1997? Raleigh Special Products Titanium MTB

[d2a]

Just a couple of pics of my 1997(?) Raleigh Special Products Titanium Framed MTB.

• 
  Syncros ahead stem
  Original RSP seat post
  Magura HS33 Hydraulic Rim brakes
  Pace RC38 Airforce II forks
  XT and XTR chainset
  Hope hubs

I love this bike - it's been converted for road use, and i've toured 1000s of miles with it, but switch out the tyres and unlock the forks and it's a great cross-country bike that's light and great to fall down hills on. As long as you've got a fork pump - these air forks really lose pressure fast.

I've got a couple of questions though. it's never had a headstock badge as long as i've had it - just two holes one above the other. Did this originally have a normal Raleigh heron badge, or a RSP one? it'd be nice to get it one if i can... secondly, be good to know the year for sure - can anyone confirm from the serial shown above - G50195? It was described as ex-works when sold to me in 2003...

 

[Rampage]

I think it would had the standard Raleigh heron badge.
Yes, its a 1997. Late model, same as mine!

 

[coomber]

Give it a clean!

(Nice bike though!)

 

[d2a]

yeah - i know

it's about due its yearly strip down before the weather turns, so maybe that's my job for tomorrow

they are meant to get dirty though - be a shame to keep it immaculate and never ride the thing...

 

[coomber]

Absolutely! But a clean "after" pic makes your thread look nice

 

[d2a]

Just a shot of the bike in the wild in its lightweight touring setup. Note granny ring engaged. It's been a lot muckier...

 

[letmetalktomark]

Cool.

Welcome to the site. Lock that wallet away now and try to escape the temptation of the classifieds ..... if you can :twisted:

I saw one of these in the flesh recently - very tidy bikes IMHO. Underrated too.

If the forks are loosing air as much and as frequently as you say it might be worth having a chat with Retrobike's resident PACE expert and service guru about getting them back up and running as they should be.

justbackdated aka Tim is a top bloke and can be contacted via PM

Contact >> http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/profil ... ile&u=1139

bikemeister2000 is also the sites resident Raleigh/RSP expert and might be able to shed light on the origin of your frame and also HT decal/badge.

Contact >> http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/profil ... ile&u=4682

 

[d2a]

hi - thanks for the welcome, the kind comments and the warning. i agree - they're great machines. anyone who takes an interest in this one is always surprised and delighted when they hear it's a raleigh. brits just have a soft spot for them... a small gang of local urchins also recently declared it "sick". i was very proud.

been out washing the crud off it this morning and it's now relatively tidy. chain's soaking and once re-lubed the bike will be back on the road tomorrow.

i've already had some kind help from bikemeister2000 who has confirmed that it is either 97 or 98, due to the absence of disk mounts, the i(an) cuthbertson stamped on the bb marks it as an ex-works machine, and that it would have had a standard heron badge. time will tell if i can find one to fit. he also mentioned that most but not all team bikes were painted, so this may have been stripped at some point. certainly there is no trace of decals or paint on it now, apart from a small torn sticker on the top tube with 0118 on it.

the forks were fully serviced by pace after i bought them in 2006 but were still losing pressure on return so i assumed it was just the nature of the beast. happy to hear otherwise and if there's any servicing/adjustment i can do myself all the better. when filled to the correct pressures, the fork will generally only last a day or two before sagging. i'll pm justbackdated and ask.

thanks again