1st FF in a year, 50s Schwinn ballooner!

[Rustinkerer]

Haven't brought anything home since last fall's Eden show, and a trade with Pedal Junky. Browsing craigslist last week, spied a killer deal, picked up the phone, left a message. Didn't get a call back, figured it was long gone. But, been checking the bikes section since, and, whaddya know, there it was again! Got an answer this time, so, grabbed the GPS and headed for the ATM! Missed the rain by a few minutes. Looks like a mid 50s D series, all original except the seat & tires! Missing the chain, guard, and 3 of the 4 pedal blocks. I've seen a few 55ish models that shared the Phantom chain ring. Maybe this winter, I'll find time to give it an OA bath, see what's left of the maroon and ivory paint. Not bad for $45!!! -Adam
schwinn 1 by njabatsis, on Flickr

 

[Wildcat]

Nice! Hopefully that paint will be good enough. I would use it however it looked, it's original. My 53 Schwinn was nearly identical to yours when I got it, except it was covered in red house paint and I couldn't save the original paint.

Guessing what model mine is is tough. It had the phantom style chain ring, but had a feather chain guard, not the phantom guard. Just like yours, no springer. The closest I came to it in the catalog was a Meteor, but they don't show that chain ring, so I'm still not sure.