Possibly a daft idea

[DRM]

i have an old Raleigh MTB I think it’s mid to late 80’s vintage, it has a large looking old fashioned frame, nothing exotic, just steel, fitted with 26” wheels, other than the cantilever brakes being in the wrong place, is it possible to fit 700c wheels, as long as they clear the frame, I have been pondering turning it into a CX bike, & have seen brake boss adapters to raise them up, has anyone done this, or am I on a hiding to nothing?

 

[glasgowcyclist]

Paging @SkipdiverJohn ...

 

[Yellow Saddle]

i have an old Raleigh MTB I think it’s mid to late 80’s vintage, it has a large looking old fashioned frame, nothing exotic, just steel, fitted with 26” wheels, other than the cantilever brakes being in the wrong place, is it possible to fit 700c wheels, as long as they clear the frame, I have been pondering turning it into a CX bike, & have seen brake boss adapters to raise them up, has anyone done this, or am I on a hiding to nothing?

If it works, it works. You'll be surprised what can be done with a bike.
Do it. Your only challenge, and that's a small one, is the drop-out width, but I guess you can work towards 126mm from both frame and wheel sides and get there.

 

[rogerzilla]

Earlier MTBs were usually 130mm spacing, which is the same as current road spacing. MTBs went to 135mm at the start of the 90s, I think, probably for the 6- to 7-speed change. Road stayed with 126mm until 8-speed, when it went to 130mm. MTBs benefit from a wider hub and less wheel dish because of the punishment they get. Spacing is easily worked around anyway - M10 x 1 axles and spacers are cheap.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Whilst you can probably re-engineer the brakes to accept 700c wheels I would firstly consider whether the frame has the right sort of geometry for the sort of riding you want to do. Those old Raleigh frames, at least the welded ones, have something like 70 degree parallel geometry (the brazed Reynolds 501 are generally 71 degree head, 73 degree seat), which is pretty similar to what you would find on an old 3-speed roadster. They are comfortable and stable but I would not describe the handling as lively. Those old MTB's are also normally built of slightly oversized "ATB" tubing and have very sturdy forks, so the frames will carry some weight penalty compared with a steel Road frame of the same era.
If you just want something to tinker with, it might be an interesting project, but I don't think the result would be very competitive if you were thinking of actually racing on it!.
My starting point for such a project would be to source an old 90's rigid 700c hybrid frame with the brakes already in the right place, and fit it with suitable wheels & tyres. The geometry of a typical hybrid, whilst not super-racy at 72-73 degrees, would not be as slack as an old-school Raleigh MTB either. Those frames also tend to be built of standard Road diameter tubing, so will be lighter than ATB, and there are some fairly decent offerings out there with Reynolds 500, 501, 531 or alternative 4130 cro-moly steels to choose from.
I'm slightly biased, as I run two of them as main bikes, but the Pioneer frames are a good starting point - and the early ones made pre-1992 with taller head tubes have a higher BB clearance more akin to an MTB, which would be really well suited to CX.

 

[DRM]

This is the problem, it’s not actually worth anything & I haven’t seen anything on the web that looks anything like it, throwing money at it is pointless, skip diver John, has hit the nail on the head, the frame resembles one of those old sit up & beg type roadsters, but with 26” wheels it looks, quite frankly ridiculous, I think 700c would fill the frame better, but that would put the bb higher up, I could leave it as is, fit new brake & gear cables, chain, mudguards & panniers & use it for nipping up to the shops, rather than driving. It’s hard to identify as there is no model name, just Raleigh on the down tube & a Raleigh head badge, it’s painted dark metallic green, I think it’s a 7 speed triple, iirc. But I haven’t bothered with it in years, I got it second hand about 19 years ago, it seemed old then.

 

[chriscross1966]

You need to seriously reconsider your definition of a "daft idea"

Francesca ready to go

• chriscross1966
• 1 Aug 2018

 

[Deleted member 26715]

I stole my sisters 26" wheels & put them on my 24" wheeled bike frame as a kid, only issue I had was sometimes turning my toes would catch the tyre.

 

[rogerzilla]

I stole my sisters 26" wheels & put them on my 24" wheeled bike frame as a kid, only issue I had was sometimes turning my toes would catch the tyre.

All good track bikes have that problem too!

 

[TheDoctor]

When I was younger, and had a shed full of bits and no money, I rode a bike with 27" front wheel and a 26" back.
That was a terrible idea. The handling was awful.
It got me to my Grannies and back (about a 100 mile round trip) but I've no idea how...

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

I haven’t seen anything on the web that looks anything like it, throwing money at it is pointless, skip diver John, has hit the nail on the head, the frame resembles one of those old sit up & beg type roadsters, but with 26” wheels.... It’s hard to identify as there is no model name, just Raleigh on the down tube & a Raleigh head badge, it’s painted dark metallic green, I think it’s a 7 speed triple, iirc. But I haven’t bothered with it in years, I got it second hand about 19 years ago, it seemed old then.

Picture required really, otherwise difficult to say what it is just from description. Is the frame welded or lugged & brazed?

 

[DRM]

I’d have to dig it out, it’s in the garage buried behind a pile of cr*p, I can’t remember if it’s lugged or welded, my gut feeling is it’s lugged, but I couldn’t swear to it.

 

[Gravity Aided]

I have an old Trek 950 that will take 26", 650b,27x1 and 1/4"(MTB variant of 650B, like 29" to 700C) and 700C tires and wheels. I think they were engineered this way so they could take 26 x 2.5 tires.

 

[12boy]

Many of these have a hole in the seatstay bridge and in the front fork which would permit using a center pull or side pull brake. It is also possible it is a fairly light chrome moly frame. You can always weigh it once you have stripped the frame. Skipdiver John is correct about older road bikes, especially those made for 27 inch wheels. Those bikes when converted to 700c, will usually take up to 35 mm tires and I have found them to be great rides.
But before dropping a lot of money, you might try this.....get rid of the inner and outer chain ring on the bike, get an AL seat post, chain ring and or stem if they are steel, perhaps a lighter saddle and toss some 1 1/2 inch light tires on the bike and go for a ride. The chunky rubber on old Mtn bikes can be like dragging an anchor, The difference those tires and a little aluminization of steel parts can make is amazing. I have fixed up old rockhoppers, bridgestone MB3s and stumpjumpers to be very nice indeed. In this country there are lots of gravel grinders which have relatively light tread patterns. There is nothing inherently wrong with a 26 inch wheel BTW.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

You’ve just posted a picture of what was being discussed on the “Possible daft idea thread” it’s identical to that one.

I've just realised you are the OP in that thread as I didn't see any pictures posted.
My picture is a bit crap, but If yours is really identical, then it should be all-black with RALEIGH engraved into the seatstays either side where they joint the seat tube. Only lugged & brazed Raleigh frames made of 501 or 531 have this feature, so you can immediately tell the higher quality ones apart from the bog standard 18-23 Hi-tensile.
They aren't sporty, and have rather a long wheelbase, but they are a good riding frame, and feel stable over rough surfaces. My inclination would be to keep it 26", for one thing the standover height on the 23" frame is already about the same as you'd find on a 24" old-school steel Road frame, and 700's would make it taller still. You'd need very long legs to confidently ride a 700c converted 23" frame cross-country without any painful crossbar dismount incidents.

Moderator -feel free to move this post to the other thread referred to above.
Mod Note: post moved from the "have you ever regretted selling a bike" thread.