Schwinn Quality Features
 

They were an expensive bicycle, but you got the Best.
Heavy, Durable and last forever.

As this old sign points out ..... Quality.

Every component was of the highest standard including the paint.

The Stingrays were offered in these beautiful Flamboyant and Radiant colors.

They actually glowed because of the process used.
The final baked on enamel finish coat was lightly sprayed over the aluminum coat which caused the glow underneath the paint.

The Early model Stingrays
 

The mid 63 through 1965 are the most difficult to find in any condition, but an unmolested Survivor is next to impossible.
These early years used a short frame. Late ‘65 and newer used a longer frame.

Once I had my fill of the “Krates”, I moved on to searching out the coolest of the Rays.

It took many years to amass a line-up of Survivors.

There are No repaints or recovered seats in this collection.
Plus most all of them are still wearing their Original “dated” tires.

Here is an ad in the 1965 sales brochure showing an XKE in the background and a Sky Blue J39 next to a Flamboyant Lime J38.
I have these two examples in my collection.

My neighbor had two 1968 Krates; one Orange Krate and one Lemon Peeler. He had the colored slik for each of them. He is of the opinion that the original tires for the very early Krates were not slick tires but were knobby, treaded tires. (I think he's wrong)

Can you confirm my suspicions?

I had a blue Stingray Fastback in 1970 and it had a very narrow slick that did have a tread to it.

Schwinn Sliks
 

Hi Dave,

Sorry, but your neighbor is correct.

There were quite a variety of rear tires through the years on the Stingrays.

The very very early 1968 Krates came with a color line “knobby” rear tire.
Later in ‘68 they were fitted with a “gripper” slik which had a shallow cross tread that continued into 1969.

I found a few photos showing the color line knobby and the color line gripper.

PS, the three round circles with dots on the sidewall of the Orange line knobby tells its a first quarter of 1968 date code.

Also the Fastbacks came with a narrow slik or gripper style depending on the model.

Thanks, Chris.

I'd love to see your collection. I grew up with a Campus Green 1968 Stingray. Not a Crate, but a no fender Stingray with a mouse trap on the front to hold my books. It was 1.5 miles to school and I'd come home every day for lunch, so six miles per day on my Stingray for the last three years of grade school.

Here is our original owner Stingray. I think it is early to mid 70's vintage as I recall I got this around 1974? My brother then used it and it was passed around to other family friends through the 80's and 90's and returned to us around 2000. We cleaned it up for my son to start using around 2004-ish and brought it to the 2012 MCACN Muscle Bike feature the same year my Chevelle was in the Class of 1972 feature. Still original paint, chrome, and seat.

Here is a line-up shown on a postcard of New Schwinn bicycles at “John’s Cyclery” in West Virginia.

Many 1968 Apple Krates and Lemon Peelers out front.

My current line-up of early Survivors.

Me on my 1966 Violet Deluxe back in Illinois.
Moms 1967 Buick Wildcat.
Dads 1965 Mustang.

The good old days!

Wow

the kids

My Grand Parents purchased from Columbia Cycle Spokane Wa. Two Matching Schwinn 1968 Run-A-Bouts, Campus Green, Three on the tree.

Cooler Kids with banana Seats had WAY cooler bikes than our Huffy's and Green machines.

Cool white wall gripper slicks! and Rear fender rash. (White Walls LONG Gone)

Sunday, Monday, Happy Days, Tuesday,,,,,,,,

Still have both bikes, & they make Great Drag racing Pit Rides.

JIM