I was the winning bidder for a 1978 Schwinn Stingray up for auction on ebay. Almost all-original; the only non-original item I can see on it is the rear tire.

The seller referred to it as a "1976," but I did some research on the Internet and discovered it was built in 1978. The first two digits of the serial number reveals the build date. "DP" means it was built in April, 1978 and "DM" means April, 1976. Mine has the "DP." But Stingrays differed very little from 1976-'78 and even from 1974-'78.

Here are some photos I took:
The last two pics show my other bikes. From left to right, 2006 Schwinn Stingray reproduction, 1978 Schwinn Stingray, 1974 Schwinn dirt bike (which I built in '74 using a Schwinn frame and various parts like rims, seat, handlebars, etc).

Wasn't it the Stingray that had a shifter similar to this one I found in the mud while doing some metal detecing?

http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo283/tzgames/ScreenHunter_45Dec060357.gif

Yes, the 3- and 5-speeds, I believe.

I have actually seen several on ebay... '60s and '70s.

I liked how Schwinn changed the wording... "Stik" shift and "Slik" rear tire!

Nice collection. Schwinn made some cool bikes back then.

Awesome bikes!

Nice collection of bikes. They seem to be in very good shape. :wave:

NICE BIKES!!! Haven't seen the bananna seat since I was in high school! Always thought that style (combined with the stick shift) looked awesome! Congrats!

Thanks, TJL, MonarC and janet42. :)

I agree, Doody, I always liked those banana seats. Unlike the saddles on racing bikes, you could choose how far back you want to sit with a banana seat. Incidentally, banana seats measure 18" long and are 5" wide at the maximum point of width.

Thanks, TJL, MonarC and janet42. :)

I agree, Doody, I always liked those banana seats. Unlike the saddles on racing bikes, you could choose how far back you want to sit with a banana seat. Incidentally, banana seats measure 18" long and are 5" wide at the maximum point of width.

The first 20" bike I had came with a banana seat. So much easier to learn how to do wheelies.

Growing up in the 60's my brother had a Schwinn Stingray. All the boys had them. They are one cool bike. I wish we had kept it.