Classic & Vintage - 531 frame Sears bike?

This guy on another forum must have been joking when he said the Ted Williams ten speed has 531 main tubes.I hope he's correct,it would be nice.The ride was "snappy":D The bars are like the Schwinn Randonneur style.The headbadge is Free Spirit but Ted williams name. Ted Williams was or is a baseball player ,famous enough for Sears to name a Bike after him.Any info would be nice or just check out the pics of a certified Vintage Ride.Thanks All :roflmao:

Sears sold several 531 framed bikes in the 70s.

austro daimler built several models of bikes for sears in the 60's and 70's. dunno why it was important to get Ted's name on'em but that's what they did. this looks like a later Japanese one to me, with the stamped dropouts and plastic cable guides. The ones with 531 were so marked, as I recall, with the appropriate sticker.

I recall seeing the 531 model in a 60's catalog. It had a chrome rear triangle. The one pictured looks like a garden variety non-531 Sears bike to me.

You can probably tell by the seat post diameter.

A Sears/Ted Williams 531 frameset was listed on Boston's CL the other day:

http://boston.craigslist.org/gbs/bik/481894263.html

Neal

Sears used to put the Ted Williams name on all of the better sports gear.

You can probably tell by the seat post diameter.

It would be 27.2, is that right? How else can someone identify a 531 bike? Maybe a better question would be, how would I know if a Trek 660 has 531 tubes?

The one in the pictures looks like one I passed up at the flea market for $10. It said "Made in Austria" on the head tube, and had Simplex plastic derailleurs. For what it seemed to be, it was surprisingly light.,,,,BD


I just bought a Suteki from the thrift store. A Panasonic built road bike with rims and hubs very much like my Voyageur. Components are Shimano 600. It was sold at Sears for $450 and was soon discounted to around $200 just to get rid of them. An odd low end frame with high end (for the time)components.

I have that exact bike in my basement, it was a freebie and barely worth that. Some of the Sears bikes are butted 531, that one is not. It's kind of cool for a clunker though IMO.

John

Ted Williams was part of the Sears Sports Advisory Team, along with Edmund Hillary and others.

Sears used to be so cool.

It would be 27.2, is that right? How else can someone identify a 531 bike? Maybe a better question would be, how would I know if a Trek 660 has 531 tubes?

By finding the serial number and looking it up here: www.vintage-trek.com

:)

I am whipped and scourged with rods! Nettled and stung with pissmiers! (Shakspere) But cool info now I learn a little more.the guy was right sears made 531 frames after all .I will post it now Thanks

pissmiers?

I have a gold 531 Free Spirit built up as a fixie. Exact same frame as in the CL ad above. It's a nice ride, reasonably light, and a good "sleeper" bike.

It had some crappy parts hanging on it when it was brought in to the local back-alley bike shop - definitely below the quality of the frame - but who knows if they were original.

There is a 531 SEARS Ted Williams for sale on ebay now...check it out. Sorry no link.

Dang, that "taller rider" notation in their secondary title got me excited. I wish people who sell
bikes online would learn what taller frame means. Maybe they mean taller than they can ride? It reminds me of the guys on CL who list a bike for a TALL person, and there's a foot of seat post showing on a 15 inch MTB, lmao.,,,,BD

Ted Williams was arguably the greatest baseball player of all time. He was the last player to hit .400 for a season. Had he not voluntarily taken time off to fight in WW2 and the Korean War, there would be no argument.

He was also one of the first sports jerks.

His deal with Sears probably put his name on more sports equipment than anyone other than Chuck Taylor.

Mike

Ted Williams was arguably the greatest baseball player of all time. He was the last player to hit .400 for a season. Had he not voluntarily taken time off to fight in WW2 and the Korean War, there would be no argument.

He was also one of the first sports jerks.

His deal with Sears probably put his name on more sports equipment than anyone other than Chuck Taylor.

Mike

Totally unrelated but...... Does anyboy else remember YAZ bread, after Carl Zastrzemski, a Ted Williams contemporary??

Totally unrelated but...... Does anyboy else remember YAZ bread, after Carl Zastrzemski, a Ted Williams contemporary??

For the record:

Ted Williams career: 1939-1960
Carl Yastrzemski's career: 1961-1983

Neal

Ted Williams was arguably the greatest baseball player of all time. He was the last player to hit .400 for a season. Had he not voluntarily taken time off to fight in WW2 and the Korean War, there would be no argument.

He was also one of the first sports jerks.

His deal with Sears probably put his name on more sports equipment than anyone other than Chuck Taylor.

Mike

Joined voluntarily WWII due to public pressure, even though he was exempt as sole suport for his mother, called back against his will Korea. Flew 39 combat missions including being shot up and returned to base in a flaming jet with no controls, crashing to the runway and sprinting away from the exploding plane. As far as being a jerk, some people may think so, but he was a highly intelligent, self-made man with a short temper who didn't take guff from anyone. I believe some of it was an act to get people to leave him alone, which was his preference. Behind the scenes and out of public scrutiny he was extremely kind and generous with his time and resources.

There is a Sears Ted Williams 531 frame on ebay now, matches the one I have:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Sears-Free-Spirit-Reynolds-531-frame-Rivendell-bag_W0QQitemZ270187817947QQihZ017QQcategoryZ98084QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I don't think the blue one that started this post is 531, I've only seen them in this green color.

There is a Sears Ted Williams 531 frame on ebay now, matches the one I have:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Sears-Free-Spirit-Reynolds-531-frame-Rivendell-bag_W0QQitemZ270187817947QQihZ017QQcategoryZ98084QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I don't think the blue one that started this post is 531, I've only seen them in this green color.

Man I was hoping that wouldn't come up on this thread. The saddle and bag will probably make it go to high anyway.:(

I seem to recall that the sears frames were straight gauge 531, rather than butted, but at least Aears was trying. NOt sure about the butting as the sticker on the e-bay one looks like a butted tubing decal.

I posted this before, but here it is again. This is an earlier one than the one on ebay, and mine (some non-original parts):

pissmiers?

Fire ants I believe.It is a quote from One of the Henry the Fourth plays I think or Richard the Second."I am whipped and scourged with rods ..etc.. every time I hear the name of that vile politician Bolingbroke"

Dbakl,,I assume those red tapes to be reflector stuff.Nice ,must be exacto knife work.

Dbakl,,I assume those red tapes to be reflector stuff.Nice ,must be exacto knife work.

You mean the red on the seatpost, cranks and stem? No, enamel in the recesses. Blue and white stripes on the seat tube are some printed vinyl I had around...

Another one on ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/1970s-TED-WILLIAMS-FREE-SPIRIT-10-SPD-ROAD-BIKE-BICYCLE_W0QQitemZ170169828364QQihZ007QQcategoryZ98084QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Joined voluntarily WWII due to public pressure, even though he was exempt as sole suport for his mother, called back against his will Korea. Flew 39 combat missions including being shot up and returned to base in a flaming jet with no controls, crashing to the runway and sprinting away from the exploding plane. As far as being a jerk, some people may think so, but he was a highly intelligent, self-made man with a short temper who didn't take guff from anyone. I believe some of it was an act to get people to leave him alone, which was his preference. Behind the scenes and out of public scrutiny he was extremely kind and generous with his time and resources.

Re: Williams as a pilot - I believe one of his fellow pilots on the crash-and-burn mission was a certain John Glenn. Maybe someone can confirm or refute.

Re: Williams as a jerk - He was a jerk to sports writers because he detested their consistent inability/unwillingness to get their facts straight. (Anyone who has had much dealing with the press will recognize and sympathize with the sentiment if not the way he expressed it.) He often also refused to give autographs to kids, which got a fair amount of press play. However, with untold numbers of those same kids to whom he wouldn't give an autograph, he would stop and talk to the kid(s) for five, ten, fifteen minutes, ask them to show him their swing, give them pointers and show how to do it a little better, give them his undivided attention. That never got much press, because he tended to do it out of the press's eye.

He also was generous with his money. If you were invited to join him on a hunting trip, or a fishing trip, or whatever, when you arrived, not only was everything on Ted, but you would find a complete set of whatever clothing and equipment you'd need laid out for you - and not the cheap stuff - and it was yours to keep. And don't even think about picking up a check. Unlike a certain Joe DiMaggio, when you were with Ted Williams, Ted Williams payed, quietly and happily.

His brother died with a widow and a couple of kids. Even though they lived on the other side of the country and apparently Ted and his sister-in-law had never been particularly close, he made sure she and the children were financially taken care of, including making sure that the kids had the money they needed for college educations. He made sure they were not swimming in money so as to become spoiled dilletantes, but enough so they did not have to worry and could concentrate on bettering their lives. He also stayed in communication with the kids as they grew up. Mostly letters, cards, and telephone calls, but also some quiet visits, staying up to date on how their lives were going and what was important to them.

Ted Williams also kept up with his old teammates, even if only at second- or third-hand. He found ways to help out more than one who fell on hard times later in life. Apparently, one of his favorite devices for helping such folks, upon hearing the so-and-so was down on his luck, was to hound the guy into coming to an Old-Timer's Game. That meant that so-and-so had to give up contact info. At that point, the help started coming, because now Teddy Ballgame knew where to direct the help and quietly mobilized not only his own resources but those of other teammates. He never publicized this, and I believe actively discouraged the recipients from telling anyone.

A lot of what Ted Williams did has come to light only after his death, much of it through the nephew he helped. Ted Williams the public figure was often gruff, even rude. He was also capable of being that way in private - there is no doubt he had a temper on and off the field. But it appears that he was also genuinely generous with his money and his knowledge, that he was a good friend and uncle if not exactly a good father, and was a lot more than the aloof PITA that was what the press so often painted him as.

I would love to have been able to meet Ted Williams and have a chance to sit down and chat with him about anything and everything. I'm just as happy I missed out on meeting Joe DiMaggio.

I have a gold 531 Free Spirit built up as a fixie. Exact same frame as in the CL ad above. It's a nice ride, reasonably light, and a good "sleeper" bike.

It had some crappy parts hanging on it when it was brought in to the local back-alley bike shop - definitely below the quality of the frame - but who knows if they were original.

Excel - Nice to see you made it over here to BF !

I want to see that Free Spirit with it's snappy new Brook's saddle and you know that back alley shop is the best little shop on earth.

Re: Williams

Damn, that was great, you must be reading recent books rather than following the same old drivel!