# 1972 BSA 10 Speed



## wrongway (Jan 17, 2020)

I bought this off ebay recently. It's probably nothing extremely rare. I thought it was interesting. It's very much like a 1964 Raleigh Sports I've seen floating around the internet. This bike intrigues me. It has nearly, if not exactly, the same dimensions as a Raleigh Sports 3 speed bike. The top tube says 'Made In England'. The pedals have Sir Walter Raleigh on them, but on the other side say Made In Germany. The wheels are Sturmey Archer. The serial number is on top of the top tube near the seat post. If you look close the workmanship maybe isn't top notch. Any thoughts? Why don't these appear in catalogs? The Serial Number is: 526558


----------



## bulldog1935 (Jan 18, 2020)

trick find - thanks for posting. 
Definitely compares to the Raleigh GP of the same era, and may be the same bike with different badge.


----------



## juvela (Jan 20, 2020)

-----

Frame pretty much the same as the Raleigh Record and Sprite models of the same time.

The one prominent difference is the absence of the tubular Raleigh fork crown.

Steerer and headset will be 26 thread.

Shell 71mm width and 26 thread.

A second thread on the machine has been begun over at BF -









						1972 BSA 10 Speed - Bike Forums
					

Classic & Vintage - 1972 BSA 10 Speed - I just got this bike and it is quite intriguing....at least to me. I've seen another one or two Raleigh versions out there. The frame is almost exactly like a 3 speed sports frame. Not road bike geometry. The pedals have Sir Walter Raleigh on them, but...



					www.bikeforums.net
				




Thanks very much for sharing this interesting find!  


-----


----------



## sykerocker (Jan 23, 2020)

I've never seen one of those with the BSA logo before this, but back during the Bike Boom we'd periodically get identical Triumph branded 10-speeds.  Back in 1972, they sold for $90.00 whereas a Raleigh Record went for $100.00 and a Raleigh Grand Prix was $125.00.

We were never sure why we were getting them.  As it was the Bike Boom, anything Raleigh (the dealership was Schwinn/Raleigh/Columbia/Astra/Roger Riviere and later Japanese Concord - that's how desperate we were for bikes) was pre-sold six weeks before we'd get the bike and Merle Adams (the owner) would get pissed if we got one of those instead of a Record.  No real matter, it'd sell immediately, but the Record we could sell ahead of time while we had to wait for the Triumph to actually arrive.  And no, it wouldn't be an extra bike. We'd be short one Record.

Yes, that's a Sports stem, where the Record would have a Pivo alloy or equivalent, as was expected on a cheap 10-speed.

Merle always called those the "B" line bikes, a cheaper version of the Raleigh.  Regular steel frame, not 2030, cheaper rims, seat, but most everything else was Sports level.  About the same level of kit as an AMF Hercules.  They were uncommon in 10-speeds but rather common in the 3-speed line, as a '72 Raleigh Sports cost $100.00, the Triumph (blue) and Dunelt (red) 3-speeds cost $85.00, and a Japanese copy with Shimano hub (I believe it was a Kent) cost $60.00.

I was always under the impression that the BSA marque disappeared somewhere in the mid-60's.  I've seen one or two around, usually owned by a BSA motorcycle collector.


----------



## sykerocker (Jan 23, 2020)

bulldog1935 said:


> trick find - thanks for posting.
> Definitely compares to the Raleigh GP of the same era, and may be the same bike with different badge.




Grand Prix was a higher level bike.  Simplex, not Huret Allvit; Normandy alloy hubs with quick releases (unless you got one of the odd Dutch built ones that had steel flip/flop hubs with acorn nuts - seemingly a regional thing), Weinmann center pulls.  Other specs the same as the Record.  Cost 20% more.


----------



## bulldog1935 (Jan 23, 2020)

That's true, Raleigh Record had the Allvit and also nutted hubs.
However, the grade of the frame was the same.


----------

