1942 CCM Canadian girl guides special bike found
Found this really rough bike in a local junkyard that has been around since the '60s. The frame is too far gone but the head badge is very unique and I can't find another example on the internet. Serial number comes up as a 42. Any info would be great
It's very unfortunate that this is in such poor condition, as it is a very rare model. I haven't seen specifications for this model but I don't think that it's much of a stretch to assume it was the female equivalent of the Boy Scout model introduced by CCM in the early 1930s. In which case, it's bacically a Ladies' Standard Roadster with some minor differences, primarily in the finish.
The Girl Guide model was a mid-year model introduction for 1941. It's not in the 1941 catalogue, nor is it in the March 08 model list. The earliest mention that I've seen in the June 09 model list. On September 08 CCM put their Material Conservation program into effect, discontinuing several models which were considered to be wasteful use of material in a time of war. The Girl Guide (and Boy Scout) were among the surviving models. Based on the timing, this was also likely the start of the 1942 model year. I don't know how much longer it survived other than to say it was dropped by 1945, at which time the war had reduced the CCM line done two models. So, production was limited to a scant two to four years.
Mid-1941 seems to be a strange time to introduce a new model, until you consider that Girl Guides, like Boy Scouts, was basically a paramilitary organization. With no immediate end to the war in sight and females becoming more increasingly involved on the home front, marketing a Girl Guide model would appeal to females wanting a bicycle identified with the war effort.
Wow thanks for the info I wish I knew what paint scheme it had there is almost no original paint left I'm hoping there might be some underneath the chrome fork cap. I'm going to try and find a standard Roadster donor so I can do a accurate restoration with this head badge. If you come across anything else please let me know. So far I've had no luck finding anything
Regarding the paint, my prime candidate would be CCM Blue. The official colour for Girl Guides has always been some shade of blue. When CCM introduced the Boy Scout model, it was Scout Green, the official colour of the Boy Scouts. Once the war came along and paint selection became more limited, the Boy Scout model transitioned to Maroon, the standard CCM colour for male bicycles. CCM's standard colour for female bicycles at the time was CCM Blue and since blue was also the official Guiding colour, that would seem to be the obvious choice.
If you can remove the handlebar stem and headset, there may be some overspray remnants of the factory colour inside the frame's head tube or on the fork's steering column. Similarly, you may find some evidence of the colour by removing the crankset and cups and checking inside the bottom bracket shell. These areas are typically better protected from the effects of environmental weathering.
Looks like you are correct!
I just rembembered that the Boy Scout model received some component downgrades after the war started, making it closer to the Rambler Roadster. Consequently, the Girl Guide model was likely a re-badged Ladies' Rambler Roadster or very close to one. There's an extant 1941 catalogue in the catalogues section of this forum, where you can see the specs for the Ladies' Rambler Roadster and also compare the specifications of the Boy Scout model with the Men's Rambler Roadster. As you'll see, there was very little difference bewtween the last two, so pending the surfacing of a 1942 catalogue, I 'd be using the 1941 Ladies' Rambler Roadster as the basis for a restoration of this bicycle.
Well at least I have enough of the bike to know It was blue had chrome wheels and white fenders I believe it has a Perrie rear hub everything else is an educated guess. Since it seems to be the only know Survivor I think it's worth the effort to preserve it.
Blue paint confirmed