1955 Faded Phantom: Schwinn Rat Rod Bicycle Build Project

Sep 22, 2021

A guy walks into our bicycle shop and says he's got a bicycle in the back of his truck that he wants to donate. Usually, this means they have a clapped-out Walmart bike that they don't want to drive out to the city dump. But, to our surprise and pleasure, it turned out to be a little gem. From the serial number, remaining paint markings, and the front springer fork we believe it's a 55 Schwinn Phantom.

The bike was in pretty bad shape and even had ants living in the bottom bracket. We decided that this would make a perfect Rat Rod/Klunker build, so we started gathering the parts to bring it back to life. We were able to rebuild the springer fork and all the frame parts. The highlight of the bike is the 2-speed kick-back rear hub we laced up to red anodized SE Rims. We also love riding position that the Velo Orange Klunker Bars and Brooks Leather Saddle provide. This bike is one of the most comfortable and smooth rolling bikes we’ve built. The front spring and Schwalbe Fat Frank Tires smooth out the ride without making the bike feel bouncy our sluggish.

We couldn’t are happier with how this bike turned out and we’re looking for another Klunker project bike to sink our teeth into.

1955 Faded Phantom Springer Fork