Westfield Airider Special

[Pudge]

I mentioned this bike back near Christmas but I haven't had time for pics so I finally got around to taking a few today. I love this bike! Haven't found out much info on it, but I can't want to polish, grease, and ride it. That's all I intend to do with this one. So, what do y'all know about an Airider?

Other side:

It's a skiptooth:

Badged a Westfield

Western Flyer Grips:

And a pretty cool set of tires by Gillette called Ambassadors:

The tank is missing a horn but it's in great shape:

And the decals look so rich in person:

Front fender decal:

That's it. Thanks for looking:

The end!

 

[thatismytruck]

I had a Westfield some time ago. Be VERY careful washing and/or polishing. You can take the white paint right off.

Nice bike!!

 

[SCHWINNRAY69]

Great score :shock: :shock: That is made by Columbia, you can easily get a horn for that style tank :wink: You can find some info. here :wink:
http://www.vintagecolumbiabikes.com/index.html

 

[Road Master]

That's a beauty!

 

[Bri-in-RI]

Thats one nice bike you've got there.

 

[Pudge]

Great score :shock: :shock: That is made by Columbia, you can easily get a horn for that style tank :wink: You can find some info. here :wink:
http://www.vintagecolumbiabikes.com/index.html

Thanks for the link, SchwinnRay. I may just swipe the horn out of my wife's 1954 girls Columbia! That would be even easier! And she won't even notice until spring! :mrgreen:

 

[Metal Militia]

oh, that is so cool. love the color combo. i want it. nice find.

 

[kngtmat]

8) That is a sweet ride.

 

[Bettleguise]

Nice, do we have a year on it? Late 30's early 40's? The cream color is nice, very muted and pretty. Love's me some Pope Built.

 

[Strings_and_steam]

So, what do y'all know about an Airider?

That it is a beautiful machine, and that you ought to lock your garage doors at night lest I can't help myself and need to make a raid...

:shock:

Seriously I got nothin. But it's phenominal, great score!

 

[Pudge]

Nice, do we have a year on it? Late 30's early 40's? The cream color is nice, very muted and pretty. Love's me some Pope Built.

I was told it's a 1940. The story that went along with it is that the bike's original owner bought it brand new and ended up going overseas to fight in World War II and never returned. (I assumed that meant he was killed. Anyone alive would come back for their bike, right!) The family hung on to the bike for a very long time, not wanting to part with it, but eventually sold it to a collector in Atlanta. The guy I bought it from purchased it from the Atlanta collector.

....That it is a beautiful machine, and you ought to lock your garage doors at night lest I can't help myself and need to make a raid...

If you can find it where it's currently hidden (from my wife!), and can decipher the Brinks alarm code, and then find it under the blankets ... uhhhh...well then you can ride it and put it back! How about that?!

This was supposed to be a Christmas present to myself. My plan was to take it to my sister's house and have her put a bow on it and give it to me as a gift. That way my wife couldn't fret too much about me buying another bike, especially during the holidays when we're licking our wounds from Christmas shopping! The plan never went through because my overly confident nephew jumped the fence of a local water park on the morning of Christmas Eve and was skateboarding in one of the drained pools and wiped out bad, fracturing his elbow and rupturing his spleen! :shock: And then we spent the next 5 days visiting him at the hospital! So, plan B is to just slide it into my quiver in the garage and act like it's been there all along. I'll let y'all know how that works out.

 

[El Duderino]

haha. id say thats a good plan

 

[yoothgeye]

I'm a builder, usually not a fan or keeping it old school, but for some reason this bike really screams at me to leave it alone, I'd cruise it all over the place with just an occasional dusting off.

 

[rms37]

Airider was a name that Westfield came up with for their new streamlined balloon tire bicycle (The in-house version of the Elgin Blackhawk) in 1934. The name trickled down and was used on several bikes later on. As a Westfield Manufacturing product, it is easy to find the year and project the build date for the bike by comparing the serial number to the list on Mr. Columbia’s site:

http://www.vintagecolumbiabikes.com/id79.html

 

[subadrew]

Trade ya a Felt...?

Awesome ride!

 

[Pudge]

Trade ya a Felt...?

Thanks Drew, that offer speaks volumes right there, but this is definitely one of those bikes that I see myself hanging on to for quite awhile. I haven't even gotten it into my own garage yet! And once I do I'll probably just break it down, give it a good lube job, some fresh air in the tires, and then take it for a nice long ride.

 

[subadrew]

I'd do the same =)

 

[highship]

Does anyone think ther would be interest in those tank decals? I have a bunch of them, there originals. Just wondering...

 

[Pudge]

Does anyone think ther would be interest in those tank decals? I have a bunch of them, there originals. Just wondering...

Personally, Highship, I'll stick with the ones that are on there, but post a pic of them. Maybe that'll help increase the interest.

 

[Unchained]

Holy crow!

This is beautiful and I've come back to the thread many times, but I never noticed the Worcester plate until now. Is that a Worcester, Mass. plate? It sure looks like one... I've got matching Columbia's with the same plate. I live 30 minutes south or Worcester... amazing that this guy trekked all the way to VA from up here :mrgreen: (If only I had known about it!! 8) )