Re: [CR]What is it about that Paramount?

(Example: Production Builders:Teledyne)

From: "Stephen Barner" <steve@sburl.com>
To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
References: <CATFOODeCnwZX3I6fIx0000367c@catfood.nt.phred.org>
Subject: Re: [CR]What is it about that Paramount?
Date: Wed, 21 May 2003 00:15:41 -0400


I made a passing comment about this a little while back and got creamed by the list until Brian weighed in and bailed me out. I think most will agree that the Paramount was the highest quality production bike from a major American manufacturer from the fourties until the late 70s, when they were went stale and were supplanted by numerous other companies while Schwinn went broke. The later Waterford Paramounts were technically superior machines with much better workmanship, but they are bikes of a different era.

The classic Paramounts had reasonable geometry--nothing radical, but plenty race worthy in the P13 model. They were heavy-gage 531, which made them a bit on the chunky side, but good out-of-the-saddle machines. There were plenty of options, which is more than you can say for the imported competition, and most of the options were reasonably priced. I think I paid an extra $30 to get Campionato del Mundo Seta tires. What other bike offered those as a factory option?

Most people I knew went ga-ga over the chrome Paramounts, but I never liked them. I thought the beautiful contrast between paint and chrome headlugs was lost when the frame was all chrome, decals didn't stick well to it, and it added at least a pound to the bike. There was a rumor that the chrome made the frame more susceptible to fatigue cracking as well. I thought the full chrome made the bike look like the bumper off a Buick. Still, if you are going to buy an NOS version, 30 years later, chrome is probably the most desirable finish, as it was so unusual to have a bike of this quality with a chrome finish that nicely done.

With the exception of the "short-coupled" (we called them pregnant) Paramounts that appeared in '74, there was not much innovation in the Paramount line. The frame geometry remained virtually unchanged throughout the '70s. The workmanship just cannot be compared with that of custom builders of the era, but was functional and clean. They also used silver braze on the lugged connections to keep the heat down. Schwinn was in a lot of turmoil in the '70s, and I think it was commendable that they continued to build a fine riding, attractive machine that did not add to the bottom line. Schwinn had a lot of deserved pride in their Paramount line.

Steve Barner, still a Paramount lover in Bolton, Vermont


----- Original Message -----


> Date: Tue, 20 May 2003 13:02:13 -0700
> From: William Bennett <wbennett@smhca.org>
> To: "'classicrendezvous@bikelist.org'" <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
> Subject: [CR]What is it about that Paramount?
> Message-ID: <69668BCCB4E7F54B943FBA7EBEC1D0600A1959@titan>
> Content-Type: text/plain;charset="iso-8859-1"
> MIME-Version: 1.0
> Precedence: list
> Message: 6
>
> As a lurker and relative "newbie" since purchasing a 1980 Schwinn Voyageur
> 11.8, chrome, 25" frame, off eBay about a year and a half ago (and I love
> the bike), I admit to being more than a little intimidated by the expertise
> represented on the CR list, so please forgive my naive question in the
> subject header. I am seeking some historical perspective on the 1972 P13
> Paramount that has been such a topic of conversation lately. I'm not
> referring to the particular example on eBay (although it is a beauty and if
> I had $2.5K in expendable funds...), but to how the bike is/was equipped.
> How did it compare to other bikes of the time? How does it compare, if at
> all, to bikes of today? Put another way, what are the selling points (other
> than esthetics, on which I am comfortable making my own call) and drawbacks?
> My attraction to the eBay example is mostly (purely?) emotional or
> sentimental, as I have lusted after a Paramount since my parents bought me a
> new Super Sport in 1971 or so, but I am seeking some other justification for
> my interest - perhaps something that my wife, who may be emotional but is
> certainly not sentimental, might understand. Thanks for any enlightenment.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Bill Bennett
> near Spokane, WA