Show us your Raleigh?!?

[brucers]

My 90's Dune Dancer, £22 off Ebay, changed some parts to give it a sort of cruiser look.

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

Looking back at this thread, my Raleigh has had a few alterations since the last pic I posted:

The main change is the stem and handlebar, giving a lower, more sporty riding position which coincidentally happens to be more comfortable on a long ride. The B17 saddle has been replaced by a narrower Team Pro and the big chrome bell has been changed for a smaller Lion brass one mounted on the stem. Finally, as an experiment I've changed the grip shifters for some good quality old-school thumb shifters which I'm liking a lot.

 

[raleighnut]

Looking back at this thread, my Raleigh has had a few alterations since the last pic I posted:

View attachment 352297
The main change is the stem and handlebar, giving a lower, more sporty riding position which coincidentally happens to be more comfortable on a long ride. The B17 saddle has been replaced by a narrower Team Pro and the big chrome bell has been changed for a smaller Lion brass one mounted on the stem. Finally, as an experiment I've changed the grip shifters for some good quality old-school thumb shifters which I'm liking a lot.

Nice. If I hadn't had the Ridgeback (which looks very similar) for years I'd build a Raleigh like that up.

 

[Carper301]

New to the world of old raleigh bikes.....new to the world of bikes to be honest just picked up an old 74 shopper of ebay and turned my hand to tidying it up. Also got a bsa twenty to tidy up for the missus.
Before

After

 

[raleighnut]

My 531c Raleigh Road Ace, nowhere near standard but I built it up from a frame I was given (by Simon at Cyclemagic) I dragged it out of the shed for something else and took a few pics before it went back in.

Note proper riveted headbadge,

It also has a rather tasty Brooks on it.

2004 Brooks Swallow Limited Edition Titanium, one of 999 ever made (and with a certificate of authenticity)

 

[Dan B]

I was looking for the "bike in a kitchen" thread but found this one first. Head badge says it's a Raleigh, model name I don't know, today added new 25mm tyres in red and gave the mudguards the first clean they've had in a very long time

It's definitely ... red. Needs new bar tape, I know. It's in the cupboard waiting for a tuit

 

[tyred]

My 1971 Raleigh Twenty. One of the Dublin built models, it has been in the family since new - passed around various older cousins and siblings until it came to me. I rode it a lot in my early teens and then it sat languishing in the coal shed at home until I gave it a re-paint and a little spruce up about ten years ago.


https://flic.kr/p/8Z9jEE

My slightly tatty but completely original 1958 Trent Sport with 4 speed Cyclo gearing

 

[biggs682]

My m trax ti2000

@tyred I like the old original Trent sport.

 

[tyred]

@tyred I like the old original Trent sport.

Thank you. It's actually one of my favourite bikes to ride but the gearing is crazy with a 48 chainring and 14-16-18-20 block which isn't ideal where I live. If it wasn't so original I'd stick a Sturmey in it.

 

[biggs682]

Thank you. It's actually one of my favourite bikes to ride but the gearing is crazy with a 48 chainring and 14-16-18-20 block which isn't ideal where I live. If it wasn't so original I'd stick a Sturmey in it.

Have a look at mine My 50's Raleigh Roadster

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

My latest secondhand bargain, and I'm well pleased with it. In a moment of complete financial abandon, I splashed out £20 on this rather unusual 1988/89 vintage Gemini 18, Raleigh's earliest attempt at producing a Hybrid model and clearly the ancestor of the Pioneer range . It was pretty grubby as acquired, so I took it to work and gave it a clean up.

Despite it's age, I don't think it's had a lot of use. It certainly hasn't had a hard life. Both the tyres appear to still be original, the stem wasn't seized in the headset, and when I loosened the nice light alloy seatpost, not only did it slide out freely but it still had a load of fresh looking grease smeared on it - which I assume was applied at the Factory!
Couldn't resist giving it a try so I did a few low-speed circuits of the private road that runs round the site. Front brake is slack, and the front mech also needs a tweak, but the rear gears all engage fine. My first impression is what a nice bike! The Reynolds 531 frame is so light and feels really stable yet responsive to ride. It's many years since I've ridden a 531 bike and I'd half forgotten just how nice they are compared to a cheaper and much heavier high tensile frame. Worth every penny I paid for it and a lot more besides.

 

[roadrash]

Bargain

 

[mcshroom]

I was looking for the "bike in a kitchen" thread but found this one first. Head badge says it's a Raleigh, model name I don't know, today added new 25mm tyres in red and gave the mudguards the first clean they've had in a very long time

It's definitely ... red. Needs new bar tape, I know. It's in the cupboard waiting for a tuit View attachment 394076

If that's a 501 sticker on the downtube, then it looks a lot like my old Raleigh Criterium: -

If it is then you are looking at around 1985 build date

 

[raleighnut]

My latest secondhand bargain, and I'm well pleased with it. In a moment of complete financial abandon, I splashed out £20 on this rather unusual 1988/89 vintage Gemini 18, Raleigh's earliest attempt at producing a Hybrid model and clearly the ancestor of the Pioneer range . It was pretty grubby as acquired, so I took it to work and gave it a clean up.
View attachment 399480 View attachment 399481

Despite it's age, I don't think it's had a lot of use. It certainly hasn't had a hard life. Both the tyres appear to still be original, the stem wasn't seized in the headset, and when I loosened the nice light alloy seatpost, not only did it slide out freely but it still had a load of fresh looking grease smeared on it - which I assume was applied at the Factory!
Couldn't resist giving it a try so I did a few low-speed circuits of the private road that runs round the site. Front brake is slack, and the front mech also needs a tweak, but the rear gears all engage fine. My first impression is what a nice bike! The Reynolds 531 frame is so light and feels really stable yet responsive to ride. It's many years since I've ridden a 531 bike and I'd half forgotten just how nice they are compared to a cheaper and much heavier high tensile frame. Worth every penny I paid for it and a lot more besides.

Very nice

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Very nice

I'm certainly very pleased with it. Both me and the seller were equally surprised it didn't attract more interest. It seems most people these days would rather buy a brand new cheapo Far-East import than a quality secondhand British bike. Their loss, my gain! I've got a lot of respect for the Raleighs built back in the 80s and 90's, you can expect these sort of bikes to last a lifetime if treated properly. Frame size is somewhat unusual at 22 1/2" but it fits fine - albeit the seatpost is right on the safety limit line as I've got long legs. I might swap it for the steel one on my Pioneer Trail, which is marginally longer but doesn't need to be as long as the frame on that is 23 1/2" New Schwalbes are on the "things to do" list to keep the p*ncture fairy away, as this is the sort of bike I'll ride further afield than just a couple of miles - so I don't want any nasty surprises..