Removing Kickstand Mount

[jays35]

I have a 84 schwinn le tour and want to make it a SS/FG. Anyone remove this mount? Is it brazed on the frame? Should I remove it or is it there for strength?

Thanks

[goirish]

hmmm, photos may help us get you an answer. Plus I just wanna see the 84 Schwinn! (BIG Schwinn fan here , well pre them being sold to Pacifica and then sold in Target stores, lol)

[KC-Steve]

Hi Jay,

I'm not sure what you mean by "kickstand mount." I have a 1984 Schwinn Super LeTour with no kickstand and don't think it had one originally. See attached photo.

Steve

[goirish]

Nice bike there KC. Just from that photo, she looks really nice. Did you repaint or is that original? Looks in great shape. And I agree, if its just a standard kickstand bracket/mount, it serves no structural importance. Does it appear to be bolted on? It may be stuck or frozen to the frame just due to the years. I don't know of too many that were brazed or welded on, but I could be wrong. At least, not from Schwinn.

[KC-Steve]

(05-14-2010, 01:51 AM)goirish Wrote:  Nice bike there KC. Just from that photo, she looks really nice. Did you repaint or is that original? Looks in great shape . . .

Thanks Goirish. It's my favorite bike so far. I posted the bike's info in the "Show Your Bike" section, http://forums.bikeride.com/thread-1239.html

I picked it up for $50 a few weeks ago, all original, never repainted. The previous owner used a power washer though and that destroyed the decals.

[jays35]

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I attached a couple of photos of the frame that I am working on. Someone on another post said I had a Le Tour, about 1984 model. I am not sure. It looks as if the kick stand mount is brazed on. I did not want to remove it if it was there for support.

(05-14-2010, 01:36 AM)KC-Steve Wrote:  Hi Jay,

I'm not sure what you mean by "kickstand mount." I have a 1984 Schwinn Super LeTour with no kickstand and don't think it had one originally. See attached photo.

Steve

[jays35]

I hope the picture shows what I am talking about. Someone said that I have a '84 Le Tour.

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(05-14-2010, 07:34 AM)jays35 Wrote:  I attached a couple of photos of the frame that I am working on. Someone on another post said I had a Le Tour, about 1984 model. I am not sure. It looks as if the kick stand mount is brazed on. I did not want to remove it if it was there for support.

(05-14-2010, 01:36 AM)KC-Steve Wrote:  Hi Jay,

I'm not sure what you mean by "kickstand mount." I have a 1984 Schwinn Super LeTour with no kickstand and don't think it had one originally. See attached photo.

Steve

[DaveM]

It is there for strength as it replaces the cross piece you can see on KCSteve's frame. The frame would probably be ok without it, but if you cut it off you might notice the rear end get mushier. If you're going full out to make the frame a permanent SS (cutting off derailleur hanger, cable stops, etc.) you could probably trim it down some, take off the vertical fender mount part, etc. to make it less chunky. But I always hate to see nice old frames get cut up.

[jays35]

Yeah me too. I was going to leave all the other stuff incase I want to go back with it.

(05-14-2010, 11:05 AM)DaveM Wrote:  It is there for strength as it replaces the cross piece you can see on KCSteve's frame. The frame would probably be ok without it, but if you cut it off you might notice the rear end get mushier. If you're going full out to make the frame a permanent SS (cutting off derailleur hanger, cable stops, etc.) you could probably trim it down some, take off the vertical fender mount part, etc. to make it less chunky. But I always hate to see nice old frames get cut up.

[KC-Steve]

Checking your serial number, it looks like your bike is a 1982. The last number indicates year in Chicago Schwinns. Look at the bottom of the page here,

http://www.angelfire.com/rant/allday101/SchwinnCodes4.html

And according to the link below, the "S" indicates a Super LeTour, not the same as the LeTour but better at 12.2 kilo or roughly 26 lbs. There is a difference between leTour and Super LeTour.

http://www.re-cycle.com/history/Schwinn/SwnB_Serial.aspx

Definitely worth restoring in my opinion. But I would NOT remove the kickstand mount if I were you.

Steve

[KC-Steve]

Jay, I just noticed the "SS/FG" you mentioned in your initial post. I would hate to see you convert this fine bike but it is yours to do as you please. Frankly, it would cost quite a bit to restore it to its full glory. And one less Super LeTour would also help the value of my own bike.

Steve

[Bill]

I will agree with not removing as I rode a restoration I recently did and those tubes are VERY small and flimsy. I also have a Schwinn Caliente 12spd Carbon Frame which has the same Supp Tube (cross piece) as Steve's Schwinn. They definitely are not only for kickstands .

[jays35]

Thanks for all the good information I really appreciate it. I will not remove the stand bracket. If any of you all need the spares cassette, wheels, shifters, etc.... send me a pm and I will be glad to send it to you for shipping cost only.

[jays35]

One more question. Which Super Le Tour do I have? The shifters were mounted as one component on the down tube, on the top, not on the sides. By one component I mean one stud removed both shifters. It used one stud in the center. Will send pictures when I get camera from work.

[KC-Steve]

(05-14-2010, 09:12 PM)jays35 Wrote:  One more question. Which Super Le Tour do I have?

Kewl. I might hit you up on that parts offer. I was going to say there is only one Super LeTour but when I looked at the 1982 price list it shows two different models. Scratch that, (W) = women, (M) = mens. LOL

And then rereading one of the page links above I noticed where there might be confusion about the year. The SC4 could mean that it is a 1984 if it were made in Japan I think. But like I said before, the Chicago Schwinns have the year at the end of the serial number. The 3 numbers before the year number indicates the day of the year it was built. So I don't think there is much more that can be gleaned from the serial number.

My shifters are similar to what you described I think.

Steve

[jays35]

Yep! Mine are just like yours. PM me and let me know what you want and I will take the parts to my LBS and have them pack it. I have the tires and rims also.

(05-14-2010, 11:03 PM)KC-Steve Wrote:  

(05-14-2010, 09:12 PM)jays35 Wrote:  One more question. Which Super Le Tour do I have?

Kewl. I might hit you up on that parts offer. I was going to say there is only one Super LeTour but when I looked at the 1982 price list it shows two different models.

And then rereading one of the page links above I noticed where there might be confusion about the year. The SC4 could mean that it is a 1984 if it were made in Japan I think. But like I said before, the Chicago Schwinns have the year at the end of the serial number. The 3 numbers before the year number indicates the day of the year it was built. So I don't think there is much more that can be gleaned from the serial number.

My shifters are similar to what you described I think.

Steve

[KC-Steve]

That pesky serial number keeps bothering me. I looked again and noticed the last FOUR NUMBERS are not Chicago Schwinn numbers.

The reason is that your serial number is "SC406262" and there has never been 626 days in a year. So my guess is that your frame was built in Japan or Taiwan. If you still have the badge it probably says, "Schwinn Approved" rather than "Schwinn Chicago."

Therefore, your bike probably IS a 1984 model Super LeTour (non-Chicago). But then the 1984 catalog shows only "Scarlet" and "Dark Grey" as the only colors available for that model, that year. VERY CONFUSING! And then when I checked the catalog for LeTour it says available colors are "Warm Silver, Dark Blue." Ha-ha I guess you were right in the first place. . . a 1984 LeTour, probably built in Taiwan. (I give up, sheesh)

Steve

[jays35]

[attachment=872]My head badge says Schwinn Chicago

[GeorgeET]

Interesting info re Schwinn Le Tour. I looked on Ebay and there are several there, not expensive. One locally but needs too much work. I have learned with restoration of cars and motorcycles that cheap fixer uppers become expensive fixer uppers and it pays to buy the best you can.

The ones I looked up say Schwinn made in Japan. Were these made by the factory that made the Panasonic bikes in the 80's ?

[KC-Steve]

(05-15-2010, 12:46 PM)GeorgeET Wrote:  . . . I have learned with restoration of cars and motorcycles that cheap fixer uppers become expensive fixer uppers and it pays to buy the best you can.

The ones I looked up say Schwinn made in Japan. Were these made by the factory that made the Panasonic bikes in the 80's ?

I second that! I would rather buy a superb well-maintained bike but there are times when I really enjoy restoring something from the "ashes" though. It's a self-satisfaction thing.

The whole thing about Schwinn's confusion began with Schwinn management. I don't know about Panasonic but Schwinn evidently did some business with a Japanese company in the late 1970's. And then they started having a Taiwan company start building some. The Taiwan company became Giant and they started competing with Schwinn. Schwinn had a plant in Mississippi in the 80's as well. They even bought a profit-losing plant in Budapest, Hungary (1988). The BEST way to determine whether it is Chicago-built or not is by the headset badge indicating "Schwinn Approved" or "Schwinn Quality" for non-Chicago built bikes. Another one I have is a 1985 World and it even has a sticker saying it was built in Taiwan, but I like it for its REAL lugged frame. And the "serial number" says G0585 indicating a Taiwan bike built in May of 1985.

Their miss-management led to a lot of problems as well as making it hard for the rest of us to even determine what year the thing was made in some cases. It's VERY frustrating to me.

This link is very interesting and worth a read if you want more info about Schwinn. http://www.re-cycle.com/History/Schwinn.aspx

Steve