Gator Gadabout mini

J

judgeyoung

New Member
#1
#1
In '65 I got a small minibike, identical in virtually all respects to the old Glenco bikes I have seen on line. Back when I got it, I was told it was about a 1957 model, but that seems a little early. I still have it, though it needs, and will get, a full restoration. It has a 2 1/2 HP Clinton engine, the Glenco foot brake/throttle (though it had been converted to a lawn mower style butterfly throttle up on the handlebar when I got it), and "Y" style handle bars. There appears to have been an extra cross bar added to the handlebars and a reinforcement on the frame added at some time.

The bike was originally the same red color as the Glenco's probably,but I think it had been repainted, possibly, because the fork faceplate (other Glencos didn't have the flat plate on the front of the fork) was all red, but you can still make out the original decal through the paint that says " Gator Gadabout". It is possible that it was originally white or cream.

Any ideas what I have?

Thanks mini-geniuses... er... I mean "mini" geniuses!

Randy
 
J

judgeyoung

New Member
#4
#4
One other little detail that might help with ID of my Glenco (?). It has a stub for a bicycle seat in the front where the frame tubes come together (factory) and two holes on the rear of the frame with little struts that hold the seat. The original seat was a red banana seat that was flat front to rear. Not like the mid sixties buzz bike seats with a dip near the back. More like a long oval about 4" wide and maybe 18" long.

The rear fender is pure glenco, but I can't remember seeing any evidence of a front fender.


Hope this helps with ID.
Randy
 
mybiz

mybiz

New Member
#6
#6
I'll pm you my address and you just ship the bike to me and I promise I'll take pic's of it and post them for you at no charge...:deal::deal::deal:
 
J

judgeyoung

New Member
#9
#9
It's almost exactly like the red Glenco in the picture, except for the banana seat I described above. The pedal is bent slightly instead of being flat. The Gadabout is NOT like the micro shown.

I would post pics immediately but I am 140 miles from my shop (recent move...my first in 52 years...). My son will be home next week and I'll have him take pics of my Powell and an old Western Auto (MTD?) SS400 that I have.

Hang on....
 
J

judgeyoung

New Member
#11
#11
In looking at the pics of my Gadabout compared to the other Glenco, and putting together some of my memories, I think I see something interesting about my old bike. When I was 9 or 10, a couple of years after I got my mini, I decided that the fork angle looked too steep. Since this little tall-geared, ungoverned bike with a super-light rider (me.... back then) had been clocked by a friend's twinjet Yamaha 100 at 42 mph just after dropping off of China street hill, I thought I would break out the torch and make it handle better and look cooler by making what I called at the time, a "rake-plate".

If you look closely in the pic, you can see the 1/2" thick plate (I wanted it to be strong enough!) bolted to the bottom of the headset. I even added a hole in the front of the bracket for a planned headlight that never happened.

I think that the bolt-on mod made the bike look better, but probably had the reverse effect on handling.

All that said, in looking at the pics, I can see that the top tube has a decided bend upward compared to the other Glenco. I now remember a patch badly welded to the support brace just behind the headset. Now I can surmise that the reason that the fork was so steep was that a prior owner must have had a close encounter with a curb or ? that managed to put so much stress on the frame that it bent the top tube and broke the weld at the support brace. Bet that was a wild "high-side"!

Those were the good ol' days!

Randy
 
J

judgeyoung

New Member
#13
#13
Gator Gadabout (Glenco made?) mini

Well, I am finally getting well enough from my minibike crash in the races at the Lone Star Roundup (separated shoulder, rotator cuff strain, two broken ribs...) and have decided it is time to restore my ~1963 Gator Gadabout mini that I got back in '65. I have found NO info on this bike other than an add in a newspaper with an add selling one in May of 1964: For Sale Gator Gadabout, 3hp Clinton motor. $100." Seems pretty expensive, but I actually had several offers of that and one of $125 from a rich kid in town! I would sure appreciate any info on it that is available.

In short, it is virtually identical to the Glenco bikes of that time and I am almost certain it was built by them and then private labeled by someone else. Upon inspection, it looks like the color was a cream white with a red motor. You can just make out the decal under the paint which clearly says Gator Gadabout. The decal is on the front plate of the fork, which is interesting because the Glencos do not have a plate there at all. My frame appears to have holes for the Glenco style seat, but mine had a flat banana bike-styled seat. The seat post in the front appears factory and the additional holes in the back of the frame for the brackets that held the back of the seat seem factory, but possibly could have been done later with a driil. I doubt it. I suspect that the seat was a way to make the bike look different than the regular Glenco.

The rear wheel of mine was stolen, so I need a steel 4" wheel with a three hole, triangular shaped drive hub and bolt on sprocket. Any ideas on where to get it? The tires were sawtooth universals. I also need a front fender that matches the rear. The brackets were welded to the fork, but may have been gone when I got it.

HELP!
 
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