Me and the old Raleigh

[Canyon_Si]

Hi All,

Here are some pics of my very much loved Raleigh Record Sprint. Not exactly exotic but a great piece of kit.
This was bought for Eroica five years ago and has been ridden very year at the event as well as occasional rides round my local Cheshire routes.

The bike was owned from new by a local vicar who removed the stickers as a lad because he wanted a stealthier look. He tucked it away in a garage some time in the 90's, threw a cover over the bike and there it remained for 25 years with a plank across the seat and bars to transform it into a shelf. I gave it a clean, a service, new cables and tyres and it has been a joy to ride ever since. It's really too big for me but I don't care - reminds me of my original Peugeot in the 80's which was also too big for me!

Keep swaying from wanting to add some decals or keep it in its stealth look.

Great forum and thought it was about time I register and said hello. Just bought a very early 90's (I think) Peugeot 531 Pro with champagne Shimano 105 and Mavic 192 rims. This one'll be a project with re-spray and some changes and I'll post up as it goes along.

Cheers,

Si - the beardy one on the right.

 

[The History Man]

That's a nice simple bike. I have a soft spot for raleighs

 

[legrandefromage]

you brakes will be in the post soon!

 

[Canyon_Si]

Re:

Cheers legrandefromage!

As discussed, I really like the look of the earlier RRS's which have more gold on them and will update with the parts bought from you.

Pics will follow when done

 

[Lackluster]

Nice to see another RRS12. A good looking bike and mine is a 23.5 and a bit big for me, but I too like to ride bigger bikes. Mine was tucked away in a garage gathering dust for 35 years. I am not sure how many years they produced the gold and black version, but mine is definitely a 1984.

 

[legrandefromage]

Oh heck, I'll join in then. Here was mine from a few years ago

 

[Markone]

I have a 21'' frame 1983 RRS with lots of gold anodising it's a nice bike and very smooth to ride.

I find gear changing to be very smooth and quiet,but if I don't move the gear lever quite far enough the chain will ride up and sit on top of a cog without fully engaging and traction becomes lost,which is very disconcerting at times ascending steep gradients and in traffic!

Do others have the same experience with their Sprints?

 

[legrandefromage]

no, because later ones came with indexed levers. much better

 

[Markone]

That's interesting.I have replaced the original levers with Exage 600 7 speed levers,but use the right hand shifter on friction only I've never attempted to try to get it to index with the Maillard cassette.


Is indexing an early Sprint's Maillard cassette possible with a suitable shifter?

 

[legrandefromage]

As long as its a standard screw on freehub, a new freewheel will index perfectly, but dont forget to replace the chain as the early ones are just a bit too thick for later cassettes

Some Sprints came with the Helicomatic hubs.

I've just indexed some Shimano 300EX mechs/ SL-434 6spd levers to a 6spd Sachs freewheel on a Campagnolo hub - soooo...?