My Vintage Schwinn road bike collection 70s 80s restorations 

In 1955 my dad and I picked up a Black Phantom at the Schwinn loading dock. Got a Kool Blue Sports Tourer new in 1974. Great bike. Have a Trek 710 (DuraAce) and Grandis Special (NR/SR). Wish I could still ride them.

I love bicycles

Wow, what a collection, all are stunning! I love these vintage bikes & especially the stories behind them, thanks for showing them to us subs!

Every bike is beautiful in own way. Thanks for the video!!!

Wow, your Schwinns are insane!!!! What a fantastic collection!!

Thank you so much for sharing your collection with us. You have some gorgeous bicycle's.

Bro, the last bike is off the chain! Beautifil

The Supersport SP is very similar to a bike I owned, the Panasonic PT 5000. Even the color is identical. The custom racks that bolted into fittings on the frame were absolutely cool. The Dia Compe GC 500 brakes were the same. It also boasted a Dura Ace headset. The other difference was the drivetrain: Shimano Deore derailleurs and cranks.(a road version!). I saved up my money to buy that bike right out of the dealer's window! Of course, years later, my wife prevailed upon me to sell it at a garage sale. In retrospect, I am sorry I did, because I have never seen another one. As you may be able to tell, I miss it, but at the time I had a brand new Cannondale R500 (which I still own) to console myself with.

Great collection

Wow! Great to see these bikes! The last three shown really stood out to me. Incredible finds. Thanks for sharing.

Ahahaha! " BIO-DISGRACE" HAHAHA! Nice one 😎

Great video, awesome collection

Wow what a collection. I have a couple of Japanese built bikes, a Bridgestone RB1, a Panasonic custom built to size, I forget the name of their program , and a Miyata 914. All great riding bikes, now I have to be on the lookout for the rare Schwinns. Thanks for sharing.

I'm hooked on this videos. Is freaking addicting.

I love all your beautiful bikes I grew up riding bikes like that in the 70s they are sweet riding I just bought another bike from the 80s my Schwinn tempo got taken I have a Miyata thee ten it’s clean it needs rubber it’s on the original rubber it looks really good I’m hoping it as good as the schwinn thanks keep on getting more bikes god bless

Stunning!

Unreal. Really enjoyed seeing these. Cheers mate

I rode with Steve Tilford back in the late 80's and recognize that Wheaties team bike for sure. Of course his was real, and he went on to blame me for a crash in a long descent (lol....bullshit) which really scratched up his new Paramount. Everyone behind knew what he did, and said it had nothing to do with me, but I was the target of his rage that day. From there on out I was "eff Schwinn Wheaties....and especially eff pros that can't stay on their bikes riding with juniors!" Good times. I was always a 7/11 man anyway.

I bought a '74 Schwinn Le Tour in red new for $149.00 and it was sadly stolen 5 years later when I went to college. I have always missed it.

Thanks you do a great job with the bike collection🎉🎉🎉

Mint collection super

Great watch being a Schwinn guy too! Ist year for the Sports Tourer was ''71. One year only gears too. 28-104. It was advertised as "widest ratio of any 10 speed at the time." After searching awhile, I found a minty '71 Sierra Brown to match my '71 brown Super Sport. The ST was $199 new. Couldnt swing it at 13. They both ride very nice. RIP Schwinn Chicago.

Great collection and video👊🏽Currently riding a 81 Schwinn Traveler with flip flop hub. My brother rides a 80s Madison Fixed gear!!

You are like a bike museum on RU-vid. Wow. I don't know what I would do with such collection. I would probably end up in the rubber room.

I really enjoyed yoir video. The passion you have showed through. I collect Bianchis 98 thru 2003. Maybe I will show them on you tube.

Love your commentary John. For me, the best memories from the 70's and 80's was always to rip off the factory handlebar covers and replace them with Benotto handlebar tape. You could change colors on a whim. It's like you had a new bike, lol! We use to hang out at a local Schwinn shop. Totally loved the deep rich candy apple factory paint jobs. Keep on keep'n on brother, rocket

raced schwinn for years! love them dearly! late 80s

Lovely collection, I started with a 72' varsity and now have an 86' Madison that I dont think I'll ever get rid of.

Have a 87 Schwinn Paramount Waterford, Fantastic ride.

I love your Schwinn addiction . I was a proud owner of several myself. One of my favorites was my Schwinn Prologue . They had two models a time trial small front wheel and a conventional . I had the conventional 700c x 700c . Japanese made frame . It was a fantastic riding machine lightweight and comfortable. Circa 1987 or so. They were frame only models. The heat treated tange prestige tubing was thinner walled and absolutely stiff enough. Two paint schemes were made mine was the beautiful dark silver to black metallic fade

Great video and collection John!

The Schwinns of that era were truly iconic! I was seduced by Raleigh before Schwinn could work its way into my heart, so the only Schwinn I owned was a red LeTour. It was a good bike, and lots of LeTours served their owners faithfully back then. Glad that you are able to satisfy those youthful urges and desires without getting in trouble. 🙂

I Always loved Schwinns ❤

Really enjoyed the tour I have a 1989 that I ordered direct from the factory. Still enjoy riding today

OMG! that whetties bike gets me every time! WOW!!!!!

Love your videos dude great collections

I have a 1972 Super Sport in Kool Lemon and a 1973 Sports Tourer in Sunset Orange. Original parts on both. Love them!

i have a schwinn world sport made in japan, thanks for your video maybe i'll build it next time.

Amazing collection John! glad you featured all your Schwinns as a group, sometimes they can be overlooked when next to your high-end European beauties. Great to hear about your Schwinn background and your passion for the iconic Chicago brand. In my Schwinn lightweight collection, I have a March, 1971 Kool Lemon Sports Tourer all original. 26" frame is too tall for me but I got it anyway. Great job with the and congratulations on your beautiful collection!👍👍 Oscar

New subscriber. Love watching people geek out about there passions. Nice collection sir. I ride a 1953 Traveler. It’s my main bike, not even close to being minty but I really enjoy riding it.

Nice! I have an '89 Schwinn World. I doubt it's rare, but I've never seen another one out there. I've been riding it as my primary bike for the past 15 years. It's a great ride.

That's a great collection! I thought I knew all the Schwinn's, but this video showed me a few I didn't know existed. I do have a couple Schwinn Sports Tourers that are in great shape, but both are 22" since I'm about 5'8" tall. I'd say between my Schwinn Super Sport and Sports Tourer, I equally enjoy riding both. Even though the crank is heavier on the Super Sport, it just feels more connected than the Sports Tourer; but I still love both models. I started out with the Continental as my first restoration and then slowly moved up. I'm currently on the lookout for a Schwinn Paramount 70's model and haven't found one yet. The model I'm restoring now is a Schwinn Varsity that I got for free. I couldn't pass this one up since I had one as a kid in the early 80's. I'm looking forward to riding this one after the restoration!

John, you read my mind! After that first ‘84 paramount I was thinking you need to get an ‘85 Voyageur. I had one a few years ago - absolutely gorgeous and was smooth riding, lots of shiny chrome and the best green paint. Panasonic built. I always had my eyes peeled for the ‘84 SP… both models had Columbus tubing with SP tubes being the higher quality and lower weight while Tenax was used on the standard Voyageurs.

Hey John, I raced with Eddy Kron back in the day. His Uncle Theo Kron was U.S. Olympic coach in 1972 and also USCF official at all the local Chicago races. Great family. And I will never forget his call to the line at the Northbrook velodrome in his german accent... "Chewn-yas to the line, Seen-yas on deck". I also think his Aunt you mentioned is/was a Masters World Champion in Track cycling.

Amazing video and gorgeous collection my friend! The Volare was one of my favorites of the bunch. Shame that you cant ride it. Im a fixed gear/ track bike nerd myself, but i go absolutely nuts for lugged steel bikes! I'll be riding steel for the rest of my life! Lugged steel just has a ride quality and an aesthetic that can not be beat in my opinion..

I worked in bike shops at the same time. I always got a kick out of how many pronunciations there were for Tange, Mavic, Sedisport, Clement....the list goes on. Sales reps were our only connection to the proper way pronunciations but they would come in each visit with a different way to say the same product than their previous visit.

As a kid I remember Chicago built Schwinns were the most robust bikes in the neighborhood even then we had respect for certain brands like Tonka trucks, Bic pens and Timex watches.

I’ve owned a couple of Schwinn’s you would appreciate. Both were great value purchases as I had not been out of college long and wasn’t making a great income at the time. The first was a 88 Schwinn Premis. The frame was made from Columbus Tenax tubing which was actually Columbus SL tubing that had minor cosmetic blemishes. It was painted in what Schwinn called a purple fade. I believe they also made it in a white color. It was equipped with Shimano 105 indexed group set with a Wobler wheel set. Unfortunately I no longer have this bike as I have it to my cousin when I bought my next Schwinn and he let it rust out in his barn. I paid $600 for it. My Next bike was a 92 Japanamount. Schwinn had arranged a deal to have Panasonic build these frames to very high standard at there plant where they built NSI bikes for Keirin racing. The bike was a Schwinn Paramount PDG Series 7. It was a lugged frame of Tange Super Prestige OS tubing. Painted in Purple Flash I believe and equipped with Shimano 600 with their first iteration of brifters. Shimano 600, as you probably know, rebranded as Ultegra and Mavic Aero rims. This was a fantastic value purchase. Richard Schwinn said of this bike that it was equal to a Waterford Paramount in quality but just didn’t have the customization and some of the flashy bling of the Waterford Paramounts. I raced this bike for four years and it is a beautiful bike. I’ve kept it well maintained over the years but 5 years ago I upgraded the group set to some lightly used Dura Ace 7700 components and upgraded the wheels to a DT Swiss wheel set and upgraded the stem to 3 degrees rise and made it my commuter bike for riding to work. I still have people knowledgeable about bikes walk up and tell me it’s a beautiful bike. It has a superb ride quality as one would expect from a Panasonic frame that meets NSI Kieran standards. I paid $900 for it. It originally retailed for $1800 in 92 but a local Schwinn dealer sold it to me for $900 just to get rid of it as that’s when the Mountain Bike craze had begun and his road bikes were not selling well. I had several other aluminum and carbon fiber bikes over the years but when I quit racing I sold those and that’s when I decided to convert my Paramount PDG 7 to a commuter bike. I then purchased a 2011 Raleigh International with a Reynolds 853 frame with chrome lugs and stays, Campy Athena, Mavic Ksyrium Elite wheels and a Brooks B-17 saddle which I currently use as my enduro bike. Thanks for showing your Schwinn collection. It’s very impressive and they are all just beautiful works of craftsmanship.

I wish I still had my first Schwinn road bike, an 84(?) La Tour Lux. It got me hooked on touring.

Great Schwinn collection John. I have a 1960 Continental which was the first year for the 10 speed. Has a front lever/suicide shifter and a rear Simplex juy derailleur. Needs to be assembled.

You should open a bike museum with guest house attached to it because it would take days to appreciate every single one of them. It would be pretty cool to fly in and straight to the guest house.

I never knew swinn made such lovely light weight road bikes

Foolishly traded my late 60s Paramount. Chrome lugs, Phil Wood bb and hubs. Absolute beauty. Never owned another bike with that craftsmanship.

I have an original Schwinn 10 speed men's Varsity bike all original parts. Tires still have original thread on them. Going to sell. Yellow in color. Used maybe 7 times.

Orland Schwinn was my bike shop. I still have my 81 Sports Tour

My husband has a 1982 Schwinn Voyager S/P that he bought new in 1983. It's not immaculate but could be bought, its now a 7 spd though with indexed shifting on the downtube but he still has original wheels and shifters.

My favorite Schwinn is the 1987 Circuit in black with chrome stays. They were the same geometry as the Paramounts but with Columbus SL tubing. I have 4 of them I also have 3 Panasonic/Paramounts and a Waterford. And a 1986 Panasonic Peloton with modern components. And 2 Tempos. I had new an 11.8 Voyageur black with cantilever brakes. I think it was 1979 but not 100% sure. I bought it a frames size too big and was never comfortable on it so I let it go. It was really a good looking bike.

I worked at a schwinn dealer in 1977 (mechanic), and purchased my first bicycle. I was given a choice between a Raleigh competition or a schwinn Voyageur II touring bike. I bought the schwinn because it rode so much nicer. my son rides it now. he is 6’3” so the 25” frame is perfect.

Nice collection of vintage schwinn. I have a 63 Le tour / Japan. Cant find any of info for this unit. L3 Le Tour And also a 72 super sport JH Chicago built . Both one owners. Both nice! And a 74 chestnut continental. One owner also.

I just purchased a super Le tour. Not a high end bike of course, but I love older Schwinns.

Nice collection! I like how you’ve displayed your bikes and how you present them here on your channel. I still lament selling my black ‘84 Tempo that I bought new in 1985 (I sold it b/c I thought I needed more space😢). So to make up for that I recently picked up an ‘86 Fireball Red Paramount. If you or anyone here has any insight into how to decipher the s/n that would be great Thanks

I was in the market for a new bike in 1973. My previous Raleigh Grand Prix was pretty well spent. I did look at the Panasonic Schwinns, but a local Schwinn shop also sold Nishiki, and was having a sale, I could get an International for $149, which was a screaming good deal. For about $40 more I could have gotten the much more upgraded Competition, but I didn't and quickly regretted it. I rode that Nishiki 3,500 miles in one year, it served me very well. Then I went to work in a shop that sold Gitane, I wound up selling it to buy an Italian frankenbike of unknown name. Fast forward to the early 2000s, I started riding again and had the opportunity to get the bikes that I could never afford as a teenager. I started with a Raleigh International like the one in the background, then a repainted 72 Paramount with added braze ons, later a 74 Raleigh Professional that I still have. I spent a couple of years trying to snag a chrome Paramount on ebay and always just missed by a little bit. Then a 71 appeared, a chrome P13-9, on ebay offered by a "we sell it" store. The bike looked horrible, the description was worse, so I was able to swoop in and grab it for $600! Waiting for it to arrive was torture. When I unboxed it, I realized the pictures were accurate, it was filthy, but it probably had less than 100 miles on it. I got all of the sales paperwork, including a filled out buyer survey, the buyer was an attorney in his upper 60s. It had a cruiser seat and even worse, a Pletscher rack. I stripped it down and carefully cleaned the frame, it was flawless save for decals. I took the original wheels with Weinmann wood filled rims and set them aside and built a new set with early Mavic Module E rims so that I could run higher pressure tires. It had the original bar tape with center pulls, I carefully removed the tape and substituted Campy side pulls and put the tape back. It sure has gotten a lot of attention when I ride it! Years later I got the Nishiki Competition that I didn't get in 73. It still had the original tires, but someone had put solid (???) inner tubes in it. I changed out the original Araya rims to some identical looking later ones with a hook bead, and rode it for a couple of years before selling it on. Here's the Bike Forums thread on the Nishiki: www.bikeforums.net/classic-vintage/342768-1973-nishiki-competition-arrives.html

Regarding the Panasonic connection I have a 77 Pro 7000 that I have wondered if it is a Tange version of the Volare (or vice versa). Love the video.

The "Seamless" saddles says Y.F.C. which is Y. Fujita Co. The seatpost is also a Fujita "Hupel Rider". It does not say Fujita, that's on the box. You need a Sports Tourer and the end of the fillet brazed line, a Superior. Also a Voyaguer II. The bikes I list used to be available for peanuts. I bought a Sports Tourer out on a ride for $35, finished the ride and drove back 25 miles to pick it up. The Paramount with the Henry James lugs is incredible. Those bikes were totally custom with an incredibly high price. You paid the price and they did anything you want. Few took them up on that.

A friend of mine purchased a Schwinn in Highland Park Schwinn in 1981 it was all chrome with the shifters at the end of the handlebar with the cables all internal and they told him it was not for sale and he convinced the shop owner and he got it for about 2K back then that was a lot for a bike.

Just wow! Nice collection. On the 84 Paramount, what is the deal with the tri-colors? I would love to know what they mean. Can you shed some light?

I was able to get I believe it to be a men's 71 varsity yellow in color. Presently I'm putting it back together I took every piece a part and degreased and polished everything got it looking good except for frame. Not sure what to do with it . I don't paint. And what grease do you recommend putting the bike back together

I would add a paramount track bike to your collection {with a brake} for the purest form of riding. Growing up my Schwinn store was Sports and Hobbies in Park Forest Illinois

I recently inherited my parents 2 in-used 1986 Shwinn world sports. I want to ride them, but I don’t want to because you don’t find them like that and they are brand new condition. My parents bought them and put them in the basement for spring. My parents ended up never riding them. My mom asked if I wanted them, I couldn’t say yes fast enough!😂

Our local Schwinn shop in south Dallas was part of a local chain called Mike Hall's Bike Mart (the northernmost location would evolve into Richardson Bike Mart, who sponsored some local cocky teenage kid named Lance something-or-another). I began hanging out at the south Dallas store when I was 12, riding my POS Montgomery Wards bike (cheap parents) after school almost every day, to watch the mechanics work and drool at the Schwinns, low-end Peugeots, Mexican-made Windsors, and these new cheap Nishiki bikes out of Japan. (Childhood life before internet and video games.) When I turned 16, I was promised a job in the shop ... but I soon quit because I realized it was an easier living working at the movie theater, eating free popcorn, and flirting with the concession girls. 😍 I was THE teenager in a small south Dallas bike club full of middle-aged men, who all splurged and bought themselves Paramounts before the price jump in 1978 or so? The Super LeTour IIs were a popular pick for the other club members with limited means.

Are those double drill large hubs on the custom paramount a factory option? I didn't see much online about them or why you would want them.

I recently built a mid 80's (1987?) Schwinn Traveler to be a touring bike with front and rear racks and bar end shifters. Says it was made in Chicago but was a pretty basic bike.

@ 3:50 1972 price for Raleigh Gran Sport was $250, so the World Voyageur at $274 was just 10% more than a Raleigh Gran Sport. Fantastic deal as it appears to be full dura-ace bike! In those days it was 350 japanese Yen to the US Dollar so Japan could just dictate terms of surrender to american bike makers ...

I love Schwinn bikes too I was just wondering I found an old 11.8 with some of the clear coat coming off of it I was thinking about restoring it. I want your professional opinion do you think it's a great collector's items and should I restore the bike?

Surprisingly the oldest ones ar very impressive in XL 25" frame 67cm. Japanese certified. Which one is the best of the best?

Love your bikes I love schwinn bikes my bike was taken I was looking for another one and found a Miyata 3-10 . It’s like new it was hardly rode It’s really nice you might be interested for your collection let me know it’s to pretty for me to ride I’ll send you pictures if you like this bike should be collected

Spectacular video; thanks. Just one suggestion. Try to pan over the bike a tiny bit (maybe 10-20%) slower & smoother. I am tempted to freeze-frame it all the time because the movements are just to quick to see things clearly. otherwise, perfect video, thanks !!

Around what year did schwinn use the akisu frames, I have one with a chicago head badge and when I run the numbers it dates as a 57? It looks similar to a 80s world sport

Ok, as an original purchaser of a 1973 World Voyageur in 1974 it was $225 as Schwinn discounted as "new non-current." Original price was $275. 1975 version was $325 and very different and heavy. CA sales tax was 4.5%. Still have it. Ask me anything.

I saw a Tempo for sale. Needed some TLC. What can you tell me about that model? I don't know much about it Schwinns.

What bike would you say is more rare the schwinn continental or the le tour?

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So, John do you ever ride any of those bikes? I'm wondering now because they look like they are brand new.

I have a 1970 Schwinn Super Sport in Sierra Brown and with the chrome fork. It includes the correct handlebar tape and Brooks saddle. Very original and "minty" but it has the big bottom bracket of course. I'm looking to sell it if you are interested.

I almost bought an all chrome ‘70s Paramount with paper decals but it was a 23 inch frame ( but too big for me )

Will my 1991 Crosscut ever be coveted or are the Schwinn Giant built bikes to forever be pariahs?

Do you have a Paramount OS?

I still have my Schwinn Collegiate Deluxe 5-speed, from 1970 I think, and it has wheel-driven generator-powered lights front and rear, speedometer, chrome fenders and rear rack, frame is blue. It has moved with me a few times over the years, but was not ridden for about 40 years. I'm retired now, and have been cleaning it and fixing things up to ride again. Still had the original white wall tires on it, but they were very dry-rotted and not holding air. Replacements were hard to find, but I did get them and installed this year. My lights are not working well, and the speedometer does not work. Cable seems fine, but would appreciate if you know anyone who can repair the speedometer/odometer, which is branded "Schwinn Approved" on a black face with red pointer, and where I can find a replacement of the "Schwinn Approved" generator.

Gills schwinn in Evansville, indiana

I have one for 30 years

john if you can i need help finding out what kind of schwinn i recently purchased the serial number is GA703035 i would appreciate if anyone knows its says its a schwinn sprint but i dont know what year etc

Mu Mother has a 1940 Swinn Limited How much is it worth heard 1700 Excellent Condition

You’ve got more than one paramount cmon now!

Tengo una de los 80 original me gustaría saber si costo

I'm laughing my butt off. It has to be MINTY

Where is your Sport Limited....

Schwinn could have been a great company. 😔 Lovely music 🎶 by the way, matches the bikes..

No LeTour or Super LeTour??

I have a.1972 swinn super sport for sale

A purist might say that a Japanese-made Schwinn is an oxymoron - that bikes make only in the Chicago or Waterford factories are the real deal. What say you?