Schwinn Black Phantom - Exceptional 1995 Anniversary

Offered for sale in this auction is a 1995 100^th Anniversary Edition Schwinn Black Phantom Bicycle.

All of  the Schwinn experts out there can ignore the next few paragraphs...because you already know what I am going to say.

My next few paragraphs are for those who are just now beginning to understand and hopefully appreciate the huge place that the Schwinn Bicycle Company holds in American history and the incredible legacy of the quality and the durability of the classic Schwinn designs and the artistic genius of bicycles like the Schwinn Phantom that were melded together to build many of the most famous and collectible bicycles every built.   

There have been many Anniversary Phantoms sold on Ebay in the past several years, but to the dismay of many Schwinn collectors, many of these Phantoms sold were actually stripped and sold for parts. Schwinn originally planned on producing 5000 of the 100th Anniversary Phantoms, but they never got anywhere close to that number. Based on my observations and personal experiences with the Anniversary Phantom project, it is my guess that there were only about 3000 to 3500 Phantoms completed and shipped to dealers as "Anniversary Phantoms".

Sales of the Phantom began in the spring of 1996, but shortly after that Schwinn started selling a "Deluxe Cruiser" in 1997 and 1998 with many of Phantom components such as the spring fork, tank and rear carrier, but a frame made in China.  This "Deluxe Cruiser" began to detract from Phantom interest and Phantom sales began to lag. Then in about 2001 to 2003 Schwinn made the "Deluxe Cruiser 7" using the actual and incredibly expensive to build original Phantom frame from the Phantom project and several other components. This added more competition for Anniversary Phantom sales and once again Phantom sales were hurt. Schwinn then dropped the price of the Phantom to its dealers and non- dealer speculators began to buy large inventories believing they could turn a profit if the cornered the market on Phantoms. Well, many of these speculators began disassembling their Phantoms and selling the parts individually.

The bottom line to this retracing of the history of the Anniversary Phantom is that there are probably less than 2000 original and complete 100th Anniversary Schwinn Phantoms still in existence today, and the amazing fact that many bike collectors have missed is that the 100th Anniversary Phantom is really the only Schwinn Phantom that can actually be documented as a true "Phantom". All of the original 1949 through 1959 Phantoms can only be verified as having a frame that was manufactured during those years because there is no way that the serial number identifies the bike as a Phantom - it only verifies the manufacture date of the frame. The bike could have been any model available that year.

On the other hand, the 100th Anniversary Phantom has a serial number under the bottom bracket with a serial number as well as the "Centennial Anniversary" inscription to identify it as a real Phantom produced by Schwinn in 1995. Also keep in mind that the Anniversary Phantom was manufactured in America using much of the original tooling to make the original components such as the S-2 rims, Phantom seat, horn tank, rear carrier and especially the spring for with lock. There is virtually no difference between the original Phantom and the Anniversary. Another point to consider is that fact that the Anniversary Phantom was manufactured by Schwinn when they were still a wholly owned company operating under the  Schwinn name instead of just a marketing name for bikes make in China as they are today. The last point to consider when determining the collectability of the Anniversary Phantom is that the Anniversary Phantom was Actually the last American made Schwinn bicycle ever produced.

Now on to the auction  

When I first began shopping for an Anniversary Phantom I was traveling for business and I had looked at some of the first run Anniversary Phantoms at a few Schwinn dealers in Southern California when they first became available. I was a little disappointed with the obvious lack of care in assembling and packaging these early models so I decided to wait and look at some other Phantoms later on.

 
I had been doing business with a local Schwinn dealer in Phoenix, AZ  that had been in business since 1912 so I approached them and found out they were expecting twelve Phantoms for their three stores. Because of problems I found with the Phantoms in Southern, CA, I asked them if they would be willing to let me look at each of the twelve Phantoms to select one with zero defects and they agreed.

 
In looking over each Phantom, there were some bikes that had nicked or dinged rims and a chip or two in the paint job due to careless assembly. On some of the bikes, the S-2 rims had knurls that were barley visible and chrome that was very thin.

As a result of opening the twelve boxes and carefully looking at each Phantom,

• I was able to pick out a Phantom that was flawless with excellent chrome and deep knurls with no dings or scrapes.
• The paint job was free of chips or scratches.
•  I was finally able to find a Phantom that was the quality I was expecting from Schwinn in a “special “Anniversary model Phantom.

Before I decided to purchase one of the anniversary Phantoms, I compared it closely to an original and found that the detail and effort to create authenticity of the component parts to be incredibly accurate.   

 
I am providing several photos to detail the condition of this Phantom as well as possible. Even though I have ridden this Phantom a few times, it is in perfect condition and one of the best built, defect free Anniversary Phantoms I have seen. 

• This Phantom has been stored in an air conditioned home and has been
• wiped down from time to time to keep its appearance up.
• There is absolutely no rust or corrosion or even any dust on this bike at all.

The humidity in Arizona is virtually zero and as a result of that, this bike has no moisture damage that is typical of bikes form the northern or eastern parts of the country that have been in storage.

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If you have any concerns about the credibility of my description, I just sold an original 1955 girls phantom that was in excellent + condition to an Ebay buyer and I would be glad to give you his name and number if you would like to call and verify the condition of my bicycles. You will not be disappointed with this Phantom in any way.

 
I will ship the bicycle in the original reproduction Anniversary Schwinn box that is enclosed in an exterior box for protection in shipment. The shipment will need to be by freight because of the size of the shipping box and should be somewhere around $150.00 to $175.00. The actual cost will be determined at time of sale. Shipping insurance will be at the expense of the buyer. If you are an international buyer, we need to communicate before the end of the auction to determine shipping and insurance costs. International buyers will need to pay via PayPal.

All domestic buyers can pay with PayPal and postal money orders.

 
If you have any questions at all, please feel free to contact me and I will respond promptly.  

If you are looking for an Anniversary Schwinn Black Phantom, you will not find many in better condition.

Good luck with your bid.       

This is an added note to clarify the shipping costs associated with this auction. The shipping costs in the header of the ad indicate free local pick-up, but that I will also ship this Phantom anywhere in the continental U.S.. I will carefully box this Phantom in its original custom Schwinn box as it came from Schwinn for actual costs based on the winning bidder's shipping address. I am anticipating those shipping costs to be between $150.00 and $175.00 which will be the expense of the  winning bidder. 

For shipments outside the continental U.S., I will need to have communication with the bidder prior to the end of the auction to determine actual shipping costs which will also be at the buyers expense.

If any bidder has any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Once again, good luck with your bidding; you are bidding on a great Black Phantom.