Can anyone help me identify this bike?

[Mark Lawless]

I bought this bike a few years ago, just for pottering about really. It originally had plain black off road style tyres, but I replaced those as the bike was being used mainly on the road. Other than that and the Tesco Value water bottle, it's as new.

I'd like to know what brand it is, as I can't find that information anywhere on the frame. Someone suggested it might be an early 2000's Raleigh. It has Shimano gears, with EZ twist grip shifters. 18 gears, no suspension.

Anyone have any idea?

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

Looking in detail at the frame and fittings for clues, that looks very similar to my current knockabout bike, which is a Hawk Trakatak.

From what I can see I'm pretty sure that is not an old Raleigh but a cheap generic mountain bike from the far east (mine was made in Thailand). The good news is that if it's the same as a Trakatak the frame rides fairly well and is tough. The bad news is that the parts attached to it are made of cheese and will break if the bike is used hard.

 

[Mark Lawless]

Hi Phil
Thanks for your response. Looking at the pics, I'd say your identification skills are spot on! So they can still be bought brand new for £100. I was going to look into upgrading the bike a bit - EZ Fire gears, off road tyres, maybe a suspension fork, that sort of thing - and use it purely off road, as I have now bought a hybrid bike for road use.

Two trains of thought here I suppose - either it's too cheap to bother spending any money on it, or it's costing nothing sitting there, so I might as well! Not sure how easy it would be to find suspension forks for it, but I guess my local bike shop could suss that out.

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

When I bought mine it was specifically with the intention of running it until bits started wearing out and then having some fun modifying it. I hadn't banked on major bits wearing out within a year of getting it.

So far I've had to replace the drivetrain (on it's 3rd freewheel and chain now), pedals (twice), shifters, stem, saddle, seat post, and rear wheel. It isn't the cheapest way to do it but I've ended up with a reasonable go-anywhere load lugger that I can lock up in town without worrying too much.

I'd probably forget about a suspension fork to be honest. You'll have a struggle finding one with a 1" steerer and if you do find one it'll be at the cheap end of basic.

 

[Mark Lawless]

Flamin' Nora - that sounds like a nightmare. Mine is lighly used, but other than the tyres, it's all original. Bottom line is this - I bought it 3 years ago next month for £51.58 on Ebay, and it was in brand new condition. I think it was a prize, and the winner never used it - I had to set it up when I got it. So - I've had 3 years out of it, and it has cost me very little. I'd like to lose the grip shifters, which I've never liked - these were great for my Raleigh Grifter back in the late 70s, but not on this. I'd like to have the EZ Fire ones, but I don't think they do a 6 gear version, so might change the freewheel now and go for 7 or 8 speed - I'll see what's available.

I've ordered up a couple of books on bike maintenance / overhauling so I can learn all about bikes, and do my own repairs and upgrades - I'll get a couple of old bikes to practice on around here though, rather than mess up the two perfectly working bikes I have!

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

The first drivetrain was a nightmare as it wore out so quick. Since then the bike has been quite heavily used (as it's much nicer to ride than my previous knockabout bikes) and runs all through the winter, which is what did the damage to the second chain and freewheel.

I presume the shifters you have are the Falcon branded ones? They're pants! I've replaced mine with SRAM MRX comp which shift as sweetly as something much more expensive (also upgraded to 7 speed at the same time).

If you upgrade, 7 speed is pretty much a case of changing the freewheel and shifters. 8 speed freewheels (and even 9 speed) do exist but I haven't tried them to know how easily they fit. The word is that they overload the axle/wheel bearings, which is why current 8/9/10 speed bikes use freehubs and cassettes instead.

 

[Mark Lawless]

This is what I have now :

It's due a bit of TLC anyway as it's never really had any! I won't be buying another bike for a while now that I have the Trek for normal road use, so I guess it makes sense to do a few wee upgrades on this!

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

This is what I have now :

Oh, not the Falcon ones. Just as cheap looking though and possibly the same mechanism internally.

I won't be buying another bike for a while now that I have the Trek for normal road use, so I guess it makes sense to do a few wee upgrades on this!

As long as you do it in the knowledge that it won't add to the value of the bike.

If you are going to fit upgrades do it for your own pleasure and the experience you'll gain.

 

[Mark Lawless]

Oh, not the Falcon ones. Just as cheap looking though and possibly the same mechanism internally.
As long as you do it in the knowledge that it won't add to the value of the bike.

If you are going to fit upgrades do it for your own pleasure and the experience you'll gain.

Well, two years have past, and I haven't done anything other than change the tyres for off road ones, as I have expanded my bike collection a bit, and this one doesn't need to serve multiple purposes! It's still here, and it's still reliable - I've just kept it oiled. I really have to say that for a cheap bike, this has been punching WAY above it's weight.

I may have to sell it soon though, to make way for another old classic I've bought - the shed is getting full, and my Wife's patience running out!

 

[mybike]

I swapped some Shimano Atlus ST-EF51 7 Speed 3x7-Speed Brake Lever Shifter for the twist grips on my BSO, tho' it's only 3x6. I was quite surprised how easy it was and it made an incredible amount of difference to the brakes as well.