Elsie the elswick
- Thread starter Jimny14
- Start date
Wow, it is the same colourway too. I'll have to have a dig around the Internet but would be interesting to try and find how long that colour was produced for to narrow down the date. I'm not sure the stamp on the bottom bracket fits with the dating thing on the Web I've found. Wonder if they were numbering differently by then
Southcoast
Dirt Disciple
According to a old magazine i have, the list price in 83 was £130.
So the bike's been cleaned down, everything removed, greased (where appropriate) and put back together. Stabilised the worst of the rust and the frames had a wax. There was no noticeable wear on any of the bearings and as the original tyres still seem to be in place also I'm guessing the bike has done v few miles. Now I just need to adjust the gears and get em working, the down tube shifters seem quite stiff to try and more the gears, the rear I can't get to move by the shifter, think the derailleur may be slightly seized up? Although it moves OK when I push it with my hand. Also the front one always jumps back to where it started at the moment. Any suggestions much appreciated. Then it's a case of finding some tyres, we're currently on27" x1. 25 am I right in thinking 700c are modern equivalent?
HansOberlander
Dirt Disciple
Re:
700c are a tad smaller (622mm vs 630mm in diameter) so if swapping you should check whether your brakes can be adjusted 4mm downwards.
I would go singlespeed with it!
700c are a tad smaller (622mm vs 630mm in diameter) so if swapping you should check whether your brakes can be adjusted 4mm downwards.
I would go singlespeed with it!
So I've managed to order some new 27x1 1/4 Amber walled tyres, and suitable inner tubes, also ordered new brake and gear cables and going to pick up brake pads when I'm next in town. Got the tyres on offer for under a fiver a piece. You know the bike was cheap when new cheap and chearful tyres, tubes, gear and brake cables are all ordered and the whole lot still stands you less than £50 and a few hours work.
70sSlacker
Retro Newbie
Re:
Something triggered me to look up Elswick Turbo 12 bikes and I came across this post on this forum.
I had one of these! In fact I had two. I think the first one was blue but I was getting a wiggle on head down into the wind on my way home from Scouts when I rode straight into the back of a Ford Escort Mk2. In those days bumpers were metal so there was no damage to the bumper but the forks of the bike were bent right back and the frame was buckled. So much that steering was stiff. Funnily enough the front wheel wasn't buckled as far as I remember.
My Dad wasn't pleased but he had to buy me another one. The only way he was going to afford it was to give up smoking. Ha. Every cloud has a silver lining and all that.
I thought my second one was a pale sandy beige rather than the poo brown ones that seem common but I might be wrong. It had much lighter steering than the first one.
What I do remember was that the frame seemed quite nicely made but it wasn't 531 or 501, something I aspired to, so it was heavy. The handlebars were alloy and nicely finished. I think the seat post was alloy as well but I might be wrong. The wheels were chromed steel and differed from the first to the second bike. I think the second one had diagonals engraved on the rims to help stop in the wet. It didn't work. The tyres differed from first to second bike too. The second one had Hutchinson tyres. A brand I've held a soft spot for ever since. The rims were quite narrow, not the fat tyres of the equivalent Raleigh. 27", no QR.
The brakes were generic side pull but it was definitely a six speed Shimano derailleur at the back and Shimano at the front. Friction shift. None of that fancy indexing. We had a gravel drive and I used to like putting it in first gear, stamping on the pedals and trying to wheel spin away from the house on the way to school. After snapping the chain and having to make my Mum late for work by giving me a lift to school one too many times the bike shop sold Dad a chain breaking tool. I've still got it.
Everything on the frame was clamped on. That included chromed clips for the cabling, and chromed clamps for the water bottle holder. The mudguards were stainless steel things, not the light and rust free silvered plastic guards the equivalent Raleigh was sporting.
I think that as a student I stripped it down as far as I could then inexpertly sprayed it was black Hammerite. One summer the cable to the rear mech stretched and I could pull it so far the chain would jump the cogs at the back and run onto the spokes (the chain guard had long since been discarded). Once, while trying to accelerate out of the way of a bus, I pulled the lever on the down tube too far, the chain came off and wedged into the wheel, fatally busting the rear mech. It wasn't economical to repair and I bought an old Peugeot from a junk shop for £30. But that's another story.
Something triggered me to look up Elswick Turbo 12 bikes and I came across this post on this forum.
I had one of these! In fact I had two. I think the first one was blue but I was getting a wiggle on head down into the wind on my way home from Scouts when I rode straight into the back of a Ford Escort Mk2. In those days bumpers were metal so there was no damage to the bumper but the forks of the bike were bent right back and the frame was buckled. So much that steering was stiff. Funnily enough the front wheel wasn't buckled as far as I remember.
My Dad wasn't pleased but he had to buy me another one. The only way he was going to afford it was to give up smoking. Ha. Every cloud has a silver lining and all that.
I thought my second one was a pale sandy beige rather than the poo brown ones that seem common but I might be wrong. It had much lighter steering than the first one.
What I do remember was that the frame seemed quite nicely made but it wasn't 531 or 501, something I aspired to, so it was heavy. The handlebars were alloy and nicely finished. I think the seat post was alloy as well but I might be wrong. The wheels were chromed steel and differed from the first to the second bike. I think the second one had diagonals engraved on the rims to help stop in the wet. It didn't work. The tyres differed from first to second bike too. The second one had Hutchinson tyres. A brand I've held a soft spot for ever since. The rims were quite narrow, not the fat tyres of the equivalent Raleigh. 27", no QR.
The brakes were generic side pull but it was definitely a six speed Shimano derailleur at the back and Shimano at the front. Friction shift. None of that fancy indexing. We had a gravel drive and I used to like putting it in first gear, stamping on the pedals and trying to wheel spin away from the house on the way to school. After snapping the chain and having to make my Mum late for work by giving me a lift to school one too many times the bike shop sold Dad a chain breaking tool. I've still got it.
Everything on the frame was clamped on. That included chromed clips for the cabling, and chromed clamps for the water bottle holder. The mudguards were stainless steel things, not the light and rust free silvered plastic guards the equivalent Raleigh was sporting.
I think that as a student I stripped it down as far as I could then inexpertly sprayed it was black Hammerite. One summer the cable to the rear mech stretched and I could pull it so far the chain would jump the cogs at the back and run onto the spokes (the chain guard had long since been discarded). Once, while trying to accelerate out of the way of a bus, I pulled the lever on the down tube too far, the chain came off and wedged into the wheel, fatally busting the rear mech. It wasn't economical to repair and I bought an old Peugeot from a junk shop for £30. But that's another story.
70sSlacker
Retro Newbie
Re:
To add to the OP's research into his bike's history, as you can see from the catalogue the bike originally had drop bars.
In the late 80s, early 90s it was fashionable to butcher the handle bars in the way that a previous owner has done. They were called courier bars AFAIK and were popular with bike couriers when they were still a thing, before the Internet.
Mine dated from 1983/84ish.
HTH
To add to the OP's research into his bike's history, as you can see from the catalogue the bike originally had drop bars.
In the late 80s, early 90s it was fashionable to butcher the handle bars in the way that a previous owner has done. They were called courier bars AFAIK and were popular with bike couriers when they were still a thing, before the Internet.
Mine dated from 1983/84ish.
HTH
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