The date of manufacture of a bicycle's components can often be used to determine the date of manufacture of the bike itself. Some bike parts have a date code cast or stamped into the piece. This clearly is when the component was made and not when the bike was made, but unless the component or bike manufacturer had lots of stock lying around in inventory, the date should be a fairly good indication of the year of the bike. At least it would be the earliest date that the bike could have been made. Of course, all this assumes the bike has the original component. The most likely components to be original are the stem, handlebars, seatpost, and brakes. On a vintage bike in excellent condition that apparently had a lonely existence in a garage all of the components likely are original.

When people sell things on they post pictures of what they are selling. Therefore there are thousands and thousands of images there that can help you figure out how much bikes like yours are selling for, what type bike you have if you do not knowor what it is supposed to have as far as accessories go.

If you are unfamiliar with then keep reading and I will show you step by step how to find answers to your questions there.

First step is to go to this link will open in a new tab : Schwinn bikes on. is a place where normal people buy and sell an amazing assortment of things. Every time you go to there will be thousands of vintage bikes and parts available.

How to Identify a Schwinn Bicycle. Find the serial number on the bicycle. Schwinns produced between and have serial numbers on the right rear axle mount (this mount keeps the wheel in place). Look for the serial number on the lower head tube (right above the wheel on the front of the bike) for Schwinns produced between and The rear derailleur can often be dated to a year or two by referring to the book "The Dancing Chain - History and Development of the Derailleur Bicycle", by Frank Berto, 3rd edition The Appendix gives dates of initial manufacture for the vast majority of derailleurs made from to Schwinn Serial Numbers and Date Codes Dates between and are available because Schwinn kept good records. From on, several different coding systems were used, from which the manufacture date (and often the assembly date) can be decifered.

Since these items have photos, there is a great wealth of knowledge and reference to be found. Let's look at one of the questions I receive every day To answer this question is rather easy.

Dating these bikes is usually the first step toward proper appraisal of a vintage Schwinn machine. Find the serial number. Upon production, all Schwinns had a serial number stamped in one of three places on the frame. The first possible location is on the underside of the bottom bracket. Take a look at this Schwinn AeroCycle: Vintage Schwinn Bicycles Hall of Fame. Schwinn got many jewels in their treasure chest in the shape of vintage bicycle and vintage Schwinn tandem bicycles. Let us look at some of the famous models: Schwinn Phantom. The vintage Schwinn Phantom is a most crazed bicycle of its era back in How much is my Schwinn worth? To answer this question is rather easy. Your bike is worth is what people are willing to pay for it. You used to have to guess at this, but now you can know for sure what people are paying for a particular bike. If you have a Schwinn Stingray (as an example), you can search and here is a sample of what you will get.

Your bike is worth is what people are willing to pay for it. You used to have to guess at this, but now you can know for sure what people are paying for a particular bike.

Vintage Schwinn Bikes - Stingray Road Cruiser Bikes Prices and Reviews

If you have a Schwinn Stingray as an exampleyou can search and here is a sample of what you will get Some Taiwanese built by Giant Schwinns have a date code on the right rear axle hanger or on the bottom bracket shell in the format 'Gmmyy'. An example would be 'G' and equates to "Giant, January, ".

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Schwinn Home s s s s s Epilogue and Sources Serial Numbers Models Head Badges. Car Racks. Schwinn Serial Numbers and Date Codes.

Dates between and are available because Schwinn kept good records. B Z Schwinn's built-in kickstand was introduced in D - E - WZ 1 - S The DX frames were part of the Schwinn line by I have found heart-pattern skip-tooth cranksets on Schwinns as late as and as early as Look for the left dropout on the same side as the chain.

The last of the possible locations is on the head tube, which is are on the very front of the bicycle between the handlebars and the fork on which the Schwinn logo badge is affixed. Look below and to the left of the badge to find the serial number. Visit the Schwinn Date Codes website-this is the "cheat sheet" for identifying Schwinn serial codes on the Internet, and it contains many other related resources and facts.

Follow the appropriate link. The Date Codes website has a link for each of the three places mentioned in Step 1 where you might have found the serial number.

The new "balloon" tires were wider and had an inner tube, which naturally became the standard of bicycle tires to this day. Schwinn introduced the balloon tire in the spring of and two years later it was pretty much used on all bicycles made in America. Vintage Schwinn Bikes. Most models of Schwinn bikes have years of images and information via old catalogs, advertisements and Schwinn documentation. Vintage Schwinn serial number lookup. This tool searches a database of Schwinn serial numbers and if it finds a match to your serial number then it will display the information available for your bike. Notes: This tool works for Schwinn bikes from to All .

Match your serial number and find out the exact year, month and day your Schwinn was made. For appraisal purposes, this date will be helpful in determining your bike's collector value, though it is not a definite rule.