Mid 80s Schwinn Varsity Drivetrain question
08-13-08, 04:06 PM
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Mid 80s Schwinn Varsity Drivetrain question
I may be remembering this wrong but i figured you guys would know..
When I was 10 or 11 my parents replaced my Schwinn Bantam with a Schwinn Varisty 10-speed. I really wanted a BMX bike and treated that varsity like a Cyclocross bike. A little later my friends parents got the same idea and got him a Schwinn Varsity that had an interesting/strange drivetrain (that is - if i'm remembering correctly).
On his bike the chain would revolve around the drivetrain when he was coasting. It was as if the freewheel was located in the crankset or chainrings rather than rear hub. It was pretty weird but allowed him to shift gears while coasting rather than having to pedal.
This would have been around the early/mid-80's. The bikes were great - painted in that sparkly blue varsity color. Mine wasn't full size and was given away at some point after years of using it for jumps and off-road riding. His was full-size, same color, similar setup.
It was the only bike i've seen like this, before or since. (Or my at the time, young head is making this all up, i've been curious about it for a while)
When I was 10 or 11 my parents replaced my Schwinn Bantam with a Schwinn Varisty 10-speed. I really wanted a BMX bike and treated that varsity like a Cyclocross bike. A little later my friends parents got the same idea and got him a Schwinn Varsity that had an interesting/strange drivetrain (that is - if i'm remembering correctly).
On his bike the chain would revolve around the drivetrain when he was coasting. It was as if the freewheel was located in the crankset or chainrings rather than rear hub. It was pretty weird but allowed him to shift gears while coasting rather than having to pedal.
This would have been around the early/mid-80's. The bikes were great - painted in that sparkly blue varsity color. Mine wasn't full size and was given away at some point after years of using it for jumps and off-road riding. His was full-size, same color, similar setup.
It was the only bike i've seen like this, before or since. (Or my at the time, young head is making this all up, i've been curious about it for a while)
08-13-08, 04:32 PM
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It was Shimano's Front Freewheel System (FFS) and was also probably paired with a Positron rear derailleur. Positron wasn't necessary for the FFS, but they were around at the same time, and just happened to be on a lot of the same bikes, it was SHimano's attempt at indexed shifting with the indexing built into the rear derailleur.
The FFS was only around for a few years, and as you recall, Schwinns were one type of bikes that used it. Suburbans were one other model that had it. I know for sure it was available in 1979, but I am not sure what range of years it was available.
However, it is in the 1982 catalog on Sheldon Brown's site.
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/shimano1982/pages/35.html
The FFS was only around for a few years, and as you recall, Schwinns were one type of bikes that used it. Suburbans were one other model that had it. I know for sure it was available in 1979, but I am not sure what range of years it was available.
However, it is in the 1982 catalog on Sheldon Brown's site.
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/shimano1982/pages/35.html
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08-13-08, 05:35 PM
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I got one of those set ups in the basement if someone wants it.
08-14-08, 12:51 AM
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nice! thanks for the info! I thought i was remembering that correctly. That bike was the coolest thing on the block for a while with that setup
