Morning all.
Just registered on here as I was curious to see what everyone thought of my Maverick. I'll apologise up front, I waffle on - a lot. More so when its a subject I enjoy.
I've only just got back into biking after a seven year gap, you know - the whole marriage, mortgage being grown up etc etc. Basically I spent in excess of five months tracking down the perfect mountain and road bike for me and my budget whilst also adapting to life with the Dalmatian puppy who now dominates my every moment. I finally got my bikes and was wondering if there was a way of combining my two favourite hobbies of dog walking and cycling into one and I came across a clever little gadget from Germany that allowed just this. However, I didn't want to clamp this my new super duper GT so I thought about tracking a good old Raleigh down from the 80's, something like the one I had - the Maverick. Plus, as I remembered that they weighed about a third of a fully loaded Transit van, it would be a good solid bike to have my giddy spotty friend trotting at the side of me and she "shouldn't" be able to pull me over.
After several missed opportunities on eBay, I finally tracked one down at a good price and in very, very good condition (well apart from the seat). God I forgot how big an ugly they were. And what's with those cowhorn handlebars and eight foot stem? I don't remember that. Anyway, with a bit of tweaking (and a lot of spending later) here's what I ended up with
So here's the list
1986 Raleigh Maverick frame and forks
1995 Spin carbon fibre wheels
2013 GT Zaskar pedals
1997 GT Karakoram chain
???? Unknown handlebars
2011 Tesco grips! (Really comfy by the way)
1992 GT Timberline rear tyre
???? Unknown make front tyre
2013 7 speed cassette (obviously the Sachs Huret only covers 5!!!)
1994 Bottle holder on the handlebars for holding her lead
2013 Bottle holder for me (Good old T K Maxx)
There's probably other bits which I can't quite remember but I'll add them if they come back to the old grey matter.
I refer to it now as my "Canal" bike as that's where we go trotting along. The bike gets as much attention as having a giddy Dalmatian strapped to the side of it. It's now been renamed the Frankenstein Canal Bike
Oh to cut not such a long story short, there was a good reason why I didn't remember such ugly features as the handlebars and stem, I never had a Maverick!!! I had a 1988 Raleigh Magnum!!!! D'oh :shock:
Just registered on here as I was curious to see what everyone thought of my Maverick. I'll apologise up front, I waffle on - a lot. More so when its a subject I enjoy.
I've only just got back into biking after a seven year gap, you know - the whole marriage, mortgage being grown up etc etc. Basically I spent in excess of five months tracking down the perfect mountain and road bike for me and my budget whilst also adapting to life with the Dalmatian puppy who now dominates my every moment. I finally got my bikes and was wondering if there was a way of combining my two favourite hobbies of dog walking and cycling into one and I came across a clever little gadget from Germany that allowed just this. However, I didn't want to clamp this my new super duper GT so I thought about tracking a good old Raleigh down from the 80's, something like the one I had - the Maverick. Plus, as I remembered that they weighed about a third of a fully loaded Transit van, it would be a good solid bike to have my giddy spotty friend trotting at the side of me and she "shouldn't" be able to pull me over.
After several missed opportunities on eBay, I finally tracked one down at a good price and in very, very good condition (well apart from the seat). God I forgot how big an ugly they were. And what's with those cowhorn handlebars and eight foot stem? I don't remember that. Anyway, with a bit of tweaking (and a lot of spending later) here's what I ended up with
So here's the list
1986 Raleigh Maverick frame and forks
1995 Spin carbon fibre wheels
2013 GT Zaskar pedals
1997 GT Karakoram chain
???? Unknown handlebars
2011 Tesco grips! (Really comfy by the way)
1992 GT Timberline rear tyre
???? Unknown make front tyre
2013 7 speed cassette (obviously the Sachs Huret only covers 5!!!)
1994 Bottle holder on the handlebars for holding her lead
2013 Bottle holder for me (Good old T K Maxx)
There's probably other bits which I can't quite remember but I'll add them if they come back to the old grey matter.
I refer to it now as my "Canal" bike as that's where we go trotting along. The bike gets as much attention as having a giddy Dalmatian strapped to the side of it. It's now been renamed the Frankenstein Canal Bike
Oh to cut not such a long story short, there was a good reason why I didn't remember such ugly features as the handlebars and stem, I never had a Maverick!!! I had a 1988 Raleigh Magnum!!!! D'oh :shock:
