Hiawatha Identification

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Petrohead

Petrohead

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I have an old straight bar 26" Hiawatha. Head badge has a serial number as well as the seat post clamp. I am trying to figure out the year/model. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Head Badge: 25 I G3 21 10 I 13A I don't know if the I's are slashes or the letter I. It is different than the number 1

Seat Post Clamp: 2H22091

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...sorry about the bad pics.
 
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Maybe this will help. The fork seems to be a little different than most I've seen. Maybe that can help date the bike. The truss rod part is from a different bike. Anyone got any ideas of the year, model or any other info? Even a guess? Anybody?
 
rms37 said:
Your Frame was made for Gambles (Hiawatha) by Huffman. Those dropouts were produced beginning in the late 1940's and I believe the serial number makes the bike a 1952. 37Fleetwood has a new site with lots of Huffman information, check it out here:

http://classicbicycles.comuv.com/phpBB3 ... 68be8f94ab
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info RMS37. Much appreciated.
 
They are not the same frame; Hiawatha was the brand name that the Gambles chain put on the line of bicycles they sold. Like most retail outlets they did not manufacture bikes themselves. Also, like most retail chains, they had contracts with several manufacturers to produced bicycles for them mainly to insure supply lines weren’t completely tied to the health of any one company. The bike in this thread was produced by the Huffman Manufacturing Company (think Huffy). The bike that you have was produced by AMF/Cleveland Welding (think Roadmaster). They could very well have been made at the same time and would have been different models in the Gambles Hiawatha line up. Being from two different manufacturers they would have shared very little if anything at all in the way of original sheet metal.
 
rms37, thanks for your wealth of knowledge on here! I wouldnt have a clue if it weren't for you input. THANKS!
 
manida said:
http://www.ratrodbikes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=22279

and I thought mine was a 1952....are these the same frame?

Also, I only have one serial #, on the bottom bracket shell.
Click to expand...

Yeah, it LOOKS the same (other than the forks) but after reading the last couple comments maybe not all that much but it clears things up a bit more for me.
 
Once again, thanks to Phil, I've learned another vintage bike tidbit! I hadn't seen or heard of a Huffman built Hiawatha, but as soon as I saw those wide dropouts, I knew. MOST Hiawathas I've seen were either built by Shelby, or CWC. But you never know with dept. store bikes. Every once in a while, one pops up that changes people's opinions. Thanks Phil! :mrgreen: -Adam
 

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