*I already posted this in roadbiking and they suggested posting it in Classic & Vintage*

Hello all, I'm looking at buying what I think is a PDG Series Schwinn Paramount frame for $150. Long story short, a friend of mine bought this frame and is getting a complete for Christmas instead and is willing to sell it to me for what he bought it for. I assumed the original owner was telling the truth (I trust him) when he said it was a paramount, and it's fairly light and well constructed, with integrated brake lines, but I'd still like to find out specifically the model and year. I couldn't figure it out based on this site: https://www.waterfordbikes.com/site/c...ara_series.php

There are no decals on the bike and it's a flat black color, but the paint job seems to be very well done, there are spots where the paint has worn through to the steel, but I can't see any sign of a different color paint job underneath the black. The serial number is only seven digits so from what I've found out on this forum and Waterford's site, that means it is a PDG Series, but I'm still not positive. The serial number begins with "OK," the rear dropout says Tange TR, and the bottom bracket has a "9" on it. Anything that anyone could tell me about this bike from the info given would be a huge help.

The frame has a nice set of brake levers, handlebars and grip, stem. All together the parts would cost about 100 dollars brand new, from what I have gathered on the internet, so I think the frame is worth 150 with these parts, no matter what Series Paramount it is.

Thanks for any help at all!

Please post some clear closeups of the frame. Try to include the drop outs, fork, seat tube/top tube joint.

The "0K" serial number indicates the frame was built in October, 1990, so it's most likely a 1991 model. The Series 3 and Series 5 were the only two "Series" Paramount road models built for '91, and neither came in black. Sorry I can't be more help, but without decals or components it's going to be hard to tell what you've got.

You might try checking the on-line catalogs:

1991 Paramount Catalog

1992 Paramount Catalog

1993 Paramount Catalog

Thanks for the help! I'm going to try and get my hands on a camera soon so I can post some close-ups of the frame

Unless the parts are original I don't think it matters what model it was to start with as all the PDG Series bikes shared the same frame. I have the frame from a Series 2 that I am building and the internal cable routing sounds right for a PDG bike. If the fork is original it should be a Tange unicrown. The rear lugs should be semi-horizontal with adjusters.

The PDG Paramounts were the 'made in Japan' modesl with the Tange OS tubing yes?
Bob Hufford can clarity this far better, but it's my understanding Schwinn was building the OS PDG series and Richard Schwinn was still putting out US made (columbus/reynolds?)Paramounts at this time.
I have a 91 PDG Series3 The cables go thru the top tube. Tange #1 OS tubing and Tange#1 forks
The bikes came in a white (series 2)with purple fleck and the blue with red fleck (series 3) and I believe either black or yellow for the series 1 (same basic frame thruout, the components were upgraded..rx100 low end-forerunner of the ultegra top end.
I guess the real issue here is the pedigree.
I never refer to my Paramount as a Schwinn Paramount.

In the early nineties, Schwinn built Paramounts at the Waterford, WI, facility using True Temper OS tubing as well as standard size tubing from Columbus (SLX for the smaller frames and SL/SP mix for the larger frames). In late 1992, the Waterford facility switched from the True Temper OS tube set to the OS version of Reynolds 753 for the Waterford built Paramounts.

At the same time (in the early nineties), Schwinn worked with manufacturers in Asia to import the PDG "Series" Paramounts. The Series 7 and Series 5 Paramount road bikes were built by National/Panasonic in Japan, while the Series 3 and Series 2 were built in Taiwan initially, and later in China. The reason for the "Series" Paramounts was to market a high end, quality bike at a lower price point than the Waterford built Paramounts.

Here's what Marc Muller, then manager of the Paramount Design Group in Waterford (and now Richard Schwinn's partner in Waterford Precision Cycles) had to say about the Series Paramounts:

"National/Panasonic were willing and eager partners in this project. I spent a lot of time in their plant, and they at our corporate headquarters, overseeing the smallest details to assure the bikes were worthy of the name. While some of us had reservations about the use of the name, after spending the 80's building up the Schwinn/Paramount/PDG brand, once the decision was made to use the name everyone was on board to make the finest possible bikes at their price point. Are they Waterford Paramounts? No. Are they excellent bicycles? You bet! Don't listen to the bashers, you'll drive yourself crazy!"

Richard Schwinn, in an e-mail to Bob Hufford in July, 2006, had this comment:

"The 'Series' Paramounts mostly came from Japan, but the Series 2, 20, 3 and 30 came from Taiwan and eventually China by 1992."