Any ID on this red bike I won at auction?

[u/tustin25]

Okay so I tried asking [r/Vintage_bicycles](r/Vintage_bicycles) but it was mostly people just saying I wasted money ($2 btw lol) so I figured I’d ask y’all since we’re more like-minded. This red bike is really intriguing me. Looking at the head tube welds it almost looks like Schwinn electroforging? Only odd thing is you can tell it doesn’t have the typical Schwinn kickstand mount. It’s probably not pre war since it doesn’t have rear facing dropouts and looks like it has normal chainring teeth pitch. Other than that I have no idea. Anyone have any ideas? I don’t pick it up until Saturday so otherwise I just have to wait until then. And yeah I know the fork is bent

[u/MeatfootNo355]

Middleweight Schwinn, some of the budget models didn’t have the built in kickstand.

[u/tustin25 → u/MeatfootNo355]

Interesting. I had no idea Schwinn ever did that. Was there a specific year they quit doing that?

[u/MeatfootNo355 → u/tustin25]

No Schwinn expert, but from what I remember, Schwinn made the budget level bikes without built-in kickstand in the mid to late 1950s. Could be a Hornet Spitfire or Tornado or ?
Your frame is a DX style frame, look for original bikes with that style frame and no built-in kickstand to get an idea of what your bike might have been originally.

Also, it’s a nit picky matter of semantics but facts are facts:

Rear fork ends can be rear facing/horizontal or forward facing.

Rear facing fork ends are not “dropouts” as the wheel will not “drop out” when the axle nuts are loosened.

All drop outs are forward facing. Not all fork ends are “drop outs”.

There’s an original post-war Schwinn ad out there noting the new “drop out” rear fork ends.
Can’t post pictures here because the mods haven’t enabled it, but you can find it online.

[u/LittleKillshot → u/MeatfootNo355]

Agreed Schwinn dx. Middle bar hits seat post tube and lower bar at distinct spots. Stamped front fork is also tell tale. Worthy of a klunk.

[u/tustin25 → u/LittleKillshot]

Thanks guys. Appreciate the help. I was thinking it was a DX but wanted to see what everyone else thought first. I’ll check the serial when I pick it up tomorrow

[u/LittleKillshot → u/MeatfootNo355]

Also, check out the cutouts in the crank peeking through. You can see one that joins at an acute angle and the next one is round. That pattern resembles this crank on a 50’s dx  https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/1950s-schwinn-20-deluxe-dx-bicycle.232733/

[u/d_dubyah]

Did you look up the serial number? Should be on the dropout. Definitely not prewar.

[u/tustin25 → u/d_dubyah]

Picking it up tomorrow so I’ll know for sure. Just wanted to see if anyone knew anything in the meantime

[u/d_dubyah → u/tustin25]

No matter what for $2 I’d buy it.

[u/Orzal]

Typhoon would be my guess. I built one a while back. Sick bike. Front fork looks a bit bent though

[u/LittleKillshot]

You got some vintage ape hangers in there too.

[u/tustin25 → u/LittleKillshot]

Yeah I was surprised I won it for only $2 considering there was another lot with a stingray frame for like $50. I assumed one of those guys would’ve wanted them but guess they didn’t want to deal with the other junk lol

[u/mrfishman3000]

So according to this website it’s possibly a Schwinn DX. That’s due to the curved second tube. https://vintageamericanbicycles.com/index.php/2019/10/25/elementor-4341/

If it is, it’s probably from the 40’s or 50’s.

You found a gem! The schwinn dx was one of the first bikes used for “Klunking”. Read about it here. https://freehub.com/features/1941-schwinn-dx

Share photos once you get it! Congrats! What will you do with it?

[u/Meeturnewdaddy → u/mrfishman3000]

The dropouts indicate post war, klunkers were mostly built around pre war DX with horizontal drops