Bike from the Dead's Freshly-Exhumed Finds (Everything I've dug up since 6/15/21)

[Bike from the Dead]

I'm not done quite yet though. Just earlier this week, I picked up this Schwinn Exercise bike off of Marketplace... for FREE! I guess the previous owners were moving, and they didn't want to load this up. Based on how dusty it was when I got it, it must not have been used in a while. I dusted it off, wiped down some of the worse spots, and it looks great! It's completely functional too! The speedo and odometer work, the timer works, the tensioner works, it pedals easily enough, the only thing that isn't quite functional is the book rack, as it's missing some hardware on the back. Other than that, it's fully operational! Good thing too, as it's been too cold to ride my bikes outside, and I've been meaning to get some more exercise as of late.

Unfortunately, there is one problem I noticed when I tested it out. Ok, tow problems. First problem is that it's a bit noisier than I expected. I thought these were supposed to be fairly quiet. Then again, it is an older machine, and it's really not that bad. The second problem however, is much more concerning. I test rode this bike for just 15 minutes, keeping the seat and handlebars where I usually would on any bike, but after those short 15 minutes, I had some serious pain between my shoulder blades. I've ridden regular bikes harder and for longer periods of time than this one, and I just felt sore in my legs for a few minutes afterwards. My guess is that because I moved the handlebars forward, that meant my arms were almost straight, and that put strain on my shoulders. So, moving the handlebars back to where they are in the photos might help. I'll try that today and see how it pans out.

I don't know what year this bike was made though. According to the serial number on the headset, it was made in August 1978.

But according to the serial number on the dropout, it was made on June 1st 1959! So, did Schwinn just have some leftover exercise bike parts from the last 2 decades that they threw on the new models?

I actually just looked up the bike shop on the seat tube, and it's still in business! Albro's Bicycle Cyclery is now known as Al's Bicycles in OKC. They were incorporated in 1974, so I guess this bike was made in 1978. Pretty cool! This bike's just a 2-hour drive from its original dealership!

Forgot to mention the pedal straps are fairly worn. I have a feeling the 7,459 original miles this bike's travelled are legit!

This bit of mounting hardware seems to be all that's missing from this exercise bike. I think if I just want a quick fix, I could just zip-tie it back together. If it turns out I use this bike enough though, I may just look for the correct parts.

The seat's not bad, but it wouldn't hurt to upgrade it to something cushier.

I had no idea those chainrings were that big. I knew they were bigger than the average sprocket, but this is almost a dinner plate!

I love how the tensioner is just an adjustable caliper brake! That's genius.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

I haven't tried this yet, but an older friend who passed away a couple years back told me about his secret formula for penetratinfg lubricant. He said with this and patience anything will break free.
Since he passed I do not think he would mind me sharing this. It is a very simple to make mix and even recycles something most people have to take to a collection center to dispose of!
Used transmission fluid and Acetone. I believe 3 parts used ATF to 1 part Acetone was the mix ratio. He probably used Dexron and or Mercon fluid. It may be because the older fluids became slightly acitic when ran for several thousand miles.
You can try any ATF you have as long as it is used. I cannot say on the new Mopar fluid but I will be trying some soon when my brother changes his on his V10 1999 Dodge extended cab 3/4 ton 4x4. His has the Lamborghini designed V10. It will tug that truck around nicely but he keeps a spare gas station in the bed for long trips
The key is patience. Soak the problem area a couple times and wait 24 hours. If it doesn't break loose soak it again. And wait.
I did cone in one day while he was freeing up a stuck antique four stroke/cycle single cylinder horizontal shaft engine. He broke it loose while I was there and he said that was what he used to do it. Another time I was there he had it on a stand he built running.
Worth a try on your project.

Awesome, thanks! That just might be what I need to break some parts free on one of my other fresh finds as well! I'll see if I can gather all the ingredients and try it out when the weather warms up.

I didn't know Lamborghini designed some of the V10s for Dodge. That's pretty cool!

 

[Oldbikeguy1960]

My brother said the breakfast year is 1999, nothing really fits between the two designs. He just did head gaskets in it, the job wasn't too bad but collecting the parts he needed was a nightmare.
He kept getting the wrong parts shipped to him. Listing would say "Fits 1999 V10 but when they came they wouldn't fit they were for 2000 up.

 

[Oldbikeguy1960]

He also said the 1999 and earlier V10 is a defined Viper engine. He was going to buy Viper valve covers for it but he overran the budget and has to wait till another time.

 

[crispy j]

I have no idea. But I love these bikes. You could restore them to look like new or leave them looking the way that they are. As long as you can ride them that is what's cool.

 

[Oldbikeguy1960]

Awesome, thanks! That just might be what I need to break some parts free on one of my other fresh finds as well! I'll see if I can gather all the ingredients and try it out when the weather warms up.

I didn't know Lamborghini designed some of the V10s for Dodge. That's pretty cool!

Yes, when Chrysler and Lamborghini were bedfellows.
Lee Iacocca said at a press conference that Chrysler was going to lend its extensive electrical knowledge to Lamborghini.
I almost peed myself imagining new $500,000+ cars along side of the road with the wiring harnesses on fire!

 

[RustyGold]

The Dodge V10 was based heavily on the 5.9L V8. Lambo contributions were minor and mostly cooling system suggestions and DIS integration. Not really any input to the hard parts (what would Lambo know about non-OHC OHV valvetrains, anyway).

 

[Oldbikeguy1960]

The Dodge V10 was based heavily on the 5.9L V8. Lambo contributions were minor and mostly cooling system suggestions and DIS integration. Not really any input to the hard parts (what would Lambo know about non-OHC OHV valvetrains, anyway).

Based on it mainly because tooling already existed and Chrysler was going bankrupt at Warp 10.
As for non-OHC OHV valvetrains, I remember when I started as a mechanic in 1981an old guy coming to me when I was working on a VW Beetle. He watched my progress for a minute and said " If a man cannot work on a VW, he cannot work on anything." I am sure the engineers at Lamborghini could figure out an OHV valvetrain if they had a reason.
Rob
https://www.motortrend.com/features/how-the-viper-engine-got-its-horsepower/

 

[Oldbikeguy1960]

I added a Motor Trend link to my last post. Looks like the consensus from all the websites I checked was that Lamborghini designed the block and cooling system using two 360 V8 engines. They cut one to a 6 cylinder, the other to a 4 cylinder and welded them together. They redesigned it with strengthening ribs and other needed refinements and cast them in aluminum for Chrysler.
It would appear from this information that Lamborghini must know a little about OHV engine design.
Rob

 

[Oldbikeguy1960]

 

[RustyGold]

I wasn't trying to be snarky... forgot to put in the various smileys .

Chrysler designed their V6 by essentially whacking two cylinders off the 5.2L V8 long before Lambo was in their portfolio. As you intimated, this was all about cost cutting because they were still in struggle mode for the most part. Nobody designs a modern 90° V6, or V10 for that matter, from a clean sheet...it is an inherently flawed design.

My comment about what would Lambo know about OHV was only that compared to experience, at that point Chrysler had decades of OHV experience and were known as an 'engineering' company. Lambo hadn't touched a non-OHC engine since the early '60s (or in a tractor). So, in an attempt to give Lambo a nod, they were brought in for things that they should know about ...V10 cooling, and I'm sure block rigidity and such, and DIS...as both were unheard of, or very new, for American manufacturers (plenty of DIS Chrysler products, but all Mitsubishi made ).

Your comment on Chrysler electrical systems blurb, is my point on the whole apparent Lambo involvement. The Lambo purchase was incidental and highly criticized as a frivolous Chrysler purchase. Their involvement in the V10 was just a way to justify the purchase after the fact. It isn't a Lambo V10…it was a way for Chrysler to have a big block to compete with Ford and Chevy without paying for a clean sheet design...it's a 'modern big block' version of the 360.

Just relating history, not trying to start an argument. Now I'll start on the MT article... looks interesting.

 

[Oldbikeguy1960]

I wasn't trying to be snarky... forgot to put in the various smileys .

Chrysler designed their V6 by essentially whacking two cylinders off the 5.2L V8 long before Lambo was in their portfolio. As you intimated, this was all about cost cutting because they were still in struggle mode for the most part. Nobody designs a modern 90° V6, or V10 for that matter, from a clean sheet...it is an inherently flawed design.

My comment about what would Lambo know about OHV was only that compared to experience, at that point Chrysler had decades of OHV experience and were known as an 'engineering' company. Lambo hadn't touched a non-OHC engine since the early '60s (or in a tractor). So, in an attempt to give Lambo a nod, they were brought in for things that they should no about ...V10 cooling, and I'm sure block rigidity and such, and DIS...as both were unheard of, or very new, for American manufacturers (plenty of DIS Chrysler products, but all Mitsubishi made ).

Your comment on Chrysler electrical systems blurb, is my point on the whole apparent Lambo involvement. The Lambo purchase was incidental and highly criticized as a frivolous Chrysler purchase. Their involvement in the V10 was just a way to justify the purchase after the fact. It isn't a Lambo V10…it was a way for Chrysler to have a big block to compete with Ford and Chevy without paying for a clean sheet design...it's a 'modern big block' version of the 360.

Just relating history, not trying to start an argument. Now I'll start on the MT article... looks interesting.

Cool man I wasn't either. I try to check out things if someone has a different answer to something I may post. I could've been way off on what I said and if I was I would have to post a correction.
As it is, we were both right about certain points in the discussion. Thanks for getting back to me man.
Rob

 

[Bike from the Dead]

I got rid of 3 late-model road and mountain bikes I had no use for, and I brought home a new project and $50 earlier this Wednesday as a result! Dad and I already had plans to be in Moore, Oklahoma on Wednesday to deliver my brother's 1949 Chevy pickup to him, so I figured I'd stopped my friend Mark's place in Oklahoma City to buy a new front wheel for a bike I wanted to sell. I then had the idea that I could just sell/trade the bike with him, along with 2 others I had no use for. It took longer than expected for Dad and I to get to Moore, and even longer just to leave, due to some electrical gremlins in the Chevy, but eventually we did stop by my friend's place once it was already dark. He paid me $50 for the 2 late-model mountain bikes that I didn't even think were worth that much, and I traded the Kent Ridgeland bike that just needed a new front wheel for this homemade swing bike he had sitting up in his attic for years, maybe even decades.

Apparently it was made from two Japanese bikes, which gave me the perfect project name for it: Tokyo Drift! I had been contemplating buying this off of him for the past few years, but I could never commit to it due to how rough it looked, even in the darkness of his attic, and the $65 price he had on it. This time though, I was able to trade one of my free bikes for it; so even though my friend got the better bike out of the deal, I don't really mind, because I'm not out any money, and I got a bike I actually wanted. Getting to see it out in the sunlight yesterday though revealed just how rough this swing bike really is. The welds are rough all-around, the steering/swing geometry looks to be at the wrong angle, it might be too tall a bike for me to ride, and it might even fall apart should I sit on it. However, the swing mechanism works well, I could probably fix the steering geometry by just flipping the frame upside-down, and best of all, I can use this homemade swing bike as a reverse-engineering project, so I can learn how to make my own custom swing bike even better.

Oh yeah, also got this handlebar stem thrown in with the swing bike, which I definitely could use.

As unique and interesting as a homemade swing bike is, my dad has a couple sweet fresh finds he picked up the same day that I plan to share next! So stay tuned, as there's more to come!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Earlier on that same Wednesday, my dad was at a local fire museum, and I guess they had some stuff in storage they didn't want/need anymore, so they offered to just give him whatever he wanted out of what was there. Among the stuff he took home with him was a bike (that'll I'll get to next,) and this weird little old trike. I did some digging, and learned what he acquired is a "Donalson Jockey Trike," made by the J.E. Donalson Manufacturing Company sometime in the 1940s, about 1944-48. From what I've read, they didn't make a ton of these, maybe 100, before they went out of business. I'm not sure how much of this info is correct, so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. Dad's Jockey Cycle seems to be mostly complete, save for the handlebars and a few missing spokes on one wheel. It's an oddball, but if you look back through this thread, you'll know that I love oddballs. This one is most likely going to stay with Dad though, and odds are he'll hang it up in his shop somewhere as a decor piece. If anyone here knows more about these Jockey Cycles, please let me know. Dad and I would both love to learn more about this curious little trike.

Also, here's what this thing looks like in motion, for those like me who wanted to know:


I've got one more "Fresh Find" to share, and this one's a real doozy! I might need to break it down into at least 2-3 posts due to how many photos I have to share of this bike.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

So Dad was given that Jockey Cycle to use however he saw fit, but there was another cool thing on wheels he also got that day: this Elgin! He had no idea what kind of bike it was (he's more into gas and oil memorabilia, along with classic cars,) so when he showed me a couple pics of it on his phone, I was blown away by what he obtained! We ended up bringing both it and the Jockey Cycle home that night so I could get a better look at both. I can tell that at least the fenders, chain guard, kickstand, and pedals aren't original to the bike, but the Elgin does seem to have the original wheels, chainring, seat post, truss rods and fork on it. I don't know if the seat, handlebars and handlebar stem are original to the bike, but they do look fairly old all things considered. I don't know if the paint is original, but it's very old and flaking off the frame. Amazingly, there's hardly any rust on this bike! It's practically just bare steel poking through the paint, and even the wheels look remarkably clean for their age! Even the tires, which have cracked in spots from sitting flat for years, still feel surprisingly soft in most places. This bike had to have been kept indoors for most of its life to be in this good of shape!

I'm in talks with Dad to trade this bike for some 1955 Buick parts I got him for free off Marketplace a couple years ago, so there's a good chance I might be able to save this bike from being just another decor piece. In my opinion at least, this bike is way too good to just hang from the rafters. I really want to build this one up and get it riding again! Heck, I could probably get it moving by just replacing the tubes and tires!

This first batch of photos is in "as found" condition, with all the original dust left undisturbed aside from where it's been handled.

The head badge is missing, but I can just barely see where the head badge rivets would've gone. It looks like that area was painted over, so I can't tell if the paint's original, or an old repaint from decades ago.

Maybe it's just my eyes playing tricks on me, but it looks like the fork is bent back just a little. I cropped the picture below so the front of the headset is angled completely even with the sides of the picture, and the fork does appear bent back slightly. I think I could bend them back to the right angle, though, or at least get them close.

One more detail I'm skeptical of: I don't know if this is the result of manufacturing, or frame damage, but there's a slight dip at the front of the top tube just before it meets the headset. It doesn't look too bad, but I don't know. I'm not an expert on Elgins, as I've never been able to get my hands on one before.

For those who can't read it, the seat says "Lobdell Emery Made in U.S.A."

More pictures coming up next!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

After a quick dusting, I could really tell just how well this bike could clean up... aside from the paint. Some of it flaked off with almost no pressure from wiping the dust off. Still, just a quick dusting, and this bike wants to shine!

The kickstand's not right for this bike, I don't think, but it is pretty interesting. Anybody know what kind it's supposed to be?

Anyone know what's up with the "S" stamped onto the fork and bottom bracket?

There's a date, August 16th of 2001, marked on the seat post. I need to find out what the significance of that date means. Maybe that's when the fire museum acquired this bike?

I'm having a hard time reading the stamping under the bottom bracket. Looks like they didn't stamp it on right, based on how they seemed to have stamped it more than once. It looks like it's supposed to read "MOS T95504," but I'm not sure. Also, what's up with all the dots at the top?

The undersides of the fenders aren't even that rusty. I'm kind of impressed.

Even though the tires have hardened somewhat, they're honestly not in too bad of shape. If I just wanted to put them on a display bike, they'd probably look alright... outside of a few sidewall cracks, that is.

Seat's not too bad underneath either.

I'll be posting both the Jockey Cycle and the Elgin on the "Bike I.D." page later, but these are the freshest finds in my (and Dad's) collection so far. I'd really like to add this Elgin to my collection of bikes if possible. I don't know how I'd build it, but it's got good bones from what I can tell.

 

[RustyGold]

'38/'39 Murray built. Most likely not an Elgin as there isn't any Alemite fittlngs. Cool frame for sure.

Should be a 'D' after the MOS (possibly a 'C' or 'E', but most likely a 'D')... I'd remove a little more paint to see if it is lightly stamped.

It has ears for a rear stand, but if it was a lower end model it could have came with a bolt on kickstand.

 

[Oldbikeguy1960]

Hell man I would put air to the tubes to see if they hold. If not put tubes in those tires and ride it! I have ridden on old tires worse than those, they were made well enough to hold together with a little sidewall damage.
You aren't gonna do 50 on it are you?
Rob

 

[Bike from the Dead]

'38/'39 Murray built. Most likely not an Elgin as there isn't any Alemite fittlngs. Cool frame for sure.

Should be a 'D' after the MOS (possibly a 'C' or 'E', but most likely a 'D')... I'd remove a little more paint to see if it is lightly stamped.

It has ears for a rear stand, but if it was a lower end model it could have came with a bolt on kickstand.

If it's not an Elgin, then why does the coaster brake arm have "Elgin" on it? Also, are Alemite fittings those little plugs on the hubs where you can fill them with oil or something? I didn't get a good photo of the one on the coaster brake hub, but if you look at the photo of the front hub, it's got one. Heck, I might be able to take some better photos of those parts today if you can tell me what to look for.

I can easily see the "Murray-built" aspect of this bike, especially the wheels. They look identical to the wheels on my later '60s model Murrays. I thought they were just replacements until I saw the air-cooled fins on the hubs.

I'll ask Dad if he'd let me sand some paint off to check the serial number. It's still technically his bike. Will finding that other letter help determine if it's a '38 or '39?

I figure these would've come with a drop stand originally, but maybe getting the tires aired up would tell me whether the kickstand works for this bike or not. Right now, it's too long for the bike, because it'll just tip over the other way with it down.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

heck man I would put air to the tubes to see if they hold. If not put tubes in those tires and ride it! I have ridden on old tires worse than those, they were made well enough to hold together with a little sidewall damage.
You aren't gonna do 50 on it are you?
Rob

I'd have to remount the tires first, but I really need to check the tubes before I do anything. I may not do 50, but I try to hit 20 at times. I'd really rather put some fresh tires on it to be safe anyway.