Greg S’s 1980 Custom Chrome Schwinn Varsity

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Here is a Schwinn like no other on the OTSG. This is Greg S’s 1980 custom chrome Schwinn Varsity. I would imagine it’s safest to save this baby for cloudy days?

I bought the bike for $100.00 e-bay and drove 100 miles to get it. The serial # is BR 550646 I think it was a custom chrome job. no decals and it’s not a super sport. your site is very cool. I had about 30 bikes mostly old Schwinn ten speeds, I sold 8 and gave away 5.

Thanks Greg

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  • http://trailerparkcyclist.blogspot.com Tim Joe Comstock

    I THINK this is a nice looking bike…right now I’m a little blinded! I did, however, notice that high flange front hub. Was that stock?

    • older1

      No, kidding, Tim; keep those welding goggles handy when the sun shines!
      I may be totally mistaken, so anyone feel free to correct. The Schweads among us should concur, those hubs were pretty common to Schwinn ten-speeds back to the ’60’s (and apparently, up into the ’80’s, but I couldn’t tell you exactly when they got away from them).
      Since high-flange hubs were/are an “exclusive” characteristic of expensive, super-stiff, custom-built professional track bikes (to marginally minimize spoke lengths and decrease “flex”, optimizing efficient power transfer), it became something marketable even down to the lowly, entry-level Schwinn of that day.
      So, much like today’s overt predominance of dual-suspended, but still pitifully ‘cheap’, department-store-bicycle-shaped-objects, it was just another (in this case, subtle) thing that was done to create a marginally positive perception of “high-performance” (without significantly impacting bottom-line profits).

      • http://trailerparkcyclist.blogspot.com Tim Joe Comstock

        Any idea who made that hub? The catalog says my ’81 Super Le Tour has Shimano, which it does on the rear, but the front is a low flange that has “via” stamped on it in very tiny letters.

        As a fellow Schwead I recall the days when “Schwinn” was practically the generic term for Bicycle. It seemed just about all the bike shops had a Schwinn sign out front. Sigh.

        • older1

          Now THAT would be a good research project for the Schwexperts: which manufacturers supplied “Schwinn-Approved” components!
          I want to say Schwinn’s hubs came from France, like Normandy, Maillard, or Atom, but that’s just a wild guess.
          I agree with your bike shop comment. I can’t imagine a bike shop that didn’t sell Schwinns, once upon a time, but then, I grew up in the Chicago area!

  • bill

    Gorgeous!!! No other words!!! As a collector, you have blown my socks off!!! I hope the bike’s story comes out on this web site!!!

    • greg

      This bike was all original everything, the tires are all cracked up , I put some new ones on because I want to ride it. the bike has this front free wheel system on it,I don’t know about this chrome I think someone had it done after market. the rims say schwinn approved france

  • Dennis S.

    My 1980 Le Tour has high flange-Schwinn Approved- Made in France front hub.

  • john

    what do you want for it?