Raleigh Record Sprint - Fixed gear or single speed conversion help.

[Trebz]

Hi all

Onto my next project, converting the Raleigh Record Sprint shown below into a fixed gear or a single speed.

The bike is now stripped down to component level. All original standard components including the wheels will be sold off via Ebay or similar in order to part fund the rest of the re build.

The frame will be sent off for powder coating when I have decided on a colour scheme, so far I have my heart set on a silver / black scheme. This being built up of black frame with polished aluminium where possible. The original Raleigh steerer tube badge has been retained and will be re fitted.

My plan is to re build the bike as light as possible without breaking the bank. I am however stuck on a few things due to my being out of the loop for some time.

1. Headset size. I measure the steerer tube at 30mm, is this the correct size to use when buying the headset.

2. Bottom bracket size, I measure the bottom bracket size to be 34mm, is this the correct size to use when buying the bottom bracket. Also what about BB width, I know i need to bear in mind chain alignment.

3. Seat stem size, I measure the seat stem size to be 27mm, is this the correct size to use when buying a seat stem.

4. Wheels, I am a total loss when looking at wheels, I want polished or black with a fixed rear or freewheel. I do not want to fit the new 'Trendy' deep walled rims, I'd like the bike to retain a degree of the 'Old School' look. I need advice on wheel sizing etc, I measure the back wheel at 130mm and the front at about 95mm. Does this sound correct. Seriously, I need more help with the wheels than anything else.

The 'Want List' so far is:

1. Campag headset (Can you suggest some light ones or an alternative to Campag).

2. Campag bottom bracket, only choosing this as i remember them being light. Feel free to suggest an alternative.

3. Quill bar stem, polished.

4. Polished seat stem, maybe a Shimano 600. Fluted.

5. A chainset with an old school look, similar to the Stronglight range but with replaceable chain rings.

6. Wheels, see above noob comments.

I'll gladly document the build for all to see. Therefore putting something back into the forum for other to use in the future.

Thanks in advance ladies and gentlemen.

Regards

Trebz

 

[biggs682]

trebz why noy re use what you take off will be a lot cheaper

 

[Trebz]

The original parts weigh 16 Tonnes. I only have little skinny legs !!!

The seat stem, bar stem and wheels have to go, they are not as clean and tidy as i would like them. The headset is rusty and original, the bike was built circa 1986 so I'm sure I can get lighter components for not much money. The chainset is heavier than i would like and has some rust on the chainrings. I could maybe, at a push, save the bottom bracket.

I want a nice new shiny bike, not the scruffy thing I bought the other day hehehehhe

 

[biggs682]

if wheels are alloy give us a shout you never know

both stems will come in handy

 

[PpPete]

Headset.
Have a look for a Stronglight A9 - either steel or aluminium version, just so long as it's 1" threaded.

Bottom bracket.
Leave final choice on this to last as it's the one thing you can easily play with to get chainline right. Unless of course it is one of those weird Raleigh thread ones in which case you are probably stuck with the original. For now, just check whether a regular English threaded BB (68mm x whatever) threads in easily, remembering that R/H cup has a L/H thread.

Seatpost.
Your existing seatpost should have its diameter stamped on it near the bottom? If not you will need to measure with calipers, accurate to 0.2 mm
27.0 is possible, as is 26.8 or even 26.4. Given the tubes are 501, I think that 27.2 is unlikely... but possible.

Wheels
Front - 95mm drop out is possible, but modern wheels are 100mm, so a pain to get in.
Back - Cassette or Freewheel. If the latter, I'd seriously consider keeping the existing wheelset and going down what's called the "suicide hub" route.
Especially if the rims are quite narrow - you won't find anything much lighter in modern kit. My fixed runs on some vintage Rigida box section single eyeletted rims that come in at 425 grams.

 

[TheDoctor]

I had a similar thing going on with a Dynatech Ti frame.
In my case I went for SS, using a pair of Shimano R500 ready-built wheels, and a single speed kit - that's essentially a sprocket and a load of spacers. It's the easiest way of getting the chainline right.
Chainset - I'd get an alloy chainring and a set of single chainring bolts. That'll save a fair amount of weight. Spa can sort you out with those. Don't rule out the Stronglight chainsets that don't have replaceable rings, though. Impressively light and £20!!!
The headset is a threaded one - they're easily available, and come in alloy versions.
My LBS has quill stems. They're a bit thin on the ground these days, but they are out there.
You may well struggle finding a fluted seat post the right diameter. If the original isn't too far gone, I'd get busy with the polish myself!!
Hope this helps.

 

[Smurfy]

The seat stem, bar stem and wheels have to go, they are not as clean and tidy as i would like them.

Buy a tube of metal polish and get busy on the seat post and stem. It's much more satisfying to know that you made a shiny object from a dull and oxidised object, rather than just splashing cash.

 

[Ian H]

I'd say it isn't worth spending serious money on components unless you're planning to upgraded the frame at some point. 501 was just bog-standard tubing with a nice label. Nothing wrong with it, but nothing special.

 

[Bicycle]

It looks great, but I'm with the replies who caution against spending money.

That bare metal will clean up pretty well with relatively little work.

You are looking at £100 or more for a wheel with a fixed hub and sprocket.

If it's been sitting, you may be looking at tyres, cables and similar.

If I were going for a superlight fixie, I wouldn't be starting there. It's lovely, but all the posh components in the world won't get it to where you appear to be aiming.

I think that if you get that bicycle working as it did when it left the factory but with a fixed rear end, you'd have a great ride.

WHatever you do, nothing anyone else thinks is an issue. My fixie is a joke, but I love it. Enjoy the project!

 

[S1m0nR]

Hi there,

Sorry if I'm a little late with my reply to this thread - I've just joined the forum to reply to you!!

I've just built a friend a fixie from his Raleigh Record Sprint, exactly like yours - here's a pic:

The total cost of extra components was about £100 - most of which was for the wheels.

He bought:
Wheels (with flip-flop rear hub)
Sprocket
Crank set
Crank axle
Chain

The rest of the kit on the bike is stock and I'd agree whole heartedly with the people here who have advised against spending a lot of money on your bike. The RRS frame is a nice thing (501 is a step up from the 18-23 basic Raleigh frame material) it's not a massively high-spec thing though so if you're wanting to build a high-performance bike then start with something like a 531c frame which will be lighter and (in my opinioon, having ridden both) more enjoyable to ride.

My friend loves the bike I built for him though so you've got the opportunity to build something good here.

The bottom bracket is a standard tapered-axle Raleigh one in terms of thread and size, however given my experiences with my friend's bike, you're better off leaving most of the one that's currently on the bike in place. I say this because I found that bizzarely, the RRS adjustable cup seems to be about 3mm longer than normal, meaning that if you replace it with a 'standard' one, you won't be able to get the lock-ring on as there's not enough thread available.

You'll probably have to change the crank axle because the fixie will need a shorter axle to get the chain lined up. We bought a 115mm axle, to replae the standard 135mm one.

We kept the original stem, bars, saddle, brakes etc and the bike is really very light indeed.

Have fun!!

 

[Smurfy]

The bottom bracket is a standard tapered-axle Raleigh one in terms of thread and size, however given my experiences with my friend's bike, you're better off leaving most of the one that's currently on the bike in place. I say this because I found that bizzarely, the RRS adjustable cup seems to be about 3mm longer than normal, meaning that if you replace it with a 'standard' one, you won't be able to get the lock-ring on as there's not enough thread available.

You'll probably have to change the crank axle because the fixie will need a shorter axle to get the chain lined up. We bought a 115mm axle, to replae the standard 135mm one.

If you couldn't get the lock-ring on it simply means you bought a replacement bottom bracket spindle that was designed and made for a bike which had a different bottom bracket shell width. Shimano bottom bracket spindles are (in my experience) stamped with two numbers, one is the bottom bracket shell width that it fits, and the other is the overall width. See this website for a diagram and tables of bottom bracket dimensions.

 

[S1m0nR]

If you couldn't get the lock-ring on it simply means you bought a replacement bottom bracket spindle that was designed and made for a bike which had a different bottom bracket shell width. Shimano bottom bracket spindles are (in my experience) stamped with two numbers, one is the bottom bracket shell width that it fits, and the other is the overall width. See this website for a diagram and tables of bottom bracket dimensions.

Hi Tim,

it's a curious one this - if I hadn't been there then I'd totally agree about the spindle - but no, in this case, even with the original spindle none of the 'standard' adjustable bottom bracket cups that I had in my box of bits (which have been bought new or been salvaged from other bikes over the years) would fit in the RRS and still give enough bare threads to fit a lock ring.

I'd robbed the RRS's original one for use as a quick fix for my own road bike and noticed that the cup actually stood about three threads further out than the one it replaced. The only solution I could find was to swap them back again. I think the issue is that there is more metal between the outer surface of the cup and the friction surface inside it than on other cups.

Oh - and I did compare the spacings of the shoulders on the spindles and can confirm that they were the same!

Another thing to note is that you've pretty much got to stick with the standard set-up and can't use a modern cartridge bottom bracket in these bikes, unless you want to re-thread the bottom bracket or start adapting the cartridge parts to fit. It's apparently possible but is a hassle.

Cheers for now!

 

[TheDoctor]

Hello and
That's a very nice looking bike, S1m0nR.

 

[S1m0nR]

Hello and
That's a very nice looking bike, S1m0nR.

Hi Doc,

Cheers for the welcome! Yeah - the RRS looks like a pretty mean single-speed bike with the black large-rim wheels on it. Eventually I think that bike is going to be stripped and powder-coated in black which'll make it look even tidier. He's just waiting until he moves away from Liverpool as he's already had one bike nicked and doesn't want to make this one stand out!!

 

[mickle]

Has this bike had a front end collision which has bent the down tube at the lug? Or is it a noptical illusion?