Schwinn Road Bikes, Le Tour Classic, Reynolds 520 Chromoly steel frame road bikes equipped with Shimano components

As stated on the manufacturer’s site, Schwinn is no longer producing road bicycles. 22-speed trigger shifters and rear derailleur provide outstanding performance and gearing to meet any challenge with quick, precise gear changes. Over the years, Schwinn has empowered millions of people, earning a special place in the hearts and minds of generations of riders. schwinn road bike We have spent over a century building the bicycle industry into what it is today, and we’re not done yet. Silicon gel bar tape, race seat, and lightweight aluminum wheels provide extra comfort on long distance rides. Schwinn road-tuned carbon frame and Schwinn race carbon fork with carbon tapered steerer provide strength that won’t weigh you down.

schwinn road bike

A growing number of US teens and young adults were purchasing imported European sport racing or sport touring bicycles, many fitted with multiple derailleur-shifted gears. Schwinn decided to meet the challenge by developing two lines of sport or road ‘racer’ bicycles. One was already in the catalog — the limited production Paramount series. As always, the Paramount spared no expense; the bicycles were given high-quality lightweight lugged steel frames using double-butted tubes of Reynolds 531 and fitted with quality European components including Campagnolo derailleurs, hubs, and gears. The Paramount series had limited production numbers, making vintage examples quite rare today.

Once products are shipped from our warehouse, they will arrive between 2-5 days on average (in the United States. Also, this does not include overweight – 150 LB+ – items that may require specialized shipping methods.). Please note, we will not cover express / expedited shipping to meet a required deadline. This bike is in poor condition and definitely needs some love to be restored. Needs a handlebar rewrap, new chain, new tires, maybe new cassette, and a clean. Road bikes are generally made up of two types of materials, aluminum, and carbon.

Using the standard electro-forged cantilever frame, and fitted with five-speed derailleur gears and knobby tires, the Klunker 5 was never heavily marketed, and was not even listed in the Schwinn product catalog. Unlike its progenitors, the Klunker proved incapable of withstanding hard off-road use, and after an unsuccessful attempt to reintroduce the model as the Spitfire 5, it was dropped from production. Another problem was Schwinn’s failure to design and market its bicycles to specific, identifiable buyers, especially the growing number of cyclists interested in road racing or touring. 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. More and more cyclists, especially younger buyers, began to insist on stronger steel alloys (which allowed for lighter frames), responsive frame geometry, aluminum components, advanced derailleur shifting, and multiple gears.[8][30] When they failed to find what they wanted at Schwinn, they went elsewhere.

In the late 1960s, the Varsity and Continental pioneered the use of auxiliary brake levers, which allowed the rider to rest hands on the straight, horizontal center section of the ram’s horn handlebars, yet still have braking control. To further improve control from this more-erect riding position, the levers used to move the derailleurs (shifting the chain from one sprocket to the next) were moved from the traditional position on the “down tube” to the top of the headset, on a ring which would turn with the handlebar stem. This feature, attractive to older riders, soon found its way to other Schwinn models, especially those intended for senior citizens.

For example, if your artwork is submitted 10am on Monday, you should expect to receive proofs no later than 10am Tuesday. Artwork must then be approved by 12pm Tuesday for production to begin on Wednesday. If artwork approval is received after 12pm PST, then production begins on Thursday. Bikes featured on the Working Bikes website are not available to test ride. If you would like to test ride a bike, we have a small selection of bikes on our sales floor during our in-store shopping hours. 16-speed trigger shifters and rear derailleur provide outstanding performance and gearing to meet any challenge with quick, precise gear changes.

Questor/Schwinn later purchased GT Bicycles in 1998 for $8 a share in cash, roughly $80 million. The new company produced a series of well-regarded mountain bikes bearing the Schwinn name, called the Homegrown series.[62] In 2001, Schwinn/GT declared bankruptcy. Front and rear caliper schwinn road bike brakes deliver precise stopping power and reliable speed control in a wide variety of conditions so you can ride with confidence. Front and rear caliper brakes deliver precision stopping power and speed control in a variety of conditions so you can ride with confidence.

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. 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. Developed from experiences gained in racing, Schwinn established Paramount as their answer to high-end, professional competition bicycles. The Paramount used high-strength chrome-molybdenum steel alloy tubing and expensive brass lug-brazed construction. During the next twenty years, most of the Paramount bikes would be built in limited numbers at a small frame shop headed by Wastyn, in spite of Schwinn’s continued efforts to bring all frame production into the factory.

In the 1950s, Schwinn began to aggressively cultivate bicycle retailers, persuading them to sell Schwinns as their predominant, if not exclusive brand. During this period, bicycle sales enjoyed relatively slow growth, with the bulk of sales going to youth models. In 1900, during the height of the first schwinn road bike bicycle boom, annual United States sales by all bicycle manufacturers had briefly topped one million. By 1960, annual sales had reached just 4.4 million.[10] Nevertheless, Schwinn’s share of the market was increasing, and would reach in excess of 1 million bicycles per year by the end of the decade.