When to Replace the Decals?
 

Hello all.
I just bought a '79 Schwinn cruiser.
It's all original and in beautiful condition. To an untrained eye, it looks brand new. To people like us, it has just enough tiny imperfections to be able to ride it every day, guilt-free.
Question: The darts on the forks and the Schwinn logos on the top tube have no chips or scratches, but they are faded. They have no "pop" left in them.
Should I buff them off & put new ones on, or is it a crime to remove decent original decals?

Personally, unless the bike has been repainted, or the decals are totally ruined, I think fresh decals look goofy on a vintage bike. Its all about patina.

+1. It's not a "crime" to remove decent original decals but it would be a cryin' shame.

I fully agree about patina.
The conundrum here is that the rest of the bike is utterly without patina. It looks like a new old stock bike with worn decals.
To even further complicate the matter, the decals on the down tube and on the chain guard, also original, are still bright white.
Then again, that faded patina on the other three decals screams, "O-rigi-Naaalle!".
It's a head-scratcher.

The decals Schwinn used in the 1978 to about 1982 era were terrible and were like what you see within a few months on most of the bikes sold. If you find NOS they will also look like that in a very short time. The bike will only be original once so leave it alone. Roger

Very well. I will leave it alone.
You have all told me exactly what I needed to hear.
Thank you.