'50s (Bauer?) Jet - Ladies 26" Middleweight - YEAR???

[80'sDetroiter]

What do we have here? The pedals are WECO and the partial sticker on the seat tube reads "MA...WESTER...", possibly indicating it was made in Western Germany. The decals and head badge all clearly read "JET". The serial number on the BBS is 497178. I haven't seen any similar bikes pictured on the Internet. Any ideas? Thanks!8)

 

[Wildcat]

Re: Mysterious Ladies Middleweight, German "JET"?

That frame has potential. Nice curves.
Does the seat have a name on it?

 

[Rustinkerer]

Re: Mysterious Ladies Middleweight, German "JET"?

There are a bunch of Euro middleweights that all seem to be made by the same company. Stelber and Royce Union seem to be the biggest two names, and RU was part of Union cycle, who made pedals for Schwinn. My theory is that Union, or another factory, supplied the frames and hardware, and other co.'s assembled them and sold them under various badges. 50 years later, it makes for a lot of confusion!! -Adam

 

[80'sDetroiter]

Re: Mysterious Ladies Middleweight, German "JET"?

Wildcat,

I don't see any markings on the seat. It seems fairly complex: long thin springs running underneath a nylon shell, bi-color vinyl cover, two large springs. The blue/white color matches the paint scheme. I'm guessing it's original. I wonder what the chain guard, rear fender, and rear rack looked like. The attached fender is half missing. I took a picture of the seat for you to contemplate. Thanks.

Rustinkerer,

Thanks for the info. I suppose this bike is fairly uncommon. I will keep searching for details. 8)

 

[skillsthebarber]

Re: Mysterious Ladies Middleweight, German "JET"?

I have the same bike but with a different name. mine was badged an Aristocrat. Here is the build link. There a little info on page 2 about the bike. I ended up giving up on the build and am working on a Roadmaster for my wife now.
http://www.ratrodbikes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=29153&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&hilit=aristocrat

 

[Sinner4]

Re: Mysterious Ladies Middleweight, German "JET"?

I have the same frame but its a Fleet Wing. Ser # 504426 head badge is aluminum.

 

[80'sDetroiter]

Your Aristocrat frame looks identical. The chain ring on my Jet looks slightly different. The wheel on the Jet is 26" (x 1.75?) for sure but the tire has no obvious markings. Lets' see some pics of that Fleet Wing! Has Fireproof mentioned the serial number on his bike? Pics, please!

The Bauer Co he mentioned doesn't give up much info in a web search (http://www.tindonkey.com/2010/12/herd-o ... track.html). Here is a pic of a similar men's Bauer (http://forums.ebay.com/thread.jspa?thre ... 3939868480).

Maybe the serial numbers will yield some clues. Thanks again, guys! 8)

Aristocrat - ser # 269696
Jet - ser # 497178

 

[Rustinkerer]

Re: Mysterious Ladies Middleweight, German "JET"?

I have the same frame but its a Fleet Wing. Ser # 504426 head badge is aluminum.

As a side note, the Fleet Wing badge was used in the US, mostly on CWC built bikes. Again, I believe it was for a chain store. But, there were also Euro-built 60s middleweights too. -Adam

 

[80'sDetroiter]

Unlike the US ladies bikes I have seen, this frame has no small tube near the middle connecting the top tube to the bottom tube. It seems to be an uncommon design. The Fleet Wing pictures I've seen so far all have this frame component. Is there a name for this style of frame? 8)