I have been searching for a Schwinn Sting Ray Fair Lady for quite a few months, maybe even one year. I prefer 1969 because I already own a 1969 Fair Lady "dirt bike" which I enjoy and I like the feel of it. The girls' bike is not much different than the boys' version. There are advantages with the girls' bike: they usually cost less. Also boys' bikes were more likely to be used hard- riding off road, jumping curbs, etc.

A few have shown up for sale within 50 miles or so; did not follow up with those. Earlier this month, a 1980 appeared on craigslist. Locally, too, not more than 5 miles away!

So I drove over to take a look at it. In very good condition. Chrome is fine (no rust or pitting), wheels look good and it has the original saddle. I tried the seating position, the gearing and, of course, rode it. I decided to buy it... it seemed too good to risk losing it to another buyer. Here are photos I took. It really rides nice; feels almost new.

Congratulations -- that bike is in remarkably good condition for its age. Very nice bike and photos. I have a Schwinn from that era that polished up well with chrome cleaner, but rust later returned.

In that style, I have only a late '60s Huffy, again suffering from rust on the chrome. These bikes did have durable paint jobs. Mine were hand-me-downs, so actually I'm storing bikes that aren't mine -- unfortunately in a garage without climate control.

Did you happen to see the American Restorations episode with a Schwinn sting ray? It was a very expensive resto, IIRC they had to re-chrome it and the front fender was missing.

Thanks, Biff. Yes, it is in good condition. I will follow the advice that many Schwinn enthusiasts... will not repaint it. Much nicer when it has the original paint and as the saying goes, it's only original once.

I have not seen that episode you mentioned. Will look it up. I have seen some restoration videos on youtube.

Here is a photo of the 1980 with my 1969 Sing Ray dirt bike.

My very old photo: On the left a Huffy, on the right a Schwinn:

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My very old photo: On the left a Huffy, on the right a Schwinn:

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They look quite similar. Would be fun to ride both!

Love those bikes. My brother had one. I wish we still had it. They are so classic.

A friend of mine had a 3-speed, and I had never been on a bike with hand brakes. Trying it out, I mastered the braking in time to avoid crashing into a big bush.

I always wanted a Schwinn Orange Krate or Lemon Peeler. Those were about the coolest bikes ever. Another boy in the 'hood had a Lemon Peeler, but his father painted it black...!:(

Love those bikes. My brother had one. I wish we still had it. They are so classic.
Yes, they are fun to ride. Don't see too many around anymore.

Nice to see some on facebook groups.

A friend of mine had a 3-speed, and I had never been on a bike with hand brakes. Trying it out, I mastered the braking in time to avoid crashing into a big bush.

I always wanted a Schwinn Orange Krate or Lemon Peeler. Those were about the coolest bikes ever. Another boy in the 'hood had a Lemon Peeler, but his father painted it black...!:(
Yes, I have heard of those special edition bikes. Worth a lot now.

Glad you didn't run into a bush!

I have another bike story, about my hand-me-down Huffy. When that was still my older brother's bike, he once wiped out on some sand in a playground. He was fine, but the side of the banana seat tore open a couple of inches.

After the bike was handed down to me, I would routinely cover the seat damage with a decal, like the STP decal you can barely see in the photo I posted. Also I had a speedometer on the bike, and sometimes a round rear-view mirror on the handlebars. I loved that bike, I used to use some of my dad's Jay Wax on it.

I would sometimes have a little neighborhood friend ride on the back of the seat with me. Fortunately we never suffered a wipeout -- there were no helmets back then...!

Good idea, using a decal to cover a tear in the saddle.

Yes, I had several speedometers throughout the years. The old dial type and later digital.