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Beautiful! Great find!
Pictures do tell a story, but not the complete story. Please share more about this rare bike and how it came into your possession. Have you looked for an old-style Chicago era serial number on the left rear dropout? It might or might not be there buried in the paint. I believe the number stamped in the BB shell is the size of your frame in mm. The serial number on my '83 Standard is very faint. A light smear of polish helps it to be visible. My BB stamping is "600" and it is a 60cm frame. https://hosting.photobucket.com/albu...720&fit=bounds https://hosting.photobucket.com/albu...720&fit=bounds |
Lovely bike, and looks similar to my 1983 Paramount in many ways. I look forward to hearing more about it. Mine is number D8305.
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...cd5950b394.jpg The chrome fork and stays on mine were originally painted - the paint didn't adhere too well to chrome, so I removed the paint. |
sorry to disappoint on historical details. only known origins, prior to discovery and listing, a storage locker in/around rockford, illinois.
shipment expectations were.. nerve-wracking, but actually turned out smooth. two boxes! while not exactly mint, it does appear fairly low-mileage. in terms of components, it feels to have remained fully intact, despite a few odd choices, up to and throughout its hibernation. I had read about the serial number location, and suspected something could be hidden down there, but didn’t have the time to examine closely. will definitely try to decipher when back in town. got a 7 speed suntour to swap over, but still undecided on the rest of drivetrain. very eclectic mix, but maybe overly so. leaning away from the avocets, in particular. to top it all off, the 21” tt & 20” ctt is just right on the money for me. |
albrt I didn't realize our Waterfords were just a month apart. While in the picture my serial number looks to begin with "F," it is actually an "E." It is also interesting to contrast the finish differences between your Elite and awrycycle 's Elite. His paint and chrome match very closely to my Standard, where as your Elite has those lovely full chrome seat stays, the non-drive-side chrome stay, and the head lugs.
https://hosting.photobucket.com/albu...720&fit=bounds |
by the way, there’s currently a listing up with plenty of pics for another elite.
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...d0caf97ca.jpeg |
Mine is painted and decaled almost exactly like the test bike loaned to Bicycling magazine for the June 1983 article, except that for whatever reason most of the chrome was painted over at the factory. Original owner was a Schwinn dealer, so maybe he got a deal on sample or an order cancellation.
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Originally Posted by awrycycle
(Post 23169783)
by the way, there’s currently a listing up with plenty of pics for another elite.
This one is not an Elite it is a standard ( Rainbow decals ,no headbadge) kinda pricey https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...d0caf97ca.jpeg |
awrycycle
Is this the Paramount sold on E Bay a month or so ago? link to the Elite pages of Paramount cataloug https://waterfordbikes.com/SchwinnCa...1982_pb01.html |
trainman999
‘tis. that’s interesting, I wasn’t aware of a touring model, nor a standard. my geometry and rear cluster point to the road model, so the touring crankset and deore feel slightly more out of place. |
Beautiful in so many ways, great score.
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The early 1980s Elites were all custom - frame designed for the buyer and then you could get whatever components you wanted.
https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...paramount.html Mine is also a sport-touring hybrid. |
chipped..
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Is the SN "F82**"?
The seller was certainly careful not to show the rusty chrome on the drive-side chain-stay. Did he/she mention it in the description? |
to be fair, the rust was more apparent in the seller’s pics before they were shrunken.
‘426’ as the last 3 digits is all I can actually confirm. E, F, B; I couldn’t tell ya. |
That would make it an 1984
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On my bike the paint was chipping off from the chromed parts (which I did not know were chrome). Underneath the paint was a greyish layer sort of like the picture of the rear dropout on yours. The greyish layer turned out to be a gummy substance that I suspect was used as a sort of primer when they painted over the chrome. May be worth scraping off a tiny bit of the greyish stuff to see what is underneath. I mostly used a razor blade with a very light touch.
https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...der-paint.html |
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...3039a0148.jpeg
not the best pic, but it looks like polished chrome to me. |
welp, gonna have to soak the stem and post.
hopefully evaporust will suffice, as I’ll be filling the tubes with it anyway. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...d644964ef.jpeg https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...40bf4bfa9.jpeg https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...67eec39c7.jpeg |
no movement from:
punching on the saddle clamp bolt. ice inside, boiled sock outside. more punching. 30 lbs in plates as a, sort of, gravity-assisted slide hammer. zero budge. now just more penetrant-soaking in the hot weather, with 45 lbs of consistent pressure. but this probably goes nowhere. might be time to destroy the seatpost.. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...78d146e1c.jpeg |
Get some drain cleaner and dissolve the post.
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The last stuck post attacked, I placed the front triangle flat on a surface such as a bench and let the rear float freely. I stepped on the tip of the saddle of the secured front and it popped on the rotation attempt. This was after a few days of repeated use of PB Blaster.
That bike had stuck post, stem, and crank dust caps. They all took a tremendous efforts but all were salvaged. |
I’ve tried a good bit of twisting, but watching the frame flex and sway underneath is terrifying. all I’ve managed to create is a bit of play in the saddle itself.
might try clamping a screwdriver onto the rails and wacking that with a hammer, but not sure I’ll be going any further with brute force. tho, I’ll have to see if these high temps will allow the penetrants to have any impact. if not, guess it’s gonna be the drain cleaner. |
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