Schwinn Spitfire Hornet help...

[forst003]

So my girlfriend and I picked up this Schwinn Spitfire Hornet at the beginning of the summer and haven't been able to figure out exactly what it is. Of course we know its a Schwinn Spitfire Hornet, it says so right on the bike, but we aren't sure of the year or been able to find any pictures of anything that looks like it. Didn't know to check the serial number before we put it in our storage room. There are a few things that we couldn't figure out. It doesn't have a built in kickstand, which would make it pre-1946, but it has the rear dropout which started post-war. This bike also has a Deltalark Light on the handle bars and a St Christopher medallion put on right above the front Schwinn nameplate, just two cool other things that were on the bike when we got it. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[CCR]

Fenders are add-ons other wise they would mount at the little hole on the rear of the dropout instead of the axle
Seats been replaced
the chain guard looks like the later 50's,
I believe some schwinns were sold without kickstands built in and it was considered an "economy" version without the more common built in stand.
What is the serial # ?

The chainguard has the older style hornet decal / changed to white lettering in 57 with the guard style change. Either the guard is a replacement, the decal is a replacement, or it's a 57ish bike with a leftover 56 decal slapped on it is my guess

 

[forst003]

The fenders was news to me. Looked at all the other bikes in my apartment and their fenders are mounted on the back hole on the dropout not the axle. Guess tomorrow I will be digging the bike out of the storage room and checking the serial number to see what year the bike was made in.

The bike came from an old ladies garage, who had the bike forever, I believe she was the original owner. I knew the seat wasn't original but I wasn't sure about anything else being replacement parts due to where the bike came from, but you never know.

 

[B607]

CCR nailed it. Some 50's economy Schwinns didn't have the built in kickstand. Look at your neck...it's the economy style. I've never seen a Schwinn that was both a Spitfire and a Hornet. I'll go with Jeremy and say the guard is a replacement, or maybe even Schwinn had spare parts to use up and they didn't mind mixing them on an economy model.

It also looks to me like your adjustable cone on your headset is on upside down. On the pic with the medal, it's the second metal piece above the medal. Remove neck and bars, unscrew top nut and remove washer. Unscrew cone and check it out. The tapered side goes against the bearings for adjustment. Check and see if your bearings are in right side up as well. I may be wrong on this, but it sure looks like it in the pic.

Gary

 

[Crassly]

Missing the truss rods also, the clamp piece is on the neck facing rearward.

 

[Rustinkerer]

It's a 24", so I'd say that's the right guard. Could just be the factory using up leftover stuff at the ned of the production run, maybe the badge is wrong, but factory. -Adam