What is it with American bikes and one piece cranks?
It mostly was Schwinn, who relied on Armstrong cranks for even their best bicycles until the late 1970's. If you saw a 3 piece crank on a Schwinn, it was most likely a Paramount, a truly fine product. All the grocery store and hardware store and department store bicycles had Armstrong cranks as well. Things were geared up for that bigger BB, and it was a forged product, tough as a keg of nails, and about as heavy. Most bicycles were built for kids in the U.S., if you were a commuter or a tourer or a cyclist as an adult in The States, you usually bought British Bicycles. Schwinns were marketed at children and teens, and cycling was looked upon as odd, if you were an adult. I remember only my father and mother riding bicycles on the streets as adults, and later my sister and myself.
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