71 cm 1982 Schwinn Continental

Shoes, pants and socks.  These are difficult things for really tall guys to find.  That’s why I will always put up info on the tall bikes I find.

My knowledge of bicycles is driven mainly by what I find in the used market where I am.  I would never have hoped that Schwinn Chicago would produce a giant bicycle like the one I am working on now.  A few weeks back, I purchased a Schwinn Continental on an online auction.  I knew it was tall.

When I measured it, I thought my tape measure was broken.  Then, I looked it up by serial number to check the catalogues for production specs that include a list of the frame sizes.  By the serial number, it should have been a 1983 bicycle because the second letter is T.  It may be an anomaly or something.  I found that the Continentals were not included in the 1981 catalog, but in the 1982 catalog, I found this:

28″!  That’s 71cm!  It’s taller than the Japanese Miyatas and Fujis that I’ve been finding, and it was made in Chicago!  Maybe the T stands for “tall”.  I don’t know.  Maybe they made some bikes that were not included in the catalogues.  Maybe this is a custom built bike.  I’m out of information.

I will update this post when I finish the bike.  It will have new Sta-Tru wheels with double-walled rims.  It’s going to be an absolute beast!

*UPDATE*

I was a little worried that the rear wheel wouldn’t work with the derailleur, or some other unforeseen nonsense.  Nothing of the sort.  I had to cut the axle of the non-drive side a bit, but no big deal.  Here it is!