Bicycling

Last edited Thu Oct 15, 2015, 12:33 PM - Edit history (1)

From what I have read Schwinn's chrome-moly frames, except for the paramounts, were all brazed not lugged. Prior to 1980 and the introduction of TIG welding, Schwinn was one of the few non lugged chrome-moly frames. I suspect Schwinn had purchased some brazing equipment during WWII to do some of its defence work (Schwinn made shells during WWII). Schwinn used that equipment to make its second tier chrome-moly frames (the top tier was the Parmounts). After WWII Schwinn returned to making bikes but decided to use that brazing equipment to makes its second tier bikes. They had enough equipment to make a limited number of bikes, which Schwinn sold. Schwinn NEVER pushed these bikes, I suspect for the simple reason Schwinn sold all they could make. To make more required buying additional brazing equipment which Schwinn did not want to do(the equipment is much more expensive then normal welding equipment and more expensive then later TIG welding equipment).

Thus Schwinn never pushed these second tier bikes for even without advertising they sold all they made. On the other hand Schwinn management of the 1950s and 1960s wanted max profits not investments in the future, thus no push to increase sales on these second tier bikes (even in the Schwinn catalogs these were NOT pushed as Chrome-moly frames, the bike dealers knew and the bike riders who wanted better bike knew of them, but not your average bike rider). This was one of the biggest mistakes Schwinn management made in that time period.

Schwinn was known as the premier bike name of the period but instead of pushing the overall quality of their bikes management went for max profits during that time period. Thus in the 1970s Schwinn was passed by, first by people opting for imported "English racer" type bikes, then by cheap lugged imports which were not as good as the second tier Schwinn bikes (top tier lugged bikes competed with Schwinn's Paramont), then by mountain bikes (the first mountain bikes used Schwinn frames from its old rural fat tire bikes).

The fall of Schwinn is an example of family owned business that preferred short term profits over long term survival of the business. Thus my 1972 Schwinn is a lugless chrome moly frame with a drain hole in the bottom bracket (Schwinn had top notch engineers design these frames), a brazed on kickstand (which some people disliked) and a brazed on rear fender attachment point, all in the area of the bottom bracket. It is a very good design for the early 1970s. Schwinn's problem was not it's products, it's engineering or its workers, but it's management more worried about profits then product. That is always a death call for a business that makes things.