Al,
I was going to purchase the Del Mar but instead, I got the Cranbrook Fashion Cruiser. The reason was because the Fashion cruiser has a black frame, the Del Mar has a grayish frame. Both bikes have very similar frames so I think there are other reasons to use when deciding. I was going with a black frame/handlebar theme and the Fashion cruiser already had them. The gray of the Del Mar would not match the black engine that I was planning on using. The Del Mar has a bike rack on the back, which would be nice to have at times. Also, the bike rack has a little tube where it connects to the bike frame. This could be used for other things like a mount for saddle bags (although I figured out how to do it with the fashion cruiser without this little bar). I liked the Fashion cruiser's handlebars a little better because they don't have such a large kink in them. I turned my handlebars "upside down" to give it a more vintage look. IF I were to do that with the Del Mar's, they would look wierd, or be too low to be useful. If you're going to use them right side up, it wouldn't matter. I think the fenders are a little better on the Del Mar, if you're going to keep them. I got different fenders so that didn't matter to me. The one thing I DIDN'T like about the fashion cruiser is that what isn't black, is green! Blach! I repainted the chain guard and ditched the grips and fenders. Now, it's red. Here's a picture of the bike before the engine install.
