Lots of discussion regarding Paramount quality.
>From personal experience I can pass on the following information.
When I went to work for Schwinn in 1964, I was actually riding a Masi. Of
course that changed real fast and I still have a 1965 Paramount track bike on
which I just rode 40 miles a week ago.
I was "import oriented" during my racing career, and I definitely feel that
racing oriented LBD determined rider preference. If the LBD happened to be a
Schwinn dealer, then there were Paramounts at the races. Back then there
were not a lot of choices. Cinelli and Masi were not widely available.
Raleigh, Peugeot, and Frejus and Schwinn were the main nationally distributed
brands. In the 50s and 60s, Schwinn's strength was the track bike. The road
bike was another story, too flexible and sluggish handling. On the road it
didn't match up well against Cinelli, Masi, assorted British bikes, and later
Masi.
By the late 60s and early 70s, they had been sufficiently improved to compete
against the top imports, however most Paramounts ended in the hands of
tourists, or simply casual riders who wanted a top of the line bicycle.
When the bike boom hit, Schwinn increased production to meet demand -- to
over 3000 units in 1972 -- but they lost control of the quality. It was at
this time that Schwinn contracted with Don Mainland, a former racer and
successful tool and die maker in Racine, Wisconsin to build frames.
Approximately 40% came from Mainland. Someone on the list commented that the
chrome plated frames were Mainland frames. I had never heard that, and since
serial numbers were put on after the frames were built, there was no way to
tell a factory built frame from a Mainland frame.
By the end of the 70s, the Paramount had been passed by, technologically. In
1979, Paramount production was shut down. The edict was that if Schwinn
could not build a world class bike, then none would be built until it could.
In 1982, a new state of the art Paramount was introduced built at the
Waterford, Wisconsin facility managed by Marc Muller, a frame builder that
Schwinn had hired to head up this project.
To sum up, I would say that Paramounts built in the 72 and 73 were on the
lower side of the quality scale. I have a 71 and a 77 that are fine.
As far as ride characteristics go, it depends on which model you have. A P15
touring frame would by design provide a comfortable, seemly unresponsive
ride. A P13 racing frame would provide a more responsive, quicker feel.
Does a chrome frame handle or ride better than a painted one? I don't think
so.
It was a big commitment for Schwinn to set up the Waterford facility.
Schwinn never made money on Paramounts, but the Paramount racing heritage
kept it alive and the Schwinn family never forgot that.
Dave Staub,
Orange, Ca