mullofkintyre
Retro Newbie
I've bought a bike from our local recycling place that I'm hoping to do up a bit and ride but can't identify, and I'd like to ask for any suggestions please.
It's about 25", has the old horizontal top tube, and has the serial letter F stamped on the bottom bracket but no numbers. I read on Sheldon Brown that this may indicate a Raleigh built Reynolds 531 frame from 1971.
I think it's possibly been re-sprayed (scarlet red all over) as there's paint on top of the cable guide underneath, but there are marks where a set of stickers have been removed from the top of the red, including a possible Reynolds decal square at the top of the headset-to-bracket (down?) tube. It has a Raleigh drop handlebar and SR stem but it looks like the rest of the bits are assorted, including bmx parts. The crankset is 52/42 with an outer chain guard directly connected via gaps in the outer chain-ring.
Oddly, the back brake is on a Pletscher type plate with 2 holes for a rack. There's a plate for a kick stand and a braze-on for a dynamo(?) on the inside of the upper left rear fork stay. The front derailleur is clamp on, as are the Sachs-Huret friction down tube shifters. There's a five speed Maillard Normandie freewheel on it just now. The derailleurs are Sachs-Huret, nothing special. I suspect it's an older frame with a lot of mid-eighties parts on it.
If anyone has any suggestions or questions I'd be please to hear from them. Which bikes had Pletscher brake bridge plates?
Thanks
Dave
It's about 25", has the old horizontal top tube, and has the serial letter F stamped on the bottom bracket but no numbers. I read on Sheldon Brown that this may indicate a Raleigh built Reynolds 531 frame from 1971.
I think it's possibly been re-sprayed (scarlet red all over) as there's paint on top of the cable guide underneath, but there are marks where a set of stickers have been removed from the top of the red, including a possible Reynolds decal square at the top of the headset-to-bracket (down?) tube. It has a Raleigh drop handlebar and SR stem but it looks like the rest of the bits are assorted, including bmx parts. The crankset is 52/42 with an outer chain guard directly connected via gaps in the outer chain-ring.
Oddly, the back brake is on a Pletscher type plate with 2 holes for a rack. There's a plate for a kick stand and a braze-on for a dynamo(?) on the inside of the upper left rear fork stay. The front derailleur is clamp on, as are the Sachs-Huret friction down tube shifters. There's a five speed Maillard Normandie freewheel on it just now. The derailleurs are Sachs-Huret, nothing special. I suspect it's an older frame with a lot of mid-eighties parts on it.
If anyone has any suggestions or questions I'd be please to hear from them. Which bikes had Pletscher brake bridge plates?
Thanks
Dave
