Sears Ted Williams Signature 10 Speed
02-25-21, 10:04 PM
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Sears Ted Williams Signature 10 Speed
Hello - am new to the forum so cannot post pictures yet - I picked up a 10 Speed Sears Ted Williams autographed 10 speed. Bike is in very good shape, so I may want to sell it. Is this bike a rarity or were they mass produced/marketed back in the day by Sears? Thanks for any input.
02-25-21, 10:28 PM
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Sears used a couple different manufactures to build those bikes .For Two years they offered a very fine well made bike that is desirable ,but most years they were very unremarkable and poorly constructed.So it depends on which Ted Williams bike you have
02-25-21, 10:50 PM
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it may exhibit a long number stamped into the underside of the bottom bracket shell which begins with something such as 502 or 503. the number is a stock/item number and not a serial number. the first three digits indicate who the vendor (actual manufacturer) was.
if you are able to make photos you can upload them to your member's album and a moderator or other member can put them into the discussion thread.
another approach is to upload them to a third party host and enter the URL into the thread in a munged form. working URL's are not permitted to be posted by new members with fewer than ten posts.
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it may exhibit a long number stamped into the underside of the bottom bracket shell which begins with something such as 502 or 503. the number is a stock/item number and not a serial number. the first three digits indicate who the vendor (actual manufacturer) was.
if you are able to make photos you can upload them to your member's album and a moderator or other member can put them into the discussion thread.
another approach is to upload them to a third party host and enter the URL into the thread in a munged form. working URL's are not permitted to be posted by new members with fewer than ten posts.
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02-26-21, 06:11 AM
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Also look for a Reynolds 531 sticker on the seat tube and/or “made in Austria” on the head badge.
But even if it’s one of the better quality ones, it’s definitely not rare.
But even if it’s one of the better quality ones, it’s definitely not rare.
02-26-21, 06:20 AM
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The OP has 12 posts. I thought the no-photo restriction for new members expired after 10 posts. Has the limit been changed?
02-26-21, 07:25 AM
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02-26-21, 07:36 AM
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TedWilliamsFreeSpirit
02-26-21, 07:51 AM
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I had the white one.... It had been my dad's originally, but I wound up with it when I outgrew the kid's bike I had been riding. According to those ads, the white one was the cheapest one, which explains why my parents chose it over one of the other colors. Regardless, I put a ton of miles on it over 10-15 years of riding.
I love the vintage style reflectors!
I love the vintage style reflectors!
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02-26-21, 08:08 PM
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If someone tells you that you have enough bicycles and you don't need any more, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
If someone tells you that you have enough bicycles and you don't need any more, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
02-28-21, 09:38 PM
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The Sears-bought Austrian-built by Puch 3-speed bikes that my parents bought around 1960 were labeled J.C.Higgins, and that branding went away in 1961. Ted Williams endorsed his name to Sears sporting goods starting in 1962. Then the Free Spirit line came along in the early '70s.
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03-01-21, 03:02 PM
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ted williams free spirit
Shimano top post shifters
Front steering tube
Bike appears all original; in good all-around condition; definitely a rider with some cleanup
03-01-21, 03:10 PM
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"Shipping Weight 46 lbs" - HOLY SMOKES! The 531 bike is an entire UCI-legal bike lighter than the "racer with lightweight frame of tempered steel".
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03-01-21, 03:10 PM
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Picture of Ted Williams "little sister" Sears and Roebuck 3-speed
03-01-21, 03:11 PM
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ah, peechas at last!
Sears bicycles are marked with an item number / product number which begins with a three digit code indicating the vendor (actual manufacturer)
possible this example may be one of the Murray ones, the Murray code is 502
IIRC the code for Steyr products is 503
the bicycle's actual serial number is often in a separate location from the item number
the item number will appear very regular/even while the serial will be slightly less so
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ah, peechas at last!
Sears bicycles are marked with an item number / product number which begins with a three digit code indicating the vendor (actual manufacturer)
possible this example may be one of the Murray ones, the Murray code is 502
IIRC the code for Steyr products is 503
the bicycle's actual serial number is often in a separate location from the item number
the item number will appear very regular/even while the serial will be slightly less so
-----
03-01-21, 03:22 PM
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503 code on this 3-speed made in Austria
03-01-21, 03:57 PM
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03-01-21, 07:56 PM
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