40-41 Schwinn D97X Build. :Now In Working Order:

[Bendix]

Thank you for those pictures Bendix, those help a lot!
Do you have any more pictures of that fork? What's the difference between a prewar fork and a postwar fork?

i'll take some, obviously i took that one for the paint detail...

if i understand correctly the prewar ones (with and w/out the brace) have a brazed crown/leg assembly. the later froks are the one piece 'ashtabula' type where the crown and legs are one big, bent piece of metal with just the steerer tube brazed on.

somebody correct me if i'm confused about that...

[Bendix]

ha! too late- i'll correct myself!

i guess the prewar forks w/out the built in truss rod guides were indeed similar in construction to the postwar ones









the profile is a little different viewed from the top though...






the earlier braced forks had the brazed construction...the two were sort of merged in my memory...

[duncan]

Thank you very much for the infomation and the pictures.
So yeah, that would make my forks post-war:




Now I know what to look for though! Thanks again.

[duncan]

Tires came in today! Thanks Chimichanga!




They are pretty sweet!

[duncan]

Progress on rebuilding the wheels:
Old spokes V.S. New spokes





I wonder if a bath in vinegar will clean them up a bit?




The spokes are being a pain. Most of the nipples are stuck to the spokes, and they kept breaking. So I figured if they are all trashed, why try to save them? So I cut most if the spokes in the middle, trashed the side with out the nipples, and I will be soaking the ends with the nipples in PB-Blaster in order to save the nipples hopefully soon.

Next on the list is to clean up the hubs as good as possible, and re-lace the rims with the new spokes.
Progress has been slow because of this :

[scott brownsey]

goodluck with the wheels

[rusty1]

Boy, that' was a nasty lookin bike, but you're cleaning it up nicely.

[duncan]

Thanks guys.

Cleaned up the hubs with an SOS pad today:







The worst:

[duncan]

Finally laced up one of the rims. Now i just have to true it. I kept the old nipples, and only replaced the spokes.

I also assembled the cranks, and headset, and threw the seat back on. so now all I have to do is get the wheels done and figure out why the sprocket wants to wobble.

[scott brownsey]

looking good looks like a bike again white tires look sweet

[duncan]

I got a bit impatient, and put some wheels from a Breeze on it so I could ride it down the hill in my back yard




Can't wait until it's done!

[switchblade]

Any updates on your bike. Looks awesome

[duncan]

Well, I replaced the chain ring with one from an old DP exercise bike I got awhile ago, and put a chain on it. It rides great so far, but the skinny, 30 year old tires scare me in the corners a bit.







I also replaced the pedals with ones from the exercise bikes. I lost one of the nuts that screws on the rod that holds the blocks on.
Plus I cleaned the chain guard :



I should finish lacing the rear wheel soon, and then I will start truing both the wheels.

[duncan]

Been awhile, but I have it sort of where I want it to be.





I now have 2 matchign white grips on it.
Things that still need to be done is:
Put some S2 rims on, or put a SA 3speed rear wheel on.
Get some rusty "street sweeper" style fenders
install a Lucky 7/Laid back seatpost
put a "STOP" light on the rear.

Hope you like it as much as I do