Tuesday, March 26, 2024

A Schwinn Traveler That Wasn't - Evolution Before Mass Production

In the early 1950s, the three speed and similar Schwinn lightweight/utility bikes had reached a cross roads. Schwinn's push in the late 1930s and into the 1940s to market British-style, Made-in-USA touring and utility bikes with to adults in the US had hit the market wall that was the late 1940s and early 1950s automotive boom.

It was in this environment in the early 1950s that Schwinn revised its era three speed and utility bike offerings as well as the way it marketed those bikes. The  New World and unusual post-war Superior (not to be confused with the upscale "Superior" made before WWII) were replaced. The upscale fillet brazed Continental was scaled back compared to its late 1940s version.

One of the bikes that stepped into this mid- and up-scale market void for Schwinn was the "Traveler" or "World Traveler" (not to be confused with much later World Traveler bikes made in Japan). 

But the early ads for the Traveler are not quite the bike we know today. These early Travelers mixed elements of the earlier Continental with what we know today as Traveler type parts.

 

Above we see what the Traveler might have started as, but ultimately what was never to be: a mixture of Continental and Traveler bike elements. The bike has the low-profile fenders styled after the Continental, as well as the three-arm chain ring of the Continental. But it also has the one-piece crank we associate with the Traveler. The bike also has the Sturmey Archer quadrant shifter we associate with 1940s Continental models, but the English-style accessories we associate with the Traveler. The head badge is round, similar to the Continental.

A second early ad shows the same bike - well, almost the same bike. The quadrant shifter is gone and now there is a handlebar shifter. Also note how the fenders are Continental in style but allegedly made of chrome rather than stainless steel, like the early production Travelers.

These ads also show a shift from the more adult ads of the late 1940s, which showed stars such as Ronald Reagan and Humphrey Bogart on Continental models. These 1950s ads are more youth-oriented, even though the bikes still were diamond or step-over framed and could be ridden by adults. Schwinn sensed the way the market was headed in the 1950s. 

In the end, this hybrid of the Continental and the Traveler was not to be. The Traveler underwent some changes and the production model we know today was different. The standard Schwinn "clover" chain ring was used, as were "shark blade" fenders similar to other Schwinn bikes. The first few years of Travelers had chrome fenders, while later in the 1950s they changed to stainless steel.

The ad above has a student-oriented motif and shows the production Traveler we are familiar with today. This includes the clover chain ring, finned front fender and handlebar shifter.

As with so many other bikes, the Traveler evolved between its initial design on paper to its mass production form in the early 1950s.




Thursday, March 14, 2024

Bike Service Records - Charts

If you have more than a couple old bicycles, perhaps you could benefit from a service history chart. A detailed chart can keep track of when each major system was serviced on the bike. Here is an example of the chart I use, which is meant specifically for old-style bikes with internal gear hubs.

I use Microsoft Excel or Apache Open Office to build my charts. They both are equally effective for this task. Open Office has the advantage of being relatively simple, and free to download.

Different types of bikes have different charts. But the gist is the same: mark down the date each of the major systems on the bike was last serviced. 

As a bonus, a notes column can help you keep track of parts swaps you've done in the past or estimated mileages at different times; another column can remind you whether you want to keep or sell a bike (or buy it, if you are borrowing or renting the bike).

 Other columns can keep track of tire sizes needed, as well as frame and wheel sizes on a particular bike.



Tuesday, February 27, 2024

A Note on Grease and Vintage Sturmey Archer Hubs

Quite awhile back I discussed my recommendations for oiling vintage Sturmey Archer hubs. These are the old style hubs with oil caps, which allow the user to periodically put oil in the hub. 


 

Modern Sturmey Archer hubs, some of which are mechanically similar to old hubs, use a semi-fluid (called NLGI #00 grade) grease rather than light oil for lubrication.  

 

In fact, semi-fluid NLGI #00 grease can be used in vintage Sturmey Archer hubs as well. The trade-off is that in order to properly grease the hub, you need to open up the hub, break it down, clean it, and then re-assemble using the right amount of grease. The hardcore internal gear hub fanatics would have no problem doing that.

The advantages of a total tear down and full grease treatment are that service intervals are stretched out, the grease tends to stay in place better once you've put it in the hub, and routine oiling is basically eliminated.  The disadvantages are the work of tearing down, cleaning, and re-greasing the hub and semi-fluid grease is not always available from the local hardware store (my local shop had some at one time, but then stopped carrying it).

 The commonly available "green" grease I use (Lucas or Blaster brand usually) is a medium-grade grease (NLGI #2). It is too thick to use throughout a vintage Sturmey hub, such as an AW or FW. I am using this grease on the outer bearings in the main cups, and a modest amount of it in the ball ring bearings inside the ball ring. These areas of the hub respond and seal up reasonably well with the common green grease.

For the core of the hub, I use 20 weight oil. My oil of choice is, as I've said many times before, 3-in-1 "blue" bottle oil, that is, the little bottle with the word "motor" or the little drawing of a motor on it. 

 I like this combination because your oil and grease can usually be bought from the local hardware store, the grease seals in the light oil reasonably well, and the oil is thin enough penetrate into the small spaces in the center of the hub. Routine oiling frequency is reduced but not eliminated entirely. I like this combination of factors, and I think the average mechanic and user of these hubs benefits from the convenience. 

But please don't assume this is the only way to lubricate the hub. I know of advanced mechanics who prefer a full semi-fluid grease treatment and do well with it. There is more than one "right" answer to lubricating your hub. I just happen to like the ease and versatility of common green grease in the bearings and 20-weight oil in the hub core.