PRESERVATION BICYCLE # 19: 1955 Schwinn Corvette
Preservation Bikes Are Back!!!
***Quick preface before we jump in to preservation bike #19…
The manufacturing process of creating a bicycle (out of just about anything other than bamboo) is NOT environmentally friendly. Bicycles only become environmentally friendly when you ride them, ride them often, and repair rather than replace them. There’s likely an exact mile point that could be calculated when the carbon footprint of your bicycle achieves zero (the emissions you’ve saved from riding equaling the emissions created during manufacturing). Only when you and your bicycle hit that milestone, can you join Captain Planet’s team of Planeteers. Earth, Fire, Wind, Water, and Heart! So ride on Preservations Bicycles!
1955 Schwinn Corvette!
Straight from the 1955 Schwinn Catalog the “Most luxurious of the new middleweight models, with 3-speed gears, front and rear caliper brakes, stainless steel fenders, chrome headlight, whitewall tires and a handsome spring-type front luggage carrier on 26-inch models. Also available with coaster brake.”
You won’t find a more classic, made in Schwinn-Chicago-America bicycle on the planet. This one was born on August 14th-ish 1955, (you can find this in the Schwinn Serial Number Database), making its 65th birthday today! It originally sold for about $76.95 for the internal 3-speed version and has one heck of a German made rat trap front rack (rat trap meaning it has a spring activated section to store stuff under/smash your fingers with). It also has a tire activated dynamo hub that still works and an odometer/speedometer that probably doesn’t work in its current state. And rubber handlebar tassels!
PRESERVATION BICYCLE NUMBER #15
MAKE: Schwinn
MODEL: Corvette
YEAR/AGE: 1955 (August 14th-ish)
SIZE: One size fits most people 5’2 - 6’0
ADOPTION FEE: $76.95 (the original 1955 price of the three-speed model!). AND WE’LL THROW IN A $30 GIFT CERTIFICATE FOR USED PARTS
RECOMMENDED REPAIRS:
BASIC: You can probably make the tires work, but I wouldn’t recommend going down any steep hills or speeds over 18mph. My guess is you can probably patch the tubes, but again, the rubber is pretty old. You’re definitely going to need to clean out and grease/oil the rear hub, and you’ll need a new brake lever, brake cable, and brake pads. All of the bearings will need to be de-greased and re-greased, and you’ll need to become close friends with steel wool. With used parts and about 4 hours of dirty bike mechanic work, I bet you could make it ridable for $30 + the $76.95 adoption fee - $30 the gift certificate = $76.95 for piece of American bicycle history.
BETTER: Same as above but track down some new tires. Add $40 to the basic price above.
BEST (because why not): Geeze, I don’t know if you want to do too much more. The faded paint looks to good to repaint, and a little squeaking and creaking is just its way of saying “I love you.”
BICYCLE HISTORY:
Born in Chicago August 14th, 1955. And… there aren’t a lot of other details on the bike to tell the rest of the story. It has 1070.1 miles on the odometer, but it’s hard to tell how many times that has rolled over. Since it’s not overly rusty for a 65 year old bike, my guess is that it’s lived in Boise or some other dry-ish non-coastal area for most of it’s life.