Originally Posted by
SirMike1983
I am thinking this frame may be a bit later than 1949. It has a newer badge. The very nice catalogue photograph nlerner provided has the old style badge. I'd estimate this to be a 1950s bike. And yes, looks like a Kestrel frame with original paint and some graphics left. It is well-preserved. It was a sporty frame in its day with good tubing and lugs.
Seeing this sent me back to the Internet. While I can't find a 1951 catalog for the Kestrel Club, by '52 the 'Polychromatic Gold' seems to have been dropped. And I did find the page for the '51 Kestrel Senior Club, which was green. The new head badge looks to be a 1950 introduction... made it the main cover image, even.
So, in the absence of any actual evidence, I'm calling it a 1950. Which is rad.
--Shannon