What kind of bike did you have when you first learned to ride? Mine was a lemon yellow Sting-Ray, with a sparkly seat, girly streamers off the handlebars and a white basket in front. That little Sting-Ray was a product of mastermind Al Fritz, Schwinn’s head of research and development. He noticed that kids were creating custom bikes in the image of motorcycles, with wide “longhorn” handlebars, fat tires, sissy bars, and large-diameter wheels. He convinced Schwinn to create the Sting-Ray – a play on the very popular Corvette’s name – and it was introduced in 1963, halfway through the year. Schwinn’s advertisement noted the date as “1963 1/2”. The bike sold out in hours, kicking off a plethora of variants over the course of years – from Fastbacks to Krates, Manta-Rays to Fairladys. Here on craigslist is a 1968 Sky Blue Sting-Ray Fastback five-speed, with a checkerboard banana seat and classic longhorn handlebars. The seller wants $1000, and the bike is located in La Verne, California. Another great find from Tony Primo – thanks, Tony!
The Fastback was built for agility, with a lightweight frame. It’s a fixed-fork bike with no front suspension and 20″ wheels; this one has bow pedals and the wheels are new. These bikes were built to accommodate tall kids, short kids, skinny kids and fat kids – virtually anyone could enjoy a Schwinn Sting-Ray thanks to the adjustable seat. From year to year, changes were minimal, mostly amounting to available colors. The entire repertoire of 1968 models can be seen here.
The Stik-Shift mimicked the muscle cars of the day, and the chrome fenders copied dad’s Mustang, with a flip in the rear as if to say, “I’m faster than you!” The paint on this example is said to be original. The graphics and labels are in great shape. The handlebar brakes are just like the older kids’ rigs – growing out of the coaster brake was a big deal.
The checkerboard-pattern on this seat wasn’t typical – usually the seat matched the paint scheme. But the all-important sissy bar is in place. Speaking of the sissy bar, a luscious variety of accessories was available, from headlamps and baskets to rear racks and reflectors. The original Sting-Ray was so successful that Schwinn sold over 45,000 copies in a couple of months, and more than 2 million during the five years following launch. The company was originally hoping to sell about 10,000 bikes in its first year. Of course, all that volume means that if you want to collect Schwinn bikes, you’ll have your pick of colors, models, and conditions in a wide range of prices – mostly at points higher than this seller is asking. What do you say, is this Fastback worth the money?
Let me be the 1st to say BRAVO! ( got to get up earlier than this) This is almost as cool as the truck posts, almost. Thing here is, how many can relate to an old truck tractor, when EVERYONE can relate here. It was our 1st set of wheels, and imagination was king. I don’t recall the 24inchers, most were our childhood 20″ with bars and a seat, oh, and that slick tire,,,way cool, even though most back tires looked like that anyway, remember how long a skid you could make? This, I believe is an early model with um, “crotch buster” shifter. In 1st, it became a viable weapon, a harpoon, as it were, and I believe was changed to handlebar shift on later models. My late sister went to a lot of storage sales, and got a pristine 20″ Sting Ray cheap. Well, she passed away, and my brother in law fell behind on the storage, and contents were sold. See how that works?
To be clear, I think this is a 24″ Sting Ray as the tires in the vintage ad look a lot smaller, and $49.95, pftt, we spend that in one trip down the pharmacy aisle, but back then, that was a lot of grass cutting. A seat and bars from Woolworths were 1/10th that, AMT model paint provided the wacky paint jobs, we even had a neighbor weld up some extended front forks,,,that was dangerous as heck, but looked cool. It was all about looking cool on your bike, thanks to the hot rod culture. Streamers, not so much,,but baseball cards on the fender stay bar( with moms springy type clothespins she always wondered where they went) with all the dud guys cards.
I think my 1st Sting Ray type was a 20 incher I made, then a Raleigh 26″ with Sturmey-Archer 3 speed, then a Follis 10 speed. Then nothing for many years until I retired, got a Specialized from a thrift store for $30, brought it with me to Colorado, couldn’t handle the trails and broke in half, sending me to the ground at an alarming speed. 1st real accident in all my years of 2 wheeling, motorcycles included, Undaunted, after my shoulder healed some, got a used Gary Fisher mountain bike, with much improved results. After my health “episode” over a year ago, I haven’t ridden since. I figure 3rd time would be the charm. Great find, and never know what those storage bins have.
My whole life story isn’t this long,Howard!
That’s a shame, Al, I had a lot of fun in my life.
Howard,writing columns like this I don’t know how you had time for any fun!
Welcome to the world of Howard
Al & Howard you guys crack me up 🤣 Happy New Year to all
you ar so right about that shifter howrad A.
this was my first bike. a 20 incher with the 3speed, that dad got used and of course the shjfter knob was already broken off. i can tell you it was a very painfull evel knievel landing when my feet slipped off the pedals. but it was the longest jump of the day, tears screams and all.
this one is a beauty. too bad it’s on the left coast
My first bike was a 26″ Raleigh with the Sturmey-Archer 3 speed. I wanted the small Schwinn I saw in the store because I went out in the woods a lot but my mom wanted the Raleigh, and it ended up winning out. I ended up getting a Schwinn after we moved to Denver and using it for my paper route though and I put the playing cards on the spokes and ape hangers on it because I always wanted a Stingray but by that time they were too small for my frame. I used it for my paper route until I crashed it and took out a couple off front teeth (due to the handlebars) so my dad bought me a Cushman Eagle Scooter and built a box on the back for me to carry my papers in. which led to a series of motorcycles, and also to several more bicycles. First was a Raleigh Elkhorn Mountain Tour in the 80s, then a dual suspension aluminum frame Univega, and after that was stolen in Fort Collins I borrowed a vintage steel ten speed road bike and I really liked the speed and agility, which in turn led me back to Raleighs. I found an 1984 ten speed Raleigh Clubman on eBay that ended up being a total ripoff (pictures from 20′ away should’ve been a red flag) so eBay returned my money and I decided to keep it and restore it, and it’s now complete and as good as it was new. Turns out this one is even more nimble and fast than the Schwinn. 1984 was the last year Raleigh made them in the Nottingham factory and I wanted it to be original so I sourced parts from three continents either NOS or used like new, and even found decals in Australia of all places. And she’s going out on the bike rack down to the river trail in a couple of days. I love the storage bin idea btw. After my dad sold his business he started buying storage units and he ended up finding some really cool stuff so I’m going to look into some local sales.
Very cool indeed, Michelle and Tony.
Funny how popular an ordinary kid became the talk of the school when they showed up on one of these and before anything goes on about the price, one of the guys in my old neighborhood just sold his Orange Krate he got for Christmas he’d kept all these years-for $3000!!
What a jump back in the Time Machine…bitchin’, man!😆
Oh wow!!! This Schwinn is great. And really to second that this brings back so many memories. I only remember seeing maybe 2 24 inch Stingrays but usually they were 20 inch rims. I had a sky blue Schwinn Varsity ( same color as this). This just brought back so many memories.
Please keep them coming!!!!
When I was about 7(1967), a kid in the neighborhood had his stingray modified up ward. Tubes , chain, etc. were added to the frame to make the bike about 10 feet tall!! The kid had to climb a telephone pole to get on the bike! That was SO cool! We modified anything we got our hands on, as kids.
I had the cheaper version of the sting ray a “Huffy” I spent almost as much time pulling a wheelie and riding on the back tire as I did on both wheels.
One time I got the bright idea of trying to go around a sharp curve with no hands, by just leaning into the curve.
I was doing pretty good until I hit some loose gravel and down I went onto the black top sliding along on the pavement.
I got pretty scratched up but I didn’t brake anything surprisingly.
That’s one stunt I never tried again.
I still have my first new bike, a 1974 blue Schwinn 3-speed Speedster. Someday I will need to sell it, but in the mean time it hangs from the rafters in my shed, needing new tubes and tires to make it ride-worthy. I also bought about 20 years ago on a garage sale a 1969 deep red Schwinn 5-speed Collegiate in fantastic condition for a measly $5.
I also remember some older kids in my hometown cutting front forks off old bikes and attaching them to the front forks of their bikes to make a “chopper” and then changing out the handle bars for a steering wheel. Man, was that cool back in the day.
Sweet !
The memories of these cool bikes.
I used to jump and skid my bikes pretty good too.
My bike was custom built by me. I took my 24” bike and put a banana seat with a tall sissy bar. The steering wheel was interesting too as i found a used round one at a yard sale. Good luck with sake!
Still haven’t gotten over my parents not letting me have one of these as a kid and making me ride a “Pee Wee Herman” bike instead.
My second bike was a used 20 inch bike. no idea what the brand was. Slowly I started to “fine tune” it, first with ape hanger handle bars, later a banana seat after sawing off half the rear fender. Loved that bike. Started me down the road of modifying vehicles to suit me. My father hated what I had done to it. One day he came home with one of those 26 inch Pee Wee Herman type bikes (Role fast?) for me. I rode it a couple of times before going back to my 20 incher. And then he abruptly gave it away. I was heart broken. Never said a word.
Well at least you HAD a bike. When I asked my father to buy me one his response was, ” do you have any money?” When you save up enough money then I’ll take you to buy a bike.
Several cars washes later cutting grass washing kitchen walls and dog walking, I was close. So he chipped in the rest. My first bike was a schwinn sting ray goldish orange with ram horn handlebars. Thanks Michelle for the memories. Now pardon me while I find some rain to hide my tears.
Don’t forget the Schwinn Krate bikes with the big/small wheels. They’ve been popular for decades, I remember them showing up at automotive swapmeets in the mid-90’s, my buddy I’d go with had one as a kid and pointed them out. They were a few hundred then but the best examples can now sell in the thousands.
Steve. R
Up here in Canada, Schwinn wasn’t a thing in the day. We had a very similar product in the CCM Mustang Duomatic though – it was my first 2 wheeler in 1969 (used, originally came out in 1965). Similar in styling to the bike featured here except it had the standard pedal-operated brake AND a two speed rear hub. To change gears you just kicked the brake back every so slightly. It was awesome in blue metalflake with its high sissy bar.
And to think I rode it everywhere, without a helmet! Call Child Protection Services!
bt
I still ticked off I never got one. I got a stupid regular CCM with a regular seat and a BASKET. A flipping basket.
I did put a banana seat and a sissy bar on it, but it wasn’t even close
What memories… I had a very similar bike as a kid, a blue Stingray like this one with a ‘5 on the floor’ shifter. Mine also had a tall ‘sissy bar’, and the seat was pearlescent white rather than checked like this one.
That style and riding position isn’t exactly the most efficient, but as a 10-12 year old who cares? It looked and felt cool to ride. All the neighborhood kids back in the 1960’s were riding things similar to this.
The even cooler versions were the Schwinn ‘Krate’ bikes, Blueberry Krate, Apple Krate, Lemon Krate, etc., a very similar stingray design but with a smaller diameter front wheel (with a drum brake!) to give it a ‘chopper’ look. The kids who lived in the more well to do south side of town rode those.
I rode that bike all over. It was my ‘daily driver’ and primary transportation. Until I made the mistake of riding it to school one day in 7th grade – and came out to find the bike stripped. The chain lock held despite being hacked and crowbarred, but the shifter and almost anything bolted on the bike were stolen. Heartbroken, I sold what was left and moved on to a more ‘grown up’ bike, my first 10 speed ‘racer.’
My older brother had a gold Stingray with gold glitter in the seat. He bought it with his paper route money. He had a bigger route than I did so I ended up settling for buying a Huffy.
Once a year in the spring of the year the city had curbside pickup for residents unwanted items. Old bicycles in abundance were left at the curb waiting for the city garbage trucks to haul them away. Unless of course I showed up on my Huffy first! I would haul as many parts vehicles as I could balance on my bicycle. Once home the restomod would commence.
I begged my folks for a Stingray for Christmas as a kid. You can imagine my disappointment when I saw a Schwinn 3 speed lightweight bike with curled down handlebars under the tree. Expressing my disappointment, my father said, “I know that you wanted a Stingray, but you will thank me when all of your friends are peddling their axxes off on hills, and all you have to do is shift gears.” (only single speed Stingrays were available at the time). Typically, he was correct. While I may not have been as cool, I was always at the front of our neighborhood bicycle gang.
I got a violet (purple) Schwinn Sting-Ray for Christmas in 1963, it was stolen out of our yard in 65. The stolen one was replaced with an orange 65 Sting-Ray with the springer front forks. The orange one was stolen out of our garage on my birthday in 68. Since I was now 14 it was replaced with a “grown up” bike, an “English Racer” style Schwinn. My brother was luckier, he still has his green 3 speed 68 Schwinn Sting-Ray.
I still have my Violet (purple) base model Stingray that I bought with my own money in 1967. I recently got it cleaned up, I always took good care of it so some cleaning and waxing and it looks great, a survivor. I spent hours riding it and exploring other neighborhoods.
Had a 20” Sting Ray back in the day. Dad wouldn’t let me get the one that has the racing slick back tire as he said it was unsafe.
I just got rid of my ‘73 powder blue Schwinn Continental that I bought new, a couple of months ago. It was complete but needed a restoration that never quite happened. Schlepped it around to various homes over the years, we were downsizing this time and there was no room for it despite the sentimental attachment. There’s not really much of a market for those, and it’s not realistic or affordable to ship so you’re limited to a local market. Sure, it may have had value to the “right guy” but who knows. Ended up giving it to the junk hauler guys before we moved, they said it will probably end up at Goodwill.
Just like so many cars, if we only knew!! With their phone number posted they will get many junk calls now.
It is a funny thing about class. These days I hear about kids needing a $1000 phone to be cool, a $49.00 one that functions as well just isn’t.
But back then a $50.00 Krate may as well have been $1000, it was so far out of reach for our family. My Dad tried, getting a cheap bike and putting on a banana seat, ape hangers and sprayed a candy color. But I and the kids all new it wasn’t “cool”. It was one of the first realizations I had about class…
I extended the forks by pounding on some pipe on the end of the forks to make a chopper. But jumping it broke off the head tube and the resultant crotch impact was memorable..
I have no desire to own one today, not sure of the appeal. Perhaps you had to own one BITD to “get it”.
I do have the muscle car of my high school days, so I understand that nostalgia thing. I hope I don’t look as silly driving it as I would pedaling a Krate!
This bicycle ad got more comments than some of the ads for cars!
They always do. The minute I saw this posting, I knew it would be good for 50 – 60 comments.
Lots of us got our start on one of these or something similar. It started the infatuation with anything on wheels.
We weren’t well off enough to get Schwinns, so I got one of the knock offs sold at various Department Stores. It was a Christmas present and I was so excited. Yeah, kids in the neighborhood had Stingrays and Krates, but I didn’t care.
Ha! I had one of these. Mine was Cherry Red but had the same nut-busting gearshift.
I learned why it is a nut-buster when I lost control while flying off the face of the earth on a downhill gravel road entering a turn, went into a skid and plowed through a barbed wire fence. Fortunately I didn’t get wrapped up in the barbed wire because the tree that was right behind the fence stopped all forward movement of the bike but I kept going forward, racking my pre-pubescent balls on the gear shift while my face was planted into the tree.
After untangling my bike I continued my journey to school with crooked handle bars, a busted lip and a bike with a lot of new scratches.
Situations occurred.
Decisions were made.
Tears were shed.
Lessons were learned.
Elmo, reminds me of the time I crashed my 20″ bike into a curb at a “high” rate of speed. Went the proverbial ass over tea kettle and the bike came down on top of me leaving at least 1 black eye & an assortment of cuts and bruises.
Dad came home from work and was immediately apprised of the days event by my worrisome mother.
He didn’t even come to bedside but did his appraisal from the doorway with a dismissive “He’ll be alright.” He let me be a kid.
I am not sure that rubber is original. I seem to remember mine having a wide slick on the back but maybe that was put on by the original owner (my brother). All I know is, l held the record for ghost ridding with that bike. Those were the days!
Never had one of these, but did have 2 Schwinn 5-speeds. A blue one Dad bought that I traded in for a beautiful brown metallic one 3 years later that I proudly paid for myself. I added a chrome speedometer to the brown one & 3,000 miles+ in 3 years including winters delivering papers in my small N. Mn. hometown and riding the mine roads.
How I cared for my bikes would be evidenced in the fact of when I was guarding my new brown bike when in about 25 minutes my old blue bike came out the door of the store and into the trunk of the car next to Dad’s ’66 Chev. pickup! I’m sure I’m the only kid in the world that ever waxed his bike!
Wow! This listing is a memory jogger! Back in the day there were far fewer real Sting Rays than home-built: take an old unloved 20 inch-er (usually an off-brand like Western Auto or Murray) go at the frame with a spray can of Cal Custom metal flake paint, and add the slick, banana seat and butterfly handle bars!
Not me, though. My mode of transport was an “English” bike (which applied to any 26 inch narrow tyred three speed) of which I had two: a much derided Japanese variant, and finally my much more respectable black ’68 Schwinn Traveller (which I still have)
I had to laugh at that because mine was exactly that – a Murray that I rattle can painted green and gold, banana seat, sissy bar, higher handlebars and away I went. First time I rode that bike, before I redid it, I still haven’t quite figured out how the coaster brakes worked and tried to drive it up the side of the maple tree next to the driveway. Got about a foot and a half up, came back down and tipped over like Artie Johnson into a mud puddle. A few yea Irs later when I was like 9 or 10 I got a Firecracker model painted white with red and blue metallic, three-speed shifter, and really cool striped seat. That bike was awesome and I ended up selling it to the kid up the street for like 10 bucks.
It was an early lesson in economics: the advent of the Sting Ray created a market for those old Murrays that didn’t exist before!
In the summer of 1963 I saw the Sting ray Ads and would visit local bike shops to see the bike. i wanted one bad so we went to Jerry’s Bike Shop on Grand River Avenue just west of Wyoming street in Northwwest Detroit, Mi. it was some time in August of 1963 and the owner jerry said he would have to order my Sting ray as I wanted the Lime Gereen Color. About 4 weeks later I came home from school and it was about 3:50 PM when the phone rang. It was the bike shop and they said that my Sying ray had just been delivered but that it needed to be assembled. i said we would be there to pick it up at 5:99PM. i had to wait for my father to come home from work.. When my father got home we went to the Bike Shop to pick up the bike. We stopped at the police Station to get a license for it. I rode the bike till dark; the next day, I got up early to ride the bike before going to school. I was not allowed to take the bike to school. I rode that bike all over. Neither rain, sleet, or snow could stop me from riding that bike. I made one change to the bike and got my Aunt to buy a leopard-skin banana seat that was made by the Parsons Polo Seat Company. To this day, I still have my Sting Ray and the memories that I remember.
I had long forgotten Jerry’s Bike Shop!
Thank you for the time travel memory!
Plenty of car dealerships nearby, as well.
Had a ’66 Murray Wildcat growing up.
It was a great bike, but didn’t have the
magic of a Stingray. Rode it for 2 or 3
years til I outgrew it. That’s when Dad
got me a 26 inch Schwinn with a coaster brake and saddle baskets on it. I rode Big Red everywhere back then. You should’ve seen me carrying
my toolbox on the luggage rack on the way to church on Saturday mornings to do small repairs for the
congregation there. Didn’t make a lot
of money, but I learned about helping
folks that needed it. Over time, I dolled it up with rearview mirrors, a
speedometer, and a Bike Pals headlight/taillight kit with a generator
for riding at night. Sure wish I had it
back now though!
Just to set the record straight, Schwinn Fastbacks did ride on 20 inch tires. They were very skinny compared to the 20 inch tires used on a Stingray. Like many of the Stingrays, they also had a “slick” rear tire. Also very skinny. The 24 inch version of these skinny wheels and tires were on the Schwinn Manta Ray. The Fastbacks also used a different frame design than the Stingray bikes. Today, many Fastback bikes are parted out and used to restore Stingrays and Schwinn Krate bikes. It’s getting harder to find them intact like the one shown here.
About 5 years ago, I was at a local swap meet, and I saw a really nice survivor Fastback, just like this, same color even. It was marked $50. I immediately thought “no, I’m reading that wrong” and walked away. (Even $500 at the time probably wouldn’t have been a bad deal, but I wasn’t in the market to spend that much). I then saw a guy come up a minute later, hand the guy $50 and walk away with it.
Doh! I would have felt bad though. The guy obviously didn’t know what he had.
We all wished we had one of these, but only the rich kid got one. He did let all of us ride it.
i had this exact bike. amazing. got stolen almost immediately. always your best friend that sets you up.
Michelle, you hit a home run with this one. Just look at all the comments.
I too had a blue single speed stingray back in 63. I loved that bike. Took it to “motorcycle hills” and spent all day pretending i was a motocross racer. I tried to go down a steep hill with two trees that were about 2” wider than my handlebars. It was called knuckle buster hill for a reason. I found out the reason and got a handlebar in the gut. I ended up dragging that bike all the way home. More that 50 years later and I still remember that feeling.
You chose such a great item to bring back all those memories. Great article and very well done.
Great write up, Michelle.
I had a red, white and blue 20″ Sting Ray and I’m guessing it would have been about a 1976 model. It survived a ton of blacktop jumps off a ramp and always came back for more.
Did you know you can buy a new Schwinn Krate bike today?
https://www.schwinnbikes.com/collections/all-bikes?activeSort=featured&activeSortDirection=ascending&activeFilters=bike%20style~classics
While apparently no Schwinn has been made in the US since like 1982, and these Krates are probably made in China / Taiwan, I have to say they look pretty cool.
It is sad that Chicago lost Schwinn manufacturing so long ago but like they say, change is the only constant in life.
Cool. My first bike with class was a modified Stingray. Lime green, high sissy bar with shocks, with ram head handle bars. Rode it to school daily, and had a group of kids after school admiring it. Lasted two weeks until someone cut the chain in front of the school and stole it. Next, I had a light blue fast back sting ray. Older kid wanted to trade paper routes because my route went thru his street. He had an apple krate… Long story short, I gave him my fast back, traded paper routes, 50 American dollars, and, 2 G. I. Joe dolls. This was in 75′ 50 dollars was a lot of money for a 12 year old kid. Biggest transaction I had ever made. Still have the bike, planning on being buried with it… Lol
There was a Schwinn bike shop on West Warren Ave in Detroit just East of the Southfield Expressway. I was one of there best customers. In there all the time.
Just up the street was a slot car track. Best of times to remember and appreciate now that I’m 69. Great friendships were forged and remain today. 😎
Our Schwinn dealer was across the street from a slot car track! Both the bike shop and the slot car track are gone now. Oh, well!
Great write up Michelle! This one brings back all the memories of riding my Murray Wildcat (and later my Grant Sport Firecracker) all over the neighborhood, meeting up with friends who had every kind of Schwinn or Murray or Huffy or AMF bikes under the sun, all of them painted or otherwise customized. Lots of skinned knees and skinned elbows, plenty of baseball cards or playing cards wore out from the spokes… We used to go up to the Agway at the top of the street and use the sloped loading dock edges as a jumping ramp.
Hoping whoever buys this bike does so with similar happy memories.
In 65/66 i begged my dad for a stingray from a sears catalog and of course I didn’t get one. I was so jealous of the other kids looking so cool. Out in the bush of Alaska, I ended up making a off roader with fat tires ,reverse handle bars and still had the one speed coaster brake and a 10 speed frame.by the time I trashed that bike I was saving for a Honda 90 trail bike which I bought in 69 and it was used , 68 first year for switch for sprockets.
Never thought of welding on forks, just sacrifice ‘d forks off other bikes pounded them on my stingray. That front tire was way ahead of me!
Good memorys!
My brother and I had almost matching Huffy single-speed stingrays, with a coaster rear brake, matching green paint and a front hand brake. His had a black saddle, mine was silver metal flake with white trim. The bike I lusted after, though, was a Sears version, with “pretzel” handlebars, a five speed transmission and a “parking” brake! I lusted after it until we attempted our first long distance ride, over five miles! By then the bloom was already coming off of the stingray rose, and we upgraded to Raleigh “racing” bikes, with dropped handlebars and ten-speed de-railer transmissions.
I was 10yrs old in 68 and if you had one of these under the Christmas tree you’re folks had money. These bicycles cost over a hundred bucks in 68 dollars and they were worth it. They were tuff as nails and the baddest bike a kid could have.My folks were cheap but they did buy me a nice Murray 3speed but I dreamed of having one of these. I think the ask for this collector is fair but kids today can’t appreciate a bicycles like this.
I had one ,wow I thought I was cool riding that bike.i electrical taped my transistor radio to the handle bars then I really was cool!
https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/1960s-vintage-mattel-bronco-rroom-131438052
Anyone remember this bike? I don’t know how I had convinced my parents, but they bought one for me! I really felt like I was riding a motorcycle! It had a mock battery operated motor with revving up engine sounds. I enjoyed it until something jammed up with the newly designed gearbox, and it was unfixable.
My future BIL and his friend were chopping an old Harley and decided to chop my bike, too! Neither projects were completed. Fond memories, though!
Yes!
You could actually get the Vrroom engine separately and add it to your own bike.
I think Scotty mentioned that he has one during a previous discussion about them.
You could also buy the mock motor separately for any bike and my brother and me each had the vroom-vroom gadget on our first (non-stingray) two-wheel bikes.
The cheap way out was to take a clothespin and attach old baseball cards to the frame with the clothespins, folded over so they flipped in the wheel spokes and made a fair imitation of a motorcycle engine as you rode! You used “doubles”, or duplicates of baseball cards you already had, so you wouldn’t ruin single cards in your collection!
I had one,some reason I thought it was a Hot Wheels bike,seems like it said that on the chain guard, maybe I’m mistaken,it was a long time ago