My dad's old bike - help!

[hurricanebert]

Hi Guys,

thanks for a great site, i hope to be able to contribute to it and not just ask questions like this one.

Here is some pictures of my Dad's old Carlton that he has had for 35 years. It is in poor condition as it unfortunately got left outside for sometime due to extenuating cirumstances. Can anyone help identify it? It has mostly original components and the paint is/ was a browny metallic? colour with chrome lower forks and headset lugs, and may of had a black stripe seperating the chrome and brown paint. Serial number on LH rear drop out is T3762.

If possible I was going to restore it for him. As a kid I remember him riding everywhere on it. Do you think it's too far gone? I was hoping to get him back on it again.

 

[titch__16]

Grind some of the surface and try to see how deep the rust goes, if it's not too deep get it sand balsted and powder coated.
Good luck

 

[Piperdave]

Hi, Click on the Claud Butler link at the bottom of this post...I'm just starting on it. Looks much less of a problem now it has been blasted... Some elbow grease should sort out much of the rusty chrome, so just tyres and cables to sort

Dave

 

[moffyr72]

Looks just ripe for a renovation! If frame tubes are rotted through, you could get those tubes replaced.. 'Thats what they did in the old days' as my Dad reliably informed me.. Depends how sentimental the bike is to you.
As it stands it looks like just heavy surface rust, as someone has said, blast it back, rust treat it and get it powdercoated. Powdercoating will take up a fair bit of imperfections in the tube surfaces and the result will be stunning.

 

[Spokesmann]

The Crespera lugs date it 67-74, s for model Id hazard a guess maybe a earlyish Criterium maybe...

A challenging restoration job!

 

[biggs682]

nice , i wish dad still had his bikes , never mind getting hold of one

 

[hurricanebert]

Thanks for all the feedback - I certainly want to restore it to it's former glory if possible. The Claud Butler looks in slightly better condition, but just as challenging. Will watch with interest, thanks Dave

I found the carltoncycles website and the frame number gave a date of 1966, but the lugs certainly look to be crespera ones. So maybe late 66, early 67? And a Criterium??

Was it common to have the headset lugs chromed?

My Dad remembers the importer here seeing it after he had it for awhile and mentinoed that it was originally a 5 speed.

 

[Spokesmann]

Thanks for all the feedback - I certainly want to restore it to it's former glory if possible. The Claud Butler looks in slightly better condition, but just as challenging. Will watch with interest, thanks Dave

I found the carltoncycles website and the frame number gave a date of 1966, but the lugs certainly look to be crespera ones. So maybe late 66, early 67? And a Criterium??

Was it common to have the headset lugs chromed?

My Dad remembers the importer here seeing it after he had it for awhile and mentinoed that it was originally a 5 speed.

Earlier Criteriums form the late 1960s/early 1970s had a chromed headset.

 

[titch__16]

My Dad remembers the importer here seeing it after he had it for awhile and mentinoed that it was originally a 5 speed.

Old British bikes were commonly 10 speed, double in the front and 5 at the back.

 

[hurricanebert]

Cheers Spokesmann and everyone else. Having been into mountainbiking I've never seen the attraction in old road bikes, but guess i've got the bug now. The level of detailing on even the mass produced componentry impresses me and everything isn't all worn out like old mountainbikes are.

I have bought this other Carlton for my Dad to ride while doing his up. The guy I bought it off told me it is original, having bought it secondhand in 1987 and not changed anything and it is the one up from the continental (not sure what that is?) He said it was 2 years old when he bought it making it an 85? Can anyone put my mind at ease that it is a carlton and what model it would be? I'm a bit worried as the Carlton badge is missing. thanks