62 Schwinn

[kram]

I've bought a couple bikes but it has been almost fifteen years since I built one. I've always loved old bikes and I would buy a frame or some parts when I've had the chance. I bought this frame (I believe it was an American frame) probably 5-6 years ago off of ebay and slowly I've gotten some parts together. I'm not really sure of the direction I'm going in yet, so any feed back and ideas would be great. At first I was thinking of antiquing the frame, but now I'm really starting to like the paint that is on there. If I do keep original paint I think I will try to find a matching pair of forks for it. So if anyone has some has some early sixties green Schwinn forks let me know. The wheels are some two speed Bendix on s7's. I was thinking of painting the rims black and going with some whitewalls? The guy I got them from said that he had just rebuilt them and that they worked great, but I haven't tried them so I guess I'll see if they work. Originally I was planning on going with ape hangers, but I put some bars (the ones in the pictures) I had laying around and I kind of like them. I also had a repop tank that I kind of like on it. If I use the tank I think I will take off the green (it's just a sticker) because in person the colors are pretty different. I still need to find a seat, and maybe a different sprocket. I like the no fenders and chainguard look so I think it will stay that way. Besides the budget is super small and the fewer parts the better. It will probably be a slow process but I look forward to hear what you all think.

 

[chimichanga]

I really love the color on the bike. You should keep it

 

[necessaryevil]

You're really going to be limited on tire choice, S-7's take a special tire 26x1and 3/4, if you put non schwinn tires (26x1.75or2.125) you're going to have tire slippage or they might not even fit around the rim. Schwinn did make whitewall 26x1 3/4 westwind tires and are still available. I just don't want you to go buy nice tires and not be able to use them. The tank looks good by the way.

 

[kram]

Thanks necessaryevil- That is good to know. At this point I'm not really set on using those wheels, so if I do go with the whitewalls I'll have to look for some new wheels too.

 

[GodHatesCleveland]

I'd say you're off to a good start and have a good bike to work with.

If you're going with whitewalls, and I'm looking at the white wings on the tank, why not leave the forks white, color match the frame and paint just the green part of the tank so it matches? You'd only need a small amount of paint that way, and you could use the leftover paint to fill scratches on the frame. You'd have the best of both worlds, it'd look kinda sweet and ratty.

If you're going for an aggressive streamlined look with the downturned moustache bars, but they prove too uncomfortable for actual riding, try a straightbar. I put one of my fixed gear Raleigh and I really like it.

The problem with painting the rims is that you'll scratch them when you put on the tires. I'm going to work around it on my next build by only painting the inside section of the rim and leaving the walls unpainted. You could try anodized rims or powder coating but that's going to be a drag on the budget...or you can just live with the scratches, it'll depend on the level of finish you want to end up with.

 

[CCR]

if you do go with new wheels at least you could recoupe some dough by selling the old ones. personally i would keep the wheels on it :mrgreen: but lots of people want a kickback 2 speed hub and lots of people want chrome s-7s too. there are cheap s-7 whitewall tires out there if you keep them though ( like $40 shipped ), but you would be limited to the middleweight tire size (26 x 1-3/4), i like that size myself

 

[kram]

GodHatesCleveland- Thanks for the comments. I think the handle bars probably won't stay how they are. I'm about 6'3" and from testing them how they are I don't think it will be very comfortable. I like the straightbar idea, and I'm still considering going with some ape hangers.

CCR- I've been looking around and I'm thinking that I might want to go with a fattio-o on the back. In that case I'll either sell them like you said, or save them for another bike. Do you happen to know where you can get those whitewalls at? I saw some for pretty cheap on amazon.com that said they would fit the s-7's.

Thanks again for the comments!

 

[CCR]

i just bought some s-7 blackwalls from "memory lane classics" (google it) they have the kenda whitewalls for $12ea. (at least thats what the blacks cost), theyre most likely the same tire you saw on Amazon.com too