My first bicycle find - Mead Ranger

[two4one]

Hi guys. Found this site when looking for info on a bike I found on Craigslist. Long story short I was able to determine this bike was at least more valuable than what I was going to pay for it. I've been dabbling in the antique/restoration field for a little while now and I'm enjoying every second but this bike is a different animal for me.

Anyway, can anyone give me more info what exactly I have here beyond the obvious? I put a series of photos on my site for you bike experts to look at. The tires are obviously trash, the horn is missing as well as the kickstand. I bought the bike from a guy (guessing in his 60's) who's father had passed away leaving him with a bunch of stuff. He was about to trash this thing!!!

Thanks in advance for any info you can provide. I would love to restore it but I think I'm better off leaving it as is.

You can see more photos here: http://www.motorcyclesymmetry.com/antiq ... cycle.html

 

[tanksalot]

Hello, That is what I call beginers luck .. Nice find What you have is a 1920s I believe Moto bike... Look under the builds section of this site .. I recently found one & finished restoring it ..
Heres the title 1920S Mead Ranger vintage antique bicycle.. Your bike originally likely had a round light on the front fender ( You will see two holes there if it had the fender light & a optional air pump on the frame ..
If you decide you want to sell the bike or need any more information about your bike feel free to pm me .Leaving the bike alone is the way a lot of people like them ..Id say depending on the overall condition You may want try to carefully clean the bike .Then may or may not want to touch up any really ugly awful blemishes ( Past Patina just gross stuff ) but save as much patina & originally that you can..((My bike was encased in gray paint when I got the bike so I had nothing to lose )).Tires are freaking expensive for these bikes I saved my originals & put 26 inch rims with a Ballon tire on the rear rim & a middle weight tire on the front. Once fixed up these ride great ..Good luck on what ever you decide to do with the bike

 

[user 135]

Very nice bike. Besides the rust/patina, it looks to be good shape. The wooden rims are straight and some cool access.

Those bike are usually worth more left as is. I would try to get it operational, though finding tires may be tricky.

Try the thecabe.com. They may be more knowledgeable on those older bikes.

 

[outskirtscustoms]

Awesome bike. Nice Honda Spree in the background too, I've had a few of those.

 

[two4one]

Awesome bike. Nice Honda Spree in the background too, I've had a few of those.

I restored that one from the ground up to match a Ducati 749. Not 100% complete yet, still needs the turn signals dipped in Carbon Fiber, woohoo!

I have the build history located here if you're interested: http://www.motorcyclesymmetry.com/proje ... spree.html

I also just picked up another 1984 Spree yesterday. That one will be getting a Resol replica treatment.

 

[outskirtscustoms]

Cool, I've had a few of them over the years, I'd love to find another Gyro like I had 2 summers ago.