My first bike,was a hand-me-down from my Dad ,he gave me in 1947-8. It had a broken fork,an idea I guess was if I could fix that,he'd buy new tires n tubes for me. The bike was all alum. Silver King an took me a few months to find a way to fix the broken fork head tube. That kind of started the find old bikes an fix them thing,that after some time,became design n build my own bikes from junk found. In my spair time between building hotrod n racrcars. http://www.wisil.recumbents.com/wisil/misc/teamstrange/default.htm I would build some bikes for fun,by the 1970s I had done a few that were very comfortbil too ride. In the 1980's designed ,built n raced a few for world land speedrecord for pedalbikes. The two speed steamliners were my "Team Strange" record run racers. "Strange One" an " Two Strange" All four in pics are bikes I designed n built,the two with no streamline bodys in top pic. I rode a lot n often let a buddy ride other.
Believe those wheels are Lesters. We sold a ton of them, different styles, different colors. Only problem was a bunch of them cracked where the spokes went into the rim. They were common for a while, at least around our place. Don't remember any of them coming apart, just cracking too often, and too soon.
These are Wally World Mongoose freewheel with the black paint removed. I would have loved to had real Motomags or sixties 5 spokes, but these work well.
Thanks @Elcohaulic ! The rear is a standard big-box bmx freewheel hub. The shifter is actually my suicide brake. NO COASTER BRAKE! Photos below... Yes it rides really smooth, but I don't like to get going too fast due to the above! The bike is a Murray-built Western Flyer. The rusty pic is what I started with (obviously without the Mongoose mags!) And what the final wheels started as....
I think I posted pics of a couple of these already but I hung up some of my collection in the rafters of my new garage and thought I'd share pics. Pretty sure at least these first two I haven't posted pics of here yet.
From a dumpster?!?! Nice! I've seen one on the bmx museum but I forget what it is exactly. Huffy? Schwinn?
here's a picture of my FREE 1950 Phantom. all I had to do to get it was buy 19 vintage bikes along with tubs of parts and go to swap meets and sell them. I have just broke even, and still have lots to sell. probably keep this one. .
here's a couple "late models" 1980 - 81. black one has a drum brake in the back and 5 speed. both for sale.
I rejuvinated this one from rusted junk that sat in a dirt floor Alameda California basement for 40 years. 1950 Schwinn Traveler. original paint polished and buffed.
1943 Schwinn "blackout" bike sold during WWII. no chrome, no chain guard, no kickstand, (I added the one you see) new bikes were rationed during the war. this one had tires with "WAR" on the side before I got it, but they were rotten. tires were rationed also.
The Jalopy Journal
