Hello I am in wichita Kansas I have several bikes including a Phat Kaddy Cruiser I also have an Electra coaster 3 but more about these later I just bought a Hawthorne 24" at a roadside flea market it has a skiptooth sprocket and the sprockets are intact although the chain is a little rusty the fenders are in suprisingly good shape and the chain gaurd is not rusted through and all the brackets are intact all in all a good buy for 35.00 my question is this how do I date this bike obviously it is 40 - 50 era bike but how do I make sure it is not a very good collectible before I add drum brakes and a 3 speed hub I also belive the fork has been replaced it is not a stamped fork as I would have thought but a 70s style one with the stacked caps I will send picts later another thing I found strange is that the frame is not like any hawthornes that I have seen most are welded below the seat tube where the top tube meets it this frame has the tubes tapered together and welded it is a really good look I just dont want to tear this thing up much if it is a uncommon bike
Questions From Kansas
- Thread starter slugmonkey
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Here are some picts of the Hawthorne does anyone know anything about this bike I wish to rebuild it and
will probably modify the running gear I just want to make sure that it is something that should be rebuilt and not something that should be restored
will probably modify the running gear I just want to make sure that it is something that should be rebuilt and not something that should be restored
Here is a pict of the weird tube configuration I have seen several tube configurations on hawthornes and I havent seen this one yet I really like it as it is a super clean look most I have seen have these two tubes seperated but I think this gives a longer lower look
here is a pict of badge and top of fork I would have expected a diffrent type of fork for this age of bike does anyone know if this fork was original for this age of bike ?? I am probably going to keep this fork in fact I dont think I am going to change a lot on this bike
here is a pict of the cranks and sprocket the chain is in pretty good shape and only some surface rust and minor issues on sprockets and chaingaurds I want to use these on rebuild am thinking of having rear sprocket waybe machined to fit on a 3 speed hub ??? have just started doing this so am not sure if its possible
dropouts and tensioners again I think the frame is in super shape I am going to replace these tensioners with stainless also look at condition of fender braces these are also in pretty good shape on closer inspection I belive they have been repainted with a brush ???
Welcome from another Kansan. Looks like a CWC frame. Post some pics up with the serial number up in the BIKE TALK forum. It will get seen more over there and someone will be able to date it for you.
Welcome! 
Welcome, from Kansas City Mo
I'm not sure when they started making them, but the stacked plate fork crown is pretty common on 50's bikes. As for the hub/sprocket swap, :arrow: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=31771&st=0&sk=t&sd=a
Also, the dropout screws are probably not standard SAE (0r metric :roll: ) pitch, you may have to chase the dropouts with a tap.
Also, the dropout screws are probably not standard SAE (0r metric :roll: ) pitch, you may have to chase the dropouts with a tap.
Welcome to the site.... doin any thursday pub crawls?
These particular dropouts have a square nut that is suspended in the frame it will be an easy swap I am going to shorten the legenth a bit so they dont stick out I have a machinist lined up and our solution was similiar ALTHOUGH we are still toyong with the idea of cutting cantilever type tabs and using flush mount type aircraft fasteners to achive a more high tech look I am now looking at using a 26" fork on the front and putting a larger wheel up front I am also going to put a hydraulic disc brake on the front I have been extremely busy at work so I havent been able to spend much time on the bike I am also toying with the idea of running the cables for the rear through the frame although till Iget it apart I dont know if this is possible
