Schwinn 4 Banger

Those forks do look good on it. I've only ridden the dual crown version and they were pretty good (just didn't like the Whyte that they were attached to).

Can't believe the overal condition of the bike...the carbon part of the rear end looks new, no heel rub or storage marks.
 
Mindmap3":2vd8u23q said:
Those forks do look good on it. I've only ridden the dual crown version and they were pretty good (just didn't like the Whyte that they were attached to).

Can't believe the overal condition of the bike...the carbon part of the rear end looks new, no heel rub or storage marks.

Honestly, there's one small mark on the top tube, and one small mark on one of the chainstays, and that's it. The front triangle still has what I like to call the "new bike shine" to it, and the carbon swingarm is perfect. Bearings are all as smooth/tight as the day the bike rolled off the production line, and even the rear shock works exactly as it should!

I got very lucky (for once!) ;) :cool:

It really doesn't feel like a 12 year old bike. The back end is as plush (if not plusher) than a lot of modern bikes I've ridden! It's VERY active (as I'm sure Greenstiles can verify!), and it does 'bob' a little bit, so you have to be very smooth when sitting down and pedalling - I'd liken it to a 4 bar Kona fitted with a coil shock.

The forks are on their way to Tim at Sideways Cycles as we speak - they're having a full strip down and service whilst I can (just about) afford it. I figured I'd get them done now - even though they work just fine - to avoid me needing to get it done in future.

Once the Mavs come back and they're fitted, I'll give it a good polish and I'll take a few good pictures of it - then I'll whip it off to the nearest black run to put it through it's paces ;)
 
Good lad...go and give it some abuse!

Upside down forks are always plush...my old Shiver DC's were awesome, if a tad flexy.
 
lovely bike.
This is mine. Imported it from the states, not sure if we got the homegrowns here.

v014-1.jpg
 
That is a very nice (and very familiar) looking bike.

The original equipment forks for 2001 were Rockshox Judy SL's in black.

My one;
photo.jpg
 
Good to see some Schwinn Lawwill love on here :)

I've got a 4 banger, and 2 straight 6's still in use, (and various spare dropouts/shocks/rear ends) lovely bikes, you can't beat the back end for a supple-magic-carpet style floaty ride, just have to use small rear rotors and a light touch or the brake jack can be annoying...

Love the fact they are so adjustable too, head angle and BB height adjustment on the collar, and travel adjustment is pretty easy with shocks too.

Keep an eye on the underside of the main (carbon swingarm to mainframe) pivot mounting area as they normally develop small cracks there after a few years but *most* of the time the cracks don't propagate very far.

Have fun with it!
 
haha, sorry but I'm holding on to them!

however... top tip - you can use standard 190x50mm or (200x57 if you're feeling adventurous and are running longer forks as well) non-piggyback shocks with the existing trunnion collar to convert the 4banger to a s-6. Just looks a tiny bit odd with the top mounting hole not being used.

Also, be aware that the Fox and Rockshox trunnions are a different thread, so if you want to swap manufacturer you'll need the appropriate trunnion.

FWIW, I've spent a few years trying a lot of different combos on these bikes and I think they ride better with Fox shocks that they do with RS ones, and don't bother with and Air shock on a 4B or S6, it saves a tiny bit of weight but they work much much better with a linear spring rate coil shock than a progressive one.

You can tame the bob a bit by running rebound a click or two more than you normally would and the ride doesn't suffer at all, as long as you're not getting issues with packing down then run as slow as you can get away with on these bikes and they feel almost bottomless.
 
Be cool to see some pic's. I'm still fairly new to mine so playing with settings.
Any of yours homegrowns?
 
amedias":17gc46mu said:
FWIW, I've spent a few years trying a lot of different combos on these bikes and I think they ride better with Fox shocks that they do with RS ones, and don't bother with and Air shock on a 4B or S6, it saves a tiny bit of weight but they work much much better with a linear spring rate coil shock than a progressive one.

You can tame the bob a bit by running rebound a click or two more than you normally would and the ride doesn't suffer at all, as long as you're not getting issues with packing down then run as slow as you can get away with on these bikes and they feel almost bottomless.

I have both the RS coil shock from the 'base' Banger, and the RS SID air shock from the 'Premium' version.

I find the coil shock bottoms out far more readily than than the air shock, so I tend not to use it. A heavier spring rate helped, but the air shock seems to cure it for me. It's just a shame that the air shock doesn't share the threaded trunnions of the coil unit. The ability to alter rear ride height and the resultant handling of the bike as a whole is a huge advantage. An extra few mm under the bottom bracket does wonders for the steering.
 
Back
Top