Ruttman?

#4
Thank you...does anyone know if the scrub brake is an “add” on or stock...looks pretty crappy..
It looks fully home-built add on. But idk if they had em as an option. If they did, it wouldn’t be that. I’ll bet you could compare the welds and know for sure.
Great project!
 

Addicted 2 Minis

Well-Known Member
#6
Going by the forks, it's a 70-71 Lil Indian, can't tell if the frame was originally a single speed bike or two speed because there are remnants of brake mounts on both sides. 1969 is when they started using Tecumseh engines and also putting the hole in the engine plate. The 69 bikes had a bend in the forks about and inch over the top triple tree plate whereas the 70-71 the bend was just above the plate like yours. The scrub brake was added, the original disc brake parts are hard to find, expensive and don't really work that well once the pads get loaded up with oil from the chain so many people tossed them in favor of a clutch brake or a scrub brake.
 
#7
Going by the forks, it's a 70-71 Lil Indian, can't tell if the frame was originally a single speed bike or two speed because there are remnants of brake mounts on both sides. 1969 is when they started using Tecumseh engines and also putting the hole in the engine plate. The 69 bikes had a bend in the forks about and inch over the top triple tree plate whereas the 70-71 the bend was just above the plate like yours. The scrub brake was added, the original disc brake parts are hard to find, expensive and don't really work that well once the pads get loaded up with oil from the chain so many people tossed them in favor of a clutch brake or a scrub brake.
Man that’s awesome thanks for the information!
 

Addicted 2 Minis

Well-Known Member
#8
Man that’s awesome thanks for the information!
The single speed Century Series "400-500" had the brake adjuster and caliper mount on the left side ( first picture ) and the two speed "600" bikes had them on the right side ( second picture ). It seems someone changed yours from one to the other and left the old mounts, other than the mount placement, I'm pretty sure the frames are the same. If you plan on restoring it back to an original setup, the choice is yours as there really isn't any documentation that is set in stone as to what it was originally. If it has a serial number, it can most likely be found on the right rear axle strap ( third picture ). Most 70-71 frames don't have a serial number on the frame, they started to put the bikes serial number on a decal on the air filter ( forth picture ). The serial numbers are just production numbers and don't mean anything about the model, just an estimate of when it was made based off other original documented bikes. If you are concerned about originality, your bike would have came with a caliper that had five ribs like in the fifth picture.

Lil Indian 400-500.jpg Lil Indian 600.jpg 68 Lil Indian_017.jpeg 70-71_Serial Number.jpg 70-71 Caliper.jpg
 

Addicted 2 Minis

Well-Known Member
#9
What ever you do, DO NOT pitch the tires!, they are Carlisle double indian head and probably original to the bike. They seem to have good tread left, hopefully they aren't weather rotted. It looks like somebody may have welded on a new foot peg bar, it looks longer than what originally came on the bike which would be 14 inches without the rubber end caps.
 
Top