Liteelectric

Just found this bike and know by the looks it's got to be from the 70's however can anyone tell me how to find the year it was manufactured by reading the serial number?

dweenk 

You may want to search vintage Sears catalogs from the mid to late 1970's. The rear disc brake may be Shimano mechanical "New Disk"; but I believe they offered a later hydraulic version (don't know who made it) with a large reservoir at the brake lever.

Hummer

Hello Liteelectric, welcome to the forums. In the 1970s, Sears had bicycle frames made from several manufactures in Europe, North America, and Asia. Each manufacturer had a different serial number format and location on the frame. Also, Sears sometimes had its catalogue number stamped onto the frame or on a label. Sears bicycles often indicated the country of origin. Sometimes the frame manufacturers serial number can be decoded to find the year of manufacture. Sometimes some of the components will have date stamps or inventory control stamps, which can be used to date the bicycle. A picture of the bicycle and the serial number, and the serial number location would be helpful in finding the year of manufacture.

Liteelectric

When you are standing I front of the bike the serial number in stamped on the right side of the steering post and contains the numbers j5329371. The model number is also stamped on the steering post on the opposite side and contain these numbers 502 474750. The history on this bike that I know is it was won in some contest by a elderly man and never rode. The person I bought this bike from painted the elderly mans house in 1988 or 88 and excepted the bike as partial payment. With every extension of taking up riding he never did instead the bike was put up in a garage and moved twice. To this day this bike has never been rode and still has original tires with the rubber injection tabs still attached.

Hummer

Hi @Liteelectric,

the "502 474750" is Sears information. 502 is the supplier number, in this case Murray Ohio. The 474750 I believe is the Sears catalogue product number. If this bicycle is in a Sears catalogue it will have that number associated with the product description.

"j5329371" I think this is the serial number. Sometimes Murray Ohio serial numbers are on the head tube, as you described. After 1964, Murray Ohio serial numbers began with "MOx", where x is a number for the year of frame manufacture.

I cannot make anything of this serial number. Possibly someone else can. I am not really an expert on Murray Ohio.

crank_addict

Made in Elk Grove Village (home of ORD) / circa 1976

[IMG]1974 sears hydraulic e by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]1976 sears hydraulic a by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]1976 sears hydraulic b by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]1976 sears hydraulic c by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]1976 sears hydraulic d by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

crank_addict

Bring on the jokes!

[IMG]sears hydraulic bars by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]sears hydraulic black by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]1974 sears hydraulic a by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]1974 sears hydraulic d by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]1974 sears hydraulic c by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]1974 sears hydraulic b by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

John E

Thank you for posting! I have never seen ... or even heard of ... such a braking system. Short-lived evolutionary dead-end?

Is the lever a right-side-only system, or is it easily adapted for the left side, either for adaptive/disabled use or for bicycle polo?

Hummer

I would not have believed it, but you cannot argue with the pictures.

Thanks for posting those images.

Alenai1963

I got one of those in 1981 for my high school graduation.