had begun designing and building small numbers of mountain bikes with frames made out of modern butted chromoly steel. When the sport's original inventors demonstrated their new frame design, Schwinn marketing personnel initially discounted the growing popularity of the mountain bike, concluding that it would become a short-lived fad.[30] The company briefly (1978–79) produced a bicycle styled after the California mountain bikes, the Klunker 5. Using the standard electro-forged cantilever frame, and fitted with five-speed derailleur gears and knobby tires, the Klunker 5 was never heavily marketed, and was not even listed in the Schwinn product catalog. Unlike its progenitors, the Klunker proved incapable of withstanding hard off-road use, and after an unsuccessful attempt to reintroduce the model as the Spitfire 5, it was dropped from production."
"By the late 1970s, a new bicycle sport begun by enthusiasts in California had grown into a new type of all-terrain bicycle, the mountain bike. Originally based on Schwinn balloon-tired cruiser bicycles fitted with derailleur gears (called 'Klunkers'), a few participants had begun designing and building small numbers of mountain bikes with frames made out of modern butted chromoly steel. When the sport's original inventors demonstrated their new frame design, Schwinn marketing personnel initially discounted the growing popularity of the mountain bike, concluding that it would become a short-lived fad.[30] The company briefly (1978–79) produced a bicycle styled after the California mountain bikes, the Klunker 5. Using the standard electro-forged cantilever frame, and fitted with five-speed derailleur gears and knobby tires, the Klunker 5 was never heavily marketed, and was not even listed in the Schwinn product catalog. Unlike its progenitors, the Klunker proved incapable of withstanding hard off-road use, and after an unsuccessful attempt to reintroduce the model as the Spitfire 5, it was dropped from production."
You need to post it here at some point:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=23538
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=23538
Sweet find! 
coastie said:
That is hilarious! They probably thought it would like riding around on a Schwinn Lemon (peeler).
