No extensive research this time .
Just grabbed catalogs and glanced at pictures .
Looked at 1974 , 1975 , 1976 , 1978 .
Only the 1975 had four pictures of the "short coupled frame" .
Two pictures were single bicycles , two were tandems ( only the Paramount tandems had curved seat tubes , "Schwinn Twinn" had straight ) .
On the Paramount , there was a "short coupled frame option" on the Track , Touring , and Road Racing . The one photo of a "short coupled" Paramount was a Touring !!
On the Paramount Tandem , the curved rear seat tube was standard , not an option .
And , if you wanted what was basically a Continental , with a curved seat tube , there was the "Sprint" bicycle .
With Schwinn , the term "Sprint" goes back in time , to 1964 . That was the Made In France equipment line up which was used what some folks call the "Varsinental" bicycle family , plus , on the Super Sport family of "fillet-brazed light-weights" .
The re-issued name , Sprint , this time used on a complete bicycle , last for a few short years . But , many of the Sprint bicycles had straight seat tubes . The curved seat tube was the reason the model was invented . They could have just made it an option on the Continental . But , they came out with a new & separate model . And , curved seat tubes were just not very popular .
Raoul Delmare Marysville Kansas
P.S. I lusted after a 1972 Masi , and a DeRosa at about the same time . Why ? What's so special about Masi ? Why all the fuss ? Because they had "IT" , you know , it , It , IT !! They had it !!
> A recent e-bay auction had a non decaled frame,
> cheap components (Ashatabula cranks), however
> the frame has curved seat tube like the paramount
> on the CR web site.
> My question is did Schwinn use the curved seat tube
> on lower priced models or was this just on the paramount?
> I will try to find the URL to the auction and post
> it if anyone is interested.
>
> thanks,
> Marty Eison
> Dallas, Texas