Originally Posted by
Scooper
That's the shipping weight. The actual weight of the '55 Tourist Paramount should be around 25 pounds (packing material was more substantial in the fifties).
Also, bear in mind that there are fenders and a chainguard.
In the same source, the racer is listed as shipping weight of 35 lbs. If the tourist was around 25, the racer would be 25-8 = 17 lbs. Impossible for 1955. If the racer in 1955 was closer to a more realistic, but still probably outrageous for the era, 25 lbs, the tourist would be more like 33 pounds. Still a heavy bike but much lighter than the 50+ lbs competition.