I have a nice original middleweight that I really like and I have a ’66 Schwinn that I am about done collecting parts for. Plan to build it somewhere between stock and rat.
I really want a nice restored ballooner. I plan to use colors that may not be “original”, but I plan to tastefully build a classic looking ballooner. So, I have this late 40s Higgins that I picked up a little while ago for $75.
The parts are in decent shape, but the paint is terrible. I think it has been painted a couple of times. I started sanding on the frame and it’s going to be a breeze to strip it down. I have rebuilt the hub, the rims are straight and decent….It is really the perfect bike for what I want to do. The problem is that I am now thinking if I am going to invest money and time into this project to keep, I think I would really like a Huffman. I live in Dayton and grew up with Huffy in my backyard.
So what would you guys do? I mean I have all the parts to build a nice ballooner in the Higgins. It wouldn't take much. I could also part out the rack, fenders, etc and built a really nice rat out of the frame….or I could part out the whole bike, (maybe keep the trusses for my Schwinn?) and pretend the Higgins never happened and look for the Huffman.
I really want a nice restored ballooner. I plan to use colors that may not be “original”, but I plan to tastefully build a classic looking ballooner. So, I have this late 40s Higgins that I picked up a little while ago for $75.
The parts are in decent shape, but the paint is terrible. I think it has been painted a couple of times. I started sanding on the frame and it’s going to be a breeze to strip it down. I have rebuilt the hub, the rims are straight and decent….It is really the perfect bike for what I want to do. The problem is that I am now thinking if I am going to invest money and time into this project to keep, I think I would really like a Huffman. I live in Dayton and grew up with Huffy in my backyard.
So what would you guys do? I mean I have all the parts to build a nice ballooner in the Higgins. It wouldn't take much. I could also part out the rack, fenders, etc and built a really nice rat out of the frame….or I could part out the whole bike, (maybe keep the trusses for my Schwinn?) and pretend the Higgins never happened and look for the Huffman.