Stingray Classic at Walmart for $88! Not the new style!

Rat Rod Bikes Bicycle Forum

Help Support Rat Rod Bikes Bicycle Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Lots of folks are swapping out the cheesy sprocket with repop sprockets, but...they end up rubbing on the frame so you have to use a spacer to get it to work.

I'm thinking this may have been their logic behind the cheapo looking sprockets.

Whether that was planned or a mistake....who knows.
 
Upper Class White Trash said:
nationwide policy.... yes but it is the same fine as shoplifting if your caught dumpster diving in their trash. so tread lightly...

That depends on where you live, and the police officer and/or judge you have to face! I've had it explained to me that in the smaller town I live in, it is not illegal to dumpster dive (even if the dumpster states so), but in Nashville it is only illegal if the dumpster clearly states to stay out (and not just the safety warning).
 
Let's see...bought 40 of them at $88 each....that's $3520.00 :shock:

Uhhhh...yeah...small oversight on the collectability and rareness factor.

I'm sensing some buyer's remorse here...ha ha!
 
Now THAT is sad...huckster :!:
 
he says: "Get these while they last or before I turn to ebay for a broder scope of customers. "

ha! they're not selling too fast there . . .
 
IFF they where the REAL mcCoy could you afford one ...IFF schwinn never folded or whatever, could you afford a REAL one, iff shcwinn never skipped a beat would you buy or could you afford one...OR like artist, musicians etc. worth more dead than alive :| :| :| :? :(
I like FELT cruisers. But unless I start finding them in thrift stores or a "REPOP" CHEAPY version comes out I doubt I'll own one soon..heck thats one reason I started back in building my own RAT ROD BIKES....
yes I'm not much of a schwine guy,... but iff i accidentally stop in Wally world and they have one left ; buy now figure iff it fits in car later..PARTS IS PARTS--A DEAL IS A DEAL :!: :!: 8) :mrgreen:
 
actually if i had to pick what "new" cruisers would be collectible in 50 years i would say anything from felt because their bikes are so nice. as for this stingray i say no just because there are a ton of them. my local wally world has a ton of them. i would swap the sprocket and make it work then i would like it better. i say wait till they drop the price like they did with the other stingray they sell there. are they even still making those things?
 
i need to go and get one... went to 3 walmarts today and saw none...
my local one, still has them, though they are already built, and still $88...

ACD,
if you see them up your way, let me know...

oct.
 
New Schwinn Stingrays, Rare Reproduction, black in color, kind of an impulse buy! So, to keep the peace, I need to sell these! Original cost $249.99 each, you can buy both for only $300.00 (Or $165.00 each), already assembled and ready for your little ones on Christmas morning! These are brand new, with the Owners Manuals, never ridden. I would like to see these go to a loving family, someone who has the same admiration for these bikes as I do, so no dealers please! I can be reached of course by e-mail or cell at 614-975-5648. Don't miss this rare opportunity to own these cool nostalgic works of art!

Sure hope they go to a good home, and no dealers try to buy them!(Sarcasm)
 
Rat Rod said:
Someone even told me recently that Wal-Mart throws away the bikes that they get back as returns.

I picked up a fat tire Stingray from Wally world some time ago for $20. The 'bike builder' knew I liked them and said he had one returned he had to get rid of. He only wanted cash though... :D So I imagine the $20 never made to the register.
 
have any of you guys seen these bikes. the frame is welded instead of electro forged...what does this mean? where the top tube and the head tube meet is just butt welded together instead of the beautiful flow of the tubing together. The sprocket is ugly! i have a mag sprocket on a bike the 88 special looks like someone made it with a hammer the stamping is horrible. I could go on but its all just little stuff that could be fixed. I hope to use mine to customize i think i want bare metal look and a fake tank insert and add a vintage non springer fork since i hate the springer forks they steer goofy and just feel weird to me. maybe cut an inch or two out of the top tube and weld it back together to rake it out a bit
 
I was wondering also about the $269 price tag. The CL link that I think steve posted above, from the guy who bought a whole bunch of them was putting the same description in his.

I mean, who doesnt go to wal-mart? Are people really that gullible?

Regardless, I think that for $88, its a good base for a cool ride.
As for the cheesiness of the parts, what would you expect for $88? A felt?

Just think, in 20 years these will be worth $44, how cool is that?
 
I hear all the talk on here and over on the Schwinn board. If you've read my comments there, you can see that I've already had $88 worth of fun with the bike I bought.

bfsign01.jpg



I figure, when will I ever get a chance to buy a Stingray in the box? Now or never, really. And $88 isn't gonna break the bank, fortunately.


bfbox05.jpg




So I bought it and built it, and yup, it sure is Chinese. The frame won't be mistaken for a Chicago Schwinn. Will it be strong enough for riding? I think so. I haven't broken a bike frame since 1985 when I destroyed the upper stays on an early Columbia mountain bike. I should probably not do any cool jumps with this one but it isn't going to fall apart the first time it's ridden either.

bfnew16.jpg



The springer is way too darn short to be a Krate. The other parts are debatable. The front tire is Duro, 16x1.75, weird tread that doesn't look like a Superior. The rear tire is a real Schwinn slik, black letter of course.

The bars look like '70s Stingray/Krate bars. The neck is aluminum and totally wrong but looks strong and they did sort of try to make it the right shape. I think.

The rims have that sort of flat center, square corner look of a real Schwinn. No knurling, stamping, or anything and of course the front is 28 spokes not 24... minor details.

The frame has a weird rear arch for the fender. Fatter than a coaster, not flat like a 5-speed, but it is drilled for a caliper brake. The tab for the rear of the chainguard is on the wrong stay. The front tab is positioned incorrectly.

The headbadge is sad and has to go. The seat post does not have the small diameter at the top. The seat tube clamp is painted along with the frame. The chainguard will work with this bike just fine but probably not any other Schwinn without mods to brackets.

The rear fender, inexplicably has no stay. The front fender is on a wire hanger at the bottom and a weird sheetmetal mount up top, not like a correct Krate mount.

The coaster brake is China-bike, made by Hi-Stop. Who? It does in fact work.

The seat is ok looking but is cheap, short, and the wrong shape. The sissy bar is sad- flattened ends and too short even all the way up. The pedals are these "clover" plastic-block reflector pedals that don't really look wrong, but are.

The sprocket is weird- they tried to make a Krate Mag in a coaster-mag size and sort of failed at both things. It's 44teeth and very flat and ugly. The crank is acceptable though a little different than a classic.

The decals, BTW are silver metallic. A bit odd. At least they really seem to be correct in size, shape, and logo. No little "(R)" or TM marks or anything incorrect. Also, the box graphic has some ghost outlines of the 1964 ad with the happy boy, and a couple of vintage logos behind the current Schwinn script and Pacific Cycles stamps.

All in all, they tried, and think about how cheaply this had to have been made!

bfnew26.jpg



SOOOOOOOOOOOO.... what're ya gonna do with it?
The big thing I see is to make the stance right. Lose the 16" wheel because it's too short. Add a 20" tire to make it a Deluxe. The chainguard just says Stingray after all.

I decided it also needed a proper sissy bar, with clamps, a correct type rear fender, some vintage pedals, and a real Mag sprocket. I'm also going to change the grips and the headbadge but haven't yet.


bfparts28.jpg



The sprocket needed a spacer to work, no big deal if you have a few parts bikes around- some have 'em, some don't.
The rear dropout tabs are there on the frame, and are tapped for some size thread, probably M5 or M6. I drilled through for 1/4 inch. Not hard to drill.

A nice side effect of the upgrade was getting rid of the rear reflector. I never installed the front bar-mount one and also removed the one from the rear wheel. Perhaps that sissybar bracket can be recycled for a tool bag or something.

bfparts31.jpg



With the new wheel, it finally doesn't point downhill. Now it can hang out with a couple of older friends. That's a '68 Orange Krate and a ca. 1973 Vista Torino 5-speed in the background.

bfdeluxe36.jpg



You sure do get what you pay for! Go pay for one, who knows if it will be the last.

--Rob
 
Back
Top