Lug making in the 70’s had undergone a similar revolution with the introduction of investment casting technology. Investment castings are so precise that they drastically reduce the amount of filing and polishing required to complete a bike. Moreover, the casting can be designed to support a fully mitered tube all the way to where it meets the adjoining tube. This allows schwinn dealers a smaller lug to be built that provides better structural support than a larger lug without the full tubing support. Investment castings lacked the ornate look of the Nervex lugs but they were cleaner and lighter. Founded in 1974 in a Southern California garage, Mongoose has always been an aggressive brand with products that push the limits of what a rider can do.
You might think that these are the same, but they are not. By the end of the 60’s, resentment inside the factory over these lugs and shells was so high that when the supply finally ran out in the late 60’s, Schwinn sourced the Prugnat lugs as a substitute. The schwinn ebike builders loved it, but the move was not popular among dealers and riders, since most people favored the carefully filed and beautifully ornate Nervex lugs. Schwinn compromised by keeping the Prugnat bottom bracket shell while returning to the Nervex lugset.
YP – The Real Yellow PagesSM – helps you find the right local businesses to meet your specific needs. Search results are sorted by a combination of factors to give you a set of choices in response to your search criteria. “Preferred” listings, or those with featured website buttons, indicate YP advertisers who directly provide information about their businesses to help consumers make more informed buying decisions.
Complete our online Service Request Form to request an appointment. Our technicians are skilled in repairing and maintaining Schwinn fitness equipment. Alloy mechanical disc brakes deliver all-weather stopping power and speed control. That way you can ride with confidence in a variety of conditions.
In 1896 Schwinn was founded, and by the end of that year, Schwinn bikes had more traffic than any other recreational bike company. As fitness trends shifted and technology evolved, Schwinn responded by offering a lineup of groundbreaking and affordable cardio equipment, including exercise bikes and treadmills. Several years ago, a company named Gates introduced a concept never before seen on outdoor bikes – a belt drive that performed like a chain.
By 1979, the Paramount had been passed, technologically, by a whole generation of American as well as foreign builders. Similarly, most people who were buying mountain bikes were not using them on mountain trails, they were just biking around the city on roads. But a mountain bike is a bit easier and more comfortable to ride than a road bike for most folks who don’t ride long distances a lot. Also, by the ’90s the “10 speed” had lost its coolness factor and mountain bikes were definitely acquiring a strong coolness factor (just as BMX bikes had during the ’80s). The bike boom of the 1970s meant that lousy bicycles almost completely dominated the market, but the more recent bike boom has created a generation of much more savvy customers.
Instead, most Schwinn derailleur bikes were marketed to the general leisure market, equipped with heavy “old timer” accessories such as kickstands that cycling aficionados had long since abandoned. While the Paramount still sold in limited numbers to this market, the model’s customer base began to age, changing from primarily bike racers to older, wealthier riders looking for the ultimate bicycle. Schwinn sold an impressive 1.5 million bicycles in 1974, but would pay the price for failing to keep up with new developments in bicycle technology and buying trends. By 1950, Schwinn had decided the time was right to grow the brand. At the time, most bicycle manufacturers in the United States sold in bulk to department stores, which in turn sold them as store brand models.
F. Goodrich bicycles, sold in tire stores, Schwinn eliminated the practice of producing private label bicycles in 1950, insisting that the Schwinn brand and guarantee appear on all products. In exchange for ensuring the presence of the Schwinn name, distributors retained the right to distribute Schwinn bikes to any hardware store, toy store, or bicycle shop that ordered them. W. Schwinn tasked a new team to plan future business strategy, consisting of marketing supervisor Ray Burch, general manager Bill Stoeffhaas, and design supervisor Al Fritz. Schwinn was soon sponsoring a bicycle racing team headed by Emil Wastyn, who designed the team bikes, and the company competed in six-day racing across the United States with riders such as Jerry Rodman and Russell Allen. In 1938, Frank W. Schwinn officially introduced the Paramount series. Developed from experiences gained in racing, Schwinn established Paramount as their answer to high-end, professional competition bicycles.
Around the time of the Korean War Frank moved back to Chicago to join Schwinn, first in the assembly department and them in the Parts Department. He also helped Ovie file frames when at the factory and, along with Stan Natanek, assembled Paramounts. Bring in a team of qualified fitness equipment technicians to make the process easy. We offer commercial and residential assembly and disassembly services when you need to remove or setup your fitness units.