Shelby Stelber ot JC Higgins?????

[backpedaler]

Here's a new find. It looks exactly like Shelby but has a Higgins badge. It appears to say JC Higgins on the chain guard too. Is that possible?

 

[nwt76]

That's one unique JC Higgins bike, looks original to me.
Awesome find, I had the girls version of this bike but parted it out.
It had the exact same star and lines on the chainguard but a little different shape.

 

[backpedaler]

i have the book "Collectable Elgin - JC Higgins and Hawthorne Bicycles" but there are NO ads showing this style - at all.

:?:

 

[scott brownsey]

AWSUM SCORE

 

[BackWoodCycle]

Found this on the web, looks like it.

 

[nwt76]

This is a pic of the girls version.

 

[Unchained]

Nice find. I always love unusual JCH's. I have seen a few Higgins bikes that appear to have Shelby parts, but this one strikes me more as a CBC / Ross bike than a Shelby one (based on the chainring and dropouts). Hope someone can deny/verify that.

Last year, there was a JC Higgins bike at a local show that definitely had a Shelby frame and tank, but which had other parts that looked Murray (?) - Sure wish I took a picture of it!

To my knowledge, the following manufacturers DEFINITELY made JCH bikes:

Huffy, Columbia, Monark, Murray, Puch (Austrian, mostly the lightweights)

And I also believe- but don't know for certain- that these manufacturers also made some:

Shelby, CBC

I just found this image- this isn't quite like the bike I saw at the show, but it also seems to have a mix of brands; the rack, chainguard, and fender braces are Murray, but the frame and tank is Columbia. I'd like to know how this sort of thing happened.

I guess I've gone a bit astray of the original topic, but I thought someone might find all this interesting.

 

[dogdart]

check out Rustinkerer's post in this thread about Stebler viewtopic.php?f=16&t=49853

 

[Jpromo]

Didn't the JC Higgins branch of Sears go on strike for part of 1955 or so? I remember hearing something about that and they farmed out their bicycle duties to a German company as well as American companies.

Something along those lines!

Edit: Just read Adam's post in the above thread. I was close!

 

[backpedaler]

yes, Ross/CBC - it's making sense :!:

 

[Rustinkerer]

Wow, thanks guys, I didn't even have to comment on this! :lol: The CBC JCH's are mighty sweet imo! -Adam

 

[thirstee]

Looks just like my Thunder Jet.

Chain Bike Co. apparently became Ross or owned the name...check out this thread: viewtopic.php?f=16&t=33821
Props on your find!

 

[user 135]

Those tanks on yours and the ThunderJets are some of the best out there because they are FAT.

 

[heyslugger]

Looks just like my Thunder Jet.

This one has it. I tried to say it a couple different ways but it simply has "IT".

 

[heyslugger]

Looks just like my Thunder Jet.

This one has it. I tried to write that a couple different ways but it simply has "IT".