On this "Sears" you'll never get dropped...armed w/ "photon torpedos"
#27
Fat Guy on a Little Bike
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Posts: 17,229
Bikes: Two wheeled ones
Mentioned: 42 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1254 Post(s)
Liked 345 Times
in
174 Posts
As far as shipping this:
#28
www.theheadbadge.com
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Southern Florida
Posts: 28,496
Bikes: https://www.theheadbadge.com
Mentioned: 123 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2401 Post(s)
Liked 4,350 Times
in
2,075 Posts
P.S.: Here's a better look at what one of these over-hyped* Murray middleweights look like when their frames haven't been bent into a pretzel by someone backing into it with a truck:
Not the same year, given the tank, but you get the picture.
-Kurt
*Yes, overhyped. The frames are soft steel and ride like crap. So many people who think these look cool because of a tank and a chrome job (yes, they do look good, I'll grant you that) can't see past the glitter. There's not much difference between this and late-1980s Murray cruisers that get no love. They're bicycle shaped objects from the 1960's, with a bit of pizzazz, and they're barely adult-sized bikes in the first place.
Last edited by cudak888; 10-09-19 at 09:22 PM.
Likes For cudak888:
#29
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: Lacey, WA
Posts: 1,710
Bikes: Stevenson Custom, Stevenson Custom Tandem, Nishiki Professional
Mentioned: 35 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 367 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 195 Times
in
127 Posts
A question no one has asked yet.
Where do you get yellow bike chain?
Where do you get yellow bike chain?
#30
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: Lacey, WA
Posts: 1,710
Bikes: Stevenson Custom, Stevenson Custom Tandem, Nishiki Professional
Mentioned: 35 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 367 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 195 Times
in
127 Posts
OMG, answered my own question, the mind boggles. And yes, this is 11 speed bike chain, guess with all the shades of grey/black, etc. single track bikes I see for sale this must be the only way to add any color at all.
Will LED bike chain be far behind?
#31
Fat Guy on a Little Bike
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Posts: 17,229
Bikes: Two wheeled ones
Mentioned: 42 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1254 Post(s)
Liked 345 Times
in
174 Posts
No good GIFs out there of the Mutara Nebula battle, unfortunately. Had to settle for Kirk in his refit Sears Spaceliner battling Doc Brown in a Bird of Whale Transport.
P.S.: Here's a better look at what one of these over-hyped* Murray middleweights look like when their frames haven't been bent into a pretzel by someone backing into it with a truck:
Not the same year, given the tank, but you get the picture.
-Kurt
*Yes, overhyped. The frames are soft steel and ride like crap. So many people who think these look cool because of a tank and a chrome job (yes, they do look good, I'll grant you that) can't see past the glitter. There's not much difference between this and late-1980s Murray cruisers that get no love. They're bicycle shaped objects from the 1960's, with a bit of pizzazz, and they're barely adult-sized bikes in the first place.
P.S.: Here's a better look at what one of these over-hyped* Murray middleweights look like when their frames haven't been bent into a pretzel by someone backing into it with a truck:
Not the same year, given the tank, but you get the picture.
-Kurt
*Yes, overhyped. The frames are soft steel and ride like crap. So many people who think these look cool because of a tank and a chrome job (yes, they do look good, I'll grant you that) can't see past the glitter. There's not much difference between this and late-1980s Murray cruisers that get no love. They're bicycle shaped objects from the 1960's, with a bit of pizzazz, and they're barely adult-sized bikes in the first place.
Likes For KonAaron Snake:
#32
www.theheadbadge.com
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Southern Florida
Posts: 28,496
Bikes: https://www.theheadbadge.com
Mentioned: 123 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2401 Post(s)
Liked 4,350 Times
in
2,075 Posts
There's no reason the cantilever frame design can't be meshed with the idea of a sporty commuter, and there's been enough tire tech over the years for middleweight-sized tires to provide similar performance to a 700x28C.
Schwinn's "King Size" frames did try to take care of the size issue, but as we know, electroforged frames do nothing for weight:
The other thing is that Schwinn seems to be one of the few manufacturers to have made the effort of styling their frames with golden ratio proportions, ensuring that each curve of the frame is complementary. The top tube always has an even curve, the gradual increase of the seatstay radius is elegant, and the downtube and chainstays look like one unbroken unit, even though they're intersected by the BB shell.
By comparison, so many "beach cruiser" cantilever frames screw this up so bad that it's not even funny. This thing looks like the Hunchback of Notre Dame:
This one has been hit HARD with the ugly stick:
Unicrown forks haven't done them any favors in the looks department either. I'd bet most cruisers would look really nice with oversized sloping-crown forks too.
That reminds me - Schwinn proved that modernizing the flat-as-a-pancake Ashtabula fork can result in something purely awful looking:
-Kurt
Last edited by cudak888; 10-11-19 at 07:58 PM.
Likes For cudak888:
#33
Mr. Anachronism
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Somewhere west of Tobie's
Posts: 2,093
Bikes: fillet-brazed Chicago Schwinns, and some other stuff
Mentioned: 29 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 526 Post(s)
Liked 256 Times
in
165 Posts
But back on topic, I took one of those Spaceliners (actually the Western equivalent, the "Stratoflyer") and made it more "dangerous" with ape hangers and a sissy bar. Very comfortable for cruising around the lakes here in Minneapolis.
I've also got one of the women's examples, but I had to stash the photon torpedo launcher somewhere the Federation weapons regulators won't find it.
__________________
"My only true wisdom is in knowing I have none" -Socrates
"My only true wisdom is in knowing I have none" -Socrates
Last edited by Hudson308; 10-11-19 at 06:44 AM.
Likes For Hudson308:
#34
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Madison, WI USA
Posts: 6,872
Mentioned: 50 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2350 Post(s)
Liked 1,727 Times
in
1,179 Posts
^^^^^ Is that a battle-quarry Romulan disruptor on the helm... er... handlebar?
Likes For madpogue:
#37
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Madison, WI USA
Posts: 6,872
Mentioned: 50 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2350 Post(s)
Liked 1,727 Times
in
1,179 Posts
^^^^ But @cudak888 is right. Both the Merlin and the Black Sheep have a "flat spot" in the stays where they intersect with the top tube and seat tube. Of all the above pics, only the old Schwinn retains a smooth curve to the stays (and yeah, Kurt, I wouldn't be surprised if the golden ratio works in there somewhere). It's those subtle visual cues that make a difference; a cantilever frame should remind one, even if not consciously, of an artfully architected old bridge.
Likes For madpogue:
#38
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: Lacey, WA
Posts: 1,710
Bikes: Stevenson Custom, Stevenson Custom Tandem, Nishiki Professional
Mentioned: 35 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 367 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 195 Times
in
127 Posts
This was a golden age of design swept up in the performance fighter aircraft, jets and rockets, soon to be space ships, influencing design in almost all areas of consumption. I volunteer at a car museum and each time I walk by one of our 57 Chevy's I always flash on the twin .50 caliber machine guns mounted on the engine cowl of the P-40 Tomahawk.
Both classics and in many ways these Sears, Murray, etc. bikes shared the same. If you could not fly a Tomahawk, you could drive your 57 Chevy, and if you could not explore space, you could ride your space bike a long ways in imagination and fact.
It was the age of gravel roads past most city limits followed by dirt, and these 50lb. behemoths with wide balloon tires ate these roads up and with a 3 speed rear hub took me into the foothills on game trails until you had to get off and push (but man what a kick descending), single track and mountain biking before anyone knew.
Both classics and in many ways these Sears, Murray, etc. bikes shared the same. If you could not fly a Tomahawk, you could drive your 57 Chevy, and if you could not explore space, you could ride your space bike a long ways in imagination and fact.
It was the age of gravel roads past most city limits followed by dirt, and these 50lb. behemoths with wide balloon tires ate these roads up and with a 3 speed rear hub took me into the foothills on game trails until you had to get off and push (but man what a kick descending), single track and mountain biking before anyone knew.
#39
www.theheadbadge.com
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Southern Florida
Posts: 28,496
Bikes: https://www.theheadbadge.com
Mentioned: 123 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2401 Post(s)
Liked 4,350 Times
in
2,075 Posts
^^^^ But @cudak888 is right. Both the Merlin and the Black Sheep have a "flat spot" in the stays where they intersect with the top tube and seat tube. Of all the above pics, only the old Schwinn retains a smooth curve to the stays (and yeah, Kurt, I wouldn't be surprised if the golden ratio works in there somewhere). It's those subtle visual cues that make a difference; a cantilever frame should remind one, even if not consciously, of an artfully architected old bridge.
As @madpogue pointed out though, these TI art pieces still don't quite hit the aesthetic sweet spot. I know that both Merlin and Black Sheep were probably more concerned about geometry when designing these - and that's a fair point. Curving the chainstays - especially for the News Boy, which appears to be a purpose-built MTB - wouldn't make any sense for clearance and would require some seriously funky dropouts.
The Black Sheep does get the overall look better though. I dare say the Schwinn tank probably forced them into it. The seatstays have the right curvature and transition and they meet the top tube absolutely perfectly: All tubes level with each other at the bottom edge.
Coincidentally, this junction is also where the Merlin gets it wrong beyond belief and becomes an aesthetic **** show. Kinking the stays at the seattube? Was that really necessary to distinguish the frame? It looks more like a half-arsed fix during fabrication after someone set the tubing bender to the wrong radius. Merlin did nail the downtube S-curve though - it meets the BB even nicer than the Black Sheep's shallower curve.
One could still argue the cro-mo point though - both of these bikes are over the top enough that there's still no option for a relatively affordable, lightweight cantilever frame that has the right look. After all, if someone wants to go through the effort of choosing a frame that has zero purpose over a diamond frame other than aesthetics in the first place, why isn't there anything out there that has ever nailed it?
Incidentally, the Schwinn stays are part of the Golden Ratio (think NDS when you look at this):
-Kurt
Last edited by cudak888; 10-11-19 at 08:11 PM.
#41
What happened?
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Around here somewhere
Posts: 8,050
Bikes: 3 Rollfasts, 3 Schwinns, a Shelby and a Higgins Flightliner in a pear tree!
Mentioned: 57 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1835 Post(s)
Liked 292 Times
in
255 Posts
Isn't it a lovely thing, probably somewhere nearing 50lbs., but the way the frame is made, sure industrial, but look at all the curves in that tubing.
A dream bike from my grade school years.
On auction at Goodwill for the next day and some hours, too far away and really what would I do with it???
LOL ride it!
Check out the tank, to me it looks like the opening on the U.S.S. Enterprise for it's "photon torpedo" launcher.
Pass me will you, "Sooloo" (sp?) lock on and fire".
At least the light tank has a HORN.
I have the male version in 26", a 1962 J.C. Higgins Flightliner.
There was a wicked rack for that bike and somebody butchered it.
Some skilled repair work might repair that seat tube but I'd trust a splice more.
It's a sad thing, this grand old lady. She deserves better.
The chain is way too big as well.
__________________
I don't know nothing, and I memorized it in school and got this here paper I'm proud of to show it.
Last edited by Rollfast; 10-13-19 at 02:09 AM.
#42
Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Central Indiana
Posts: 2,201
Bikes: Old Stuff
Mentioned: 27 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 912 Post(s)
Liked 514 Times
in
343 Posts
I empathize, as bikes like that are what were purchased by parents for kids back then. Heavy and strong. Those steel racks were strong enough to carry passengers. Somebody got that one for twelve bucks. Maybe it'll show up on the local CL.
#43
www.theheadbadge.com
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Southern Florida
Posts: 28,496
Bikes: https://www.theheadbadge.com
Mentioned: 123 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2401 Post(s)
Liked 4,350 Times
in
2,075 Posts
Chain is the correct length. The chainstays and seatstays have an equally massive bend in them that's caused the axle-to-BB length to shorten. The entire rear triangle is heavily, heavily damaged.
With any luck, one might be able to straighten the seattube (using some hellish force and a long solid rod the ID of the seatpost) and then sort out the stays with the Park frame tools. If one's lucky, not too much chrome will crack off.
My guess is someone bought it for the tank as a donor. Might be the best course of action. Frame is pretty much toast.
-Kurt
With any luck, one might be able to straighten the seattube (using some hellish force and a long solid rod the ID of the seatpost) and then sort out the stays with the Park frame tools. If one's lucky, not too much chrome will crack off.
My guess is someone bought it for the tank as a donor. Might be the best course of action. Frame is pretty much toast.
-Kurt
#44
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: 700 Ft. above sea level.
Posts: 3,205
Bikes: More than there were awhile ago.
Mentioned: 22 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 620 Post(s)
Liked 1,205 Times
in
575 Posts
Yes, overhyped. The frames are soft steel and ride like crap. So many people who think these look cool because of a tank and a chrome job (yes, they do look good, I'll grant you that) can't see past the glitter. There's not much difference between this and late-1980s Murray cruisers that get no love. They're bicycle shaped objects from the 1960's, with a bit of pizzazz, and they're barely adult-sized bikes in the first place.
__________________
".....distasteful and easily triggered."
".....distasteful and easily triggered."
Likes For Murray Missile:
#46
What happened?
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Around here somewhere
Posts: 8,050
Bikes: 3 Rollfasts, 3 Schwinns, a Shelby and a Higgins Flightliner in a pear tree!
Mentioned: 57 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1835 Post(s)
Liked 292 Times
in
255 Posts
I would hope that I can get a couple LEDs into the two red doohickies at the back and light them
And I bought a brand new pair of tires with siping like a motorcycle tire in ways, they look HOT.
__________________
I don't know nothing, and I memorized it in school and got this here paper I'm proud of to show it.
Likes For Rollfast:
#47
Mr. Anachronism
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Somewhere west of Tobie's
Posts: 2,093
Bikes: fillet-brazed Chicago Schwinns, and some other stuff
Mentioned: 29 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 526 Post(s)
Liked 256 Times
in
165 Posts
The replacement batteries cost more than the lights however, so I just buy more lights when they wear out.
__________________
"My only true wisdom is in knowing I have none" -Socrates
"My only true wisdom is in knowing I have none" -Socrates
#48
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Madison, WI USA
Posts: 6,872
Mentioned: 50 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2350 Post(s)
Liked 1,727 Times
in
1,179 Posts
#49
www.theheadbadge.com
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Southern Florida
Posts: 28,496
Bikes: https://www.theheadbadge.com
Mentioned: 123 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2401 Post(s)
Liked 4,350 Times
in
2,075 Posts
https://www.ebay.com/itm/122863450256 - Bonus: they're not on the slow boat from China.
-Kurt
#50
Mr. Anachronism
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Somewhere west of Tobie's
Posts: 2,093
Bikes: fillet-brazed Chicago Schwinns, and some other stuff
Mentioned: 29 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 526 Post(s)
Liked 256 Times
in
165 Posts
https://www.ebay.com/itm/122863450256 - bonus: They're not on the slow boat from china.
__________________
"My only true wisdom is in knowing I have none" -Socrates
"My only true wisdom is in knowing I have none" -Socrates