Dawes Horizon Tour

[RyanOP]

That’s very similar to the sort of bike I restore. My advice would be to strip it back to bare frame. You can then carefully check each component on the bench and either clean/restore or replace, you’ll be surprised how well some of this stuff will come up with some wire wool and WD40. I would then replace all the cables, BB and headset, I would also strip out the wheel spindles and replace the bearings.

You then have the comfort when it’s all reassembled that it’s as good as a brand new bike. There is no greater pleasure than riding a bike that you have built yourself.

I'm quite looking forward to the project, especially this being my first one. Not to mention the fact that it was free will give me some bragging rights when it looks like a brand new bike!

Where's the best places to buy parts and such? I tried a local bike shop but I'm pretty sure they ripped me off for my tyres and with covid they're a bit limited.

As above, I need a few tools as well, I wasn't really prepared for this just kind of making it up as I go along!

I had a quick peek at your Raleigh Royal 531 project thread, I saw that the Reynolds sticker is all scuffed up, wondered if you had found a solution? Just because I saw you can get replacement stickers from Reynolds on this link, you just have to email them. Or check out their approved distributor (H Lloyd Cycles).

https://www.reynoldstechnology.biz/faqs/general/

https://h-lloyd-cycles.myshopify.com/collections/reynolds

 

[RyanOP]

Ah, that's one thing I can't recommend. Their saddles.
It's a personal thing as we all know but my experience of Spa's leather saddles is that they absolutely will not ever break in. I think there's been a few reports of them getting softer with age but on the whole most users find them rock hard and that never changes. Shame really.
They have a sort of water proof membrane glued to the underside of the saddles which stops the leather stretching.

Ah fair enough! I’m a bit undecided on saddle anyway. I’ll use this bike most days to cycle to work and the odd trip to where my girlfriend’s horse is stabled. Then when she has her bike that’s when I’ll be doing longer rides (or when I find some friends that fancy a few long distance tours around the U.K.) whichever comes first! Maybe I’ll get something cheap and cheerful for my commute as it’s only short and something more comfortable like a brooks for longer rides.

 

[Vantage]

Spa often have lots of bits at sale price but their stock can be quite limiting if you're after a particular brand or part.
SJS Cycles is my port of call for choice as they have just about everything.
Amazon (I'll be hung, drawn and quartered for this) are handy for when you want something cheaper and then there's the bay of E for hard to find bits.
The all in one tool kits you mention are OK for general day to day maintenance and as long as the tools aren't mistreated (like grinding open a cone spanner to make it bigger because a certain dumbass didn't check the size properly) they'll do fine.

 

[RyanOP]

Spa often have lots of bits at sale price but their stock can be quite limiting if you're after a particular brand or part.
SJS Cycles is my port of call for choice as they have just about everything.
Amazon (I'll be hung, drawn and quartered for this) are handy for when you want something cheaper and then there's the bay of E for hard to find bits.
The all in one tool kits you mention are OK for general day to day maintenance and as long as the tools aren't mistreated (like grinding open a cone spanner to make it bigger because a certain dumbass didn't check the size properly) they'll do fine.

I think I’ll probably end up getting bits from all over the place, the main thing that worries me is making sure they’ll fit and function as they should. I had to remove the mudguards if this bike due to them being snapped and held together by parcel tape and now I want to buy new ones but haven’t got a clue how to get the right size

 

[Vantage]

You say you've fitted 700 X 38c landcruisers? If you measure between the chainstays at the top of the tyre you'll get your max width mudguard size.
At a guess, from your photos and from my old Vantage I'd say you're safe with 45mm guards.
Your rear tyre is on back to front too

 

[RyanOP]

You say you've fitted 700 X 38c landcruisers? If you measure between the chainstays at the top of the tyre you'll get your max width mudguard size.
At a guess, from your photos and from my old Vantage I'd say you're safe with 45mm guards.
Your rear tyre is on back to front too

Yeah, and thanks! I’ll get a measurement this weekend and get it noted

Well spotted! Luckily those photos were taken before I pumped them up and that’s when I realised they were on back to front. Strangely not from the logo being backwards but I saw the little arrow on the tire near where the PSI info is

 

[RyanOP]

Honestly cannot wait until payday so I can get some parts for this! I've discovered the bar tape I bought was cheap as it's starting to tear after one rewrap as I adjusted the position of the brifters... I've also discovered a bit of a problem in that the seat post will not budge. At all. So that's going to be an issue for adjusting saddle height.

Does anyone know where to get a reasonably priced repair stand? I've built a very temporary wooden one for the time being using scrap wood in the shed but it's not very stable

 

[CanucksTraveller]

Honestly cannot wait until payday so I can get some parts for this! I've discovered the bar tape I bought was cheap as it's starting to tear after one rewrap as I adjusted the position of the brifters... I've also discovered a bit of a problem in that the seat post will not budge. At all. So that's going to be an issue for adjusting saddle height.

Does anyone know where to get a reasonably priced repair stand? I've built a very temporary wooden one for the time being using scrap wood in the shed but it's not very stable

Bar tape: Before you start with new tape, it's helpful to sacrifice a short length at one end if you've not used it before. Cut off about 15cm and then have a play with it, stretch it until it breaks and then you know the tension where it'll go. That should hopefully save you from wasting a roll by breakage halfway along.
Try to get into a habit of doing all your brifter adjustments, cable taping etc while the bars are already stripped and before you wrap, that's the easiest time to work on them.

Seat post: There are lots of techniques and you might need to try a couple, but something will work. Apart from the issue of saddle adjustment it'll need a clean and regrease in there anyway to stop it getting any worse. Youtube is your friend there, search for stuck seatpost and there are lots of good instructional clips.

Work stand: There's a generic work stand that's sold under a few brand names and at various retailers which is a good one, (it's branded as Ultrasport on Amazon, or Bikehut at Halfords, there are others). You won't end up paying more than 45 pounds for one, I got mine for 25 at Halfords when they did a half price offer. (RRP is 50).
https://www.halfords.com/cycling/bike-maintenance/bike-work-stands/bikehut-repair-stand-164412.html

 

[Gunk]

My method of removing a stuck seat post is to pop the wheels off and put the seat post in a vice and then pull it out using the frame of the bike for leverage. This also works on stubborn bottom brackets.

 

[RyanOP]

Bar tape: Before you start with new tape, it's helpful to sacrifice a short length at one end if you've not used it before. Cut off about 15cm and then have a play with it, stretch it until it breaks and then you know the tension where it'll go. That should hopefully save you from wasting a roll by breakage halfway along.
Try to get into a habit of doing all your brifter adjustments, cable taping etc while the bars are already stripped and before you wrap, that's the easiest time to work on them.

Seat post: There are lots of techniques and you might need to try a couple, but something will work. Apart from the issue of saddle adjustment it'll need a clean and regrease in there anyway to stop it getting any worse. Youtube is your friend there, search for stuck seatpost and there are lots of good instructional clips.

Work stand: There's a generic work stand that's sold under a few brand names and at various retailers which is a good one, (it's branded as Ultrasport on Amazon, or Bikehut at Halfords, there are others). You won't end up paying more than 45 pounds for one, I got mine for 25 at Halfords when they did a half price offer. (RRP is 50).
https://www.halfords.com/cycling/bike-maintenance/bike-work-stands/bikehut-repair-stand-164412.html

Sounds like I'm going to end up on a youtube journey and hopefully come out the other side knowing how to sort my bike out!

Thanks for the recommendation on the stand as well, I think I'll pick one up next week, the Ultrasport stand on Amazon looks perfect.

I think I'm going to start off with the parts that are in the most need of replacement or repair. Which are the BB, crankset and front derailleur

Currently, my bike has a 9-speed triple crankset (correct me if I've described that wrong) - is it possible to change this to a more modern setup with a double or does that mean I need a new rear derailleur and cassette to match? (that is the end goal but I'm doing this project a bit at a time)

 

[Vantage]

Is there something wrong with the front dérailleur? Those things tend to last forever unless it's been properly hammered. The pic of it you posted earlier doesn't show any real damage other than it looking a bit rough. Might just need a good polish. That's what I did on mine, it's 8 years old and less posh than your sora. The only original part left from my Dawes Vantage.

Whether you use a double or triple chainset depends on what you plan on using the bike for. Doubles are only really seen on road/racing bikes for reasons unknown to me. Weight saving probably. They tend to have rather large chainrings though which means bigger gears to push. Many think they're too big really.
If you do go that route, you'll need a double specific left hand shifter as a triple won't work. Not very well anyway. The rear derailleur and cassette don't need changing in either circumstance.
The humble triple chainset has a lot going for it in my opinion. I've never used anything but. That granny ring will be a lifesaver when a steep hill beckons you. Especially if you end up using the bike for its intended purpose, touring.

 

[RyanOP]

Is there something wrong with the front dérailleur? Those things tend to last forever unless it's been properly hammered. The pic of it you posted earlier doesn't show any real damage other than it looking a bit rough. Might just need a good polish. That's what I did on mine, it's 8 years old and less posh than your sora. The only original part left from my Dawes Vantage.

View attachment 530686

Whether you use a double or triple chainset depends on what you plan on using the bike for. Doubles are only really seen on road/racing bikes for reasons unknown to me. Weight saving probably. They tend to have rather large chainrings though which means bigger gears to push. Many think they're too big really.
If you do go that route, you'll need a double specific left hand shifter as a triple won't work. Not very well anyway. The rear derailleur and cassette don't need changing in either circumstance.
The humble triple chainset has a lot going for it in my opinion. I've never used anything but. That granny ring will be a lifesaver when a steep hill beckons you. Especially if you end up using the bike for its intended purpose, touring.

I think I probably will keep a triple then, as I’ll be using this for to and from work and longer rides when it’s all done.
The front derailleur itself I don’t think has any problems, the cable seems intact but the outer and the spring around where the cable stop and barrel adjuster was all rusted and frayed and wouldn’t work. I’m going to replace the cable first and then I’ll know if the FD is broken too

 

[RyanOP]

I’m also looking forward to getting all the parts off once I have the tools and giving them a good scrub with some steel wool and seeing how good I can get it all to come out. The cleaning I’ve done on it so far was just using some muc-off, an old toothbrush and a pressure washer

 

[Gunk]

Fine wire wool and WD40 and they come up like new

 

[RyanOP]

Looks like I'll be spending this month cleaning up the existing parts I intend to keep as I've been paid but bloody bills have scuppered my hopes of getting some new parts in!