Schwinn Sting-Ray

I can scarcely imagine childhood without a Sting-Ray bike. Yes, that’s me, high-water pants, white socks, penny loafers and all, on my campus green “fastback” model. The Schwinn Sting-Ray, and the many similar bikes from other companies, was a significant jump in bicycle design. They were built for fun, with a short wheelbase to facilitate quick maneuvers, and a long “banana” seat that allowed the rider to shift their weight easily front-to-back… just the thing for “wheelies”. The styling was cool, too, with high-rise handlebars, a fat rear tire and paint done in bright, metalflake colors. Introduced by Schwinn in 1963, by the late ’60s they dominated the bicycle market. It wasn’t until the ’70s, when the “ten speed” craze hit, that the Sting-Ray bikes lost their stranglehold on sales. The fashion had switched to racing-styled bicycles with dropped handlebars and multi-speed derailleur gears, and the Sting-Ray craze ended as suddenly as it began. I too jumped on the ten-speed bandwagon, getting a bright yellow Schwinn Continental in, I think, 1974. I was getting older and ready for a “grown up” bike, but riding was never again as fun as it was in those “Sting-Ray days”.
The Sting-Ray line went through a number of evolutionary changes, but it’s hard to top the original. The first Sting-Rays were all business, with single-speed coaster brakes and no fenders. My first Sting-Ray, and the best one, was probably purchased new in ’66 or ’67, and featured a two-speed rear hub. The color was the same as the bike pictured on the right, a sort of brownish-gold, but I don’t know what name Schwinn gave it. I used to know all about how to identify the hubs based on the stripes found around their circumference. I seem to recall it having two red lines, but I could be mistaken. In any event, the hub was of the “kick back” type, meaning that you toggled between the two speeds by momentarily peddling backwards, as if to apply the coaster brake. The system changed gears quickly and flawlessly. The same cannot be said for my Fastback model. It was the first model to have 5-speed derailleur gears, a setup that should have never been put on a Sting-Ray. Much of the blame must go to the “stick shift” gear changer, whose sheer mass caused it to move imperceptibly while riding. The end result was that, at the least opportune moment, the chain would jump off the sprocket, effectively putting you into a “neutral”. This was bad for wheelies, and even worse if you were climbing a steep hill while standing up on the pedals, as the rider would go slamming downwards. That shifter was placed in an inconceivably poor location, considering that most of the riders were boys, boys who might want to start a family of their own one day. Schwinn saw the error of their ways and moved the shifter up to the handlebars beginning in 1974. I should also mention the brakes on my fastback, another disappointment. Whereas coaster brakes were exceedingly powerful, and capable of being locked up if desired, the caliper brakes on the fastback were weak and lacked both consistency and sensitivity. Before the Sting-Ray-mania had lost its momentum, Schwinn went over the top with all sorts of changes, including disk brakes (foot-dragging was more effective), and “springer” front ends. The height of styling came with the “Krate” series. These bikes had themes based on their color, and included the Apple Krate, the Orange Krate, the Lemon Peeler and later the Pea Picker and the Cotton Picker. They were available with either a coaster brake or a 5-speed derailleur with disk brake, and all had front springer suspension and plunger shocks on the seat posts. The Krates are the most valuable Sting-Rays today, examples in good condition selling in the thousands. As for me, I’ll take a basic early model any day…preferably with a two-speed hub!

Tagged as: Bicycles