# More Spring Cleaning



## SirMike1983

More dusting off bikes in storage, airing up tires, tweaking seats/posts, etc. After that, I get to ride each a bit, which is the fun part of the exercise. 1958 Raleigh Sports and 1946 Hercules Model C:

https://bikeshedva.blogspot.com/2017/04/english-three-speed-bikes.html


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## SirMike1983

Finishing touches on the Hercules and refreshing a 1947 Schwinn New World:


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## SirMike1983

A couple from this weekend:

Sports 4-speed:









Sprite 5-speed:


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## SirMike1983

Raleigh Sprite 5-speed and Grand Prix 10-speed.


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## morton

Beautiful bikes......and if the backdrop means anything, you have a beautiful place to ride!

Here in central PA there aren't many flat spots.  Used to ride to work as it was only 3 miles but had to climb 1 very steep and 2 long hills so you were either coasting at 30 mph or pedaling your guts out to go 5 mph.


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## SirMike1983

That's my favorite area to ride. The few miles around my house are mostly flat in that direction - in the 1700s and 1800s this was a Virginia tidewater plantation where corn and tobacco were grown. It's very warm and very humid here from late May through late Sept or early Oct.  The downside is that the streets here are deteriorating somewhat. We have more pot holes than ever it seems.


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## WVBicycles

I live in Massachusetts theres more potholes then people living in this state when I go ride New Hampshire the roads are like glass so smooth no potholes or moon craters.


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## usarnie1

All the bikes in your stable look great!  However, your '46 Hercules is my favorite!

I still have not successfully been able to identify and date the frame on my Tourist.  I think it may well be a 1959 or 1960 transitionary frame, as it has the early bosses brazed to the frame for the SA 3 speed pulley, a boss to mount a fully enclosed chain guard and a Kingfisher Leads metal flip top oiler cap on top of the bottom bracket.  Additionally, my Tourist has the post 1960's Raleigh Industries front sprocket and rear fender stay holes behind the rear axel's drop out.

The only original parts on my bike are the frame, fork, 3 piece bottom bracket, front stem, and handlebars. Everything else are replacement parts, that I added.

The other confusing issue with my frame is that it has a Tourist decal, on the head tube, instead of the usual brass Hercules Tourist shield.  Can anyone help me identify and date the frame on my bike?


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## SirMike1983

1947 Schwinn Continental 3 speed last evening.


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## SirMike1983

1974 Raleigh Grand Prix: I really, really like some of Raleigh's plain jane 20-30 steel frames (this Carlton-Raleigh Grand Prix and my Raleigh Sports are great riders). Raleigh is sometimes criticized for it's 1970s-era products in terms of quality control and cheapening components. But I honestly have had good luck with all of my 1970s-era Raleighs, and they run the range from the Grand Prix road to the Sports utility to the DL-1 roadster. 













Short comparison of my 1972 Schwinn Super Sports and 1974 Raleigh Grand Prix projects:

https://bikeshedva.blogspot.com/2017/07/raleigh-grand-prix-vs-schwinn-super.html


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## WVBicycles

nice bikes all of them look spotless


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## SirMike1983

Flat tire on the 1958 Raleigh - rotted tube from a blown grease seal gradually leaking oil. Not a big loss; the tube was a Duro brand that came with the tires, and those are pretty damned cheap. I refreshed the grease seals at the cones with better grease and replaced the rim tape and tube. The tire itself was fine. 

While I had the wheel in the vise, I took a picture of the spoke heads. These 1940s-50s era Raleighs had some high-end touches, including brand name "R" strikes on each of the spoke heads. The modern spoke makers do this too, but back in the day Raleigh did it as well. The spoke washers are Velofuze brass types I added when I re-built the wheel as a four speed with an FW hub from 1956.

https://bikeshedva.blogspot.com/2017/07/the-maintenance-carousel.html


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## SirMike1983

Cleaned up the kickstand and saddle bag a bit today; gave this Raleigh a little oil as well. Fun bike.


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## SirMike1983

Had a weekend away visiting family - where I store my 1978 Raleigh DL-1. This bike got a cleaning and a short ride on a nice day. Our longer ride day was rained out.


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## SirMike1983

Losing daylight - so I like the B&M Lumotec Classic headlight and original tail light on this 1974 Sports with Dynohub.


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## SirMike1983

Got this window sticker for my Jeep.


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## SirMike1983

1958 Sports out and about on a summer-like day.













I am riding a patched rear tube on it now: I last rode this bike a couple weeks ago. The day after I last rode it, I noticed the rear was flat, and found a piece of glass in the tire and tube. I patched it the old way - I still use the old-style, red and black glue-on patches. I find the old way still works fine. But what I am also finding is that fewer people seem to be using the traditional patches. I'm noticing more and more people just replacing the tubes, or using sticker patches.

I trash the really cheap tubes (Duro, for example) when they get a flat. But I still patch middling and better tubes - Kenda, Forte, and the thorn-resistant heavy duty tubes.


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## SirMike1983

A little Twenty fiddling with the headset, particularly the plastic collar unit. It's in better shape than I had feared - perfectly workable still. The brakes needed some tweaks, and we're pretty much done now. Then I did a little clean up and took a picture.


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## SirMike1983

In this edition of "Side-by-Side", a comparison of the finer points of the 1970 Sprite and 1958 Sports.

https://bikeshedva.blogspot.com/2017/10/side-by-side-1958-raleigh-sports-and.html


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## SirMike1983

Warm for a fall day today. I took out this 1958 Raleigh Sports for an evening ride before it got dark.


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## SirMike1983

A Columbus Day ride on my Raleigh Twenty:


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## SirMike1983

Nice weather this afternoon after a cloudy morning. Warm weather so far this fall, after a chilly August.


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## SirMike1983

Raleigh Sprite 5-speed - nice afternoon for a ride.


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## bikepaulie

SirMike1983 said:


> A little Twenty fiddling with the headset, particularly the plastic collar unit. It's in better shape than I had feared - perfectly workable still. The brakes needed some tweaks, and we're pretty much done now. Then I did a little clean up and took a picture.
> 
> View attachment 682126




Nice tires! Love the seat bag. I replaced my headset with a properly sized AHead set, http://www.aheadset.com/, and have loved it. Thanks for posting!


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## SirMike1983

A chilly November 11 - Raleigh export model DL-1.


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## SirMike1983

Some more fiddling with the wiring paths and lowered the handlebars a bit. Fun bike - the rod brake roadster is its own animal in the bike world. I normally like the bars pretty high, but these export model bars are quite narrow and come back quite a bit - needed to lower them some.


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## bikemonkey

SirMike1983 said:


> Some more fiddling with the wiring paths and lowered the handlebars a bit. Fun bike - the rod brake roadster is its own animal in the bike world. I normally like the bars pretty high, but these export model bars are quite narrow and come back quite a bit - needed to lower them some.
> 
> View attachment 708264
> 
> View attachment 708265
> 
> View attachment 708266



Sir, you have a most admirable stable of British steel!


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## SirMike1983

A couple more from the past weekend - a little tweaking of cable housing/routing. Fun bike, and goes smoothly over rough road.


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## SirMike1983

Out and about on the Raleigh Twenty - it's a fun little bike, and it's also a great place to start if you want to mess around with an old folder bike. It's also a great bike to expand to if you're already a collector of vintage Raleighs and want something "a little different" from the common Sports or DL-1. 

https://bikeshedva.blogspot.com/2017/12/the-shorter-days-of-year-raleigh-twenty.html


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## GTs58




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## SirMike1983

60 degrees in December? Absolutely will take that. DL-1 time:


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## nycet3

Man, these are all beautiful bikes. Really enjoyed the thread. Thanks


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## SirMike1983

nycet3 said:


> Man, these are all beautiful bikes. Really enjoyed the thread. Thanks




Thanks. 

I have a feeling my rides for this year are done. The state of Virginia put down a heavy layer of road salt and pre-treat yesterday, and we'll have maybe 1-2 inches of snow today. I have winter stored everything except the 10-speed Grand Prix. I'll be using the Grand Prix on an indoor roller. I'll use that a couple of days per week until the roads are salt-free. 

The snow does not bother me so much, but road salt and pre-treat "brine" is exceedingly corrosive on steel. Riding on that stuff just makes more work in rust removal later for me. I tested out just how bad that stuff is for steel a couple of winters ago with a Schwinn 3-speed I rode over the course of the winter. I monitored how quickly rust would develop on bare spots on the bike, and it was always within 1 week of exposure, there was rust. I cleaned up the bike and decided not to ride on any of those road treatments again.


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## SirMike1983

Cold day for a ride, but worth it.


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## RidgeWalker

SirMike1983 said:


> Cleaned up the kickstand and saddle bag a bit today; gave this Raleigh a little oil as well. Fun bike.




What cog do you have on the Sturmey hub?


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## SirMike1983

This particular bike has a 21 tooth cog on the rear and a 44 tooth front sprocket.  The 44 tooth front is smaller than the usual DL-1 (standard US-spec is 48 and later 46 teeth).


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## SirMike1983

It's spring again - out and about on this Raleigh export model roadster.


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## bulldog1935

SirMike1983 said:


> It's spring again - out and about on this Raleigh export model roadster.
> 
> View attachment 786827
> 
> View attachment 786828



nice dogwood photo - we don't get them this far south


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## SirMike1983

I love bronze green paint, especially when it's in good shape. 85 and sunny here today - calls for a ride on the Raleigh 5-speed Sprite.


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## SirMike1983

1958 Raleigh Sports with FW four-speed.


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## SirMike1983

The rain held off today - a pleasant surprise.


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## SirMike1983

Shots from rides this week - Raleigh Twenty folding bike, Raleigh Sprite 5-speed, and some Mallards out for a swim.


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## SirMike1983

Just a few more pictures - out and about this week. Lots of daylight this time of the year.


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## HARPO

You have quite a variety of English metal, all beautifully taken care of. And I see that you ride different size frames, though apparently not by choice but what you've manged to find in your quests.


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## SirMike1983

I took a couple of rides today because I took yesterday away from riding (rain) and because I felt good about having lots of ride time today. So why not try to very different bikes back-to-back: the Raleigh DL-1 and the Raleigh Twenty. This gives a taste of large wheels (28 inch DL-1) and small (20 inch folder). 

https://bikeshedva.blogspot.com/2018/06/large-wheels-small-wheels.html


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## SirMike1983

1958 Sports 4-speed


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## HARPO

Very cool! Now I can _also_ say that I have a DL-1...Sports...and a TWENTY at the same time! Cheerio!!!


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## SirMike1983




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## SirMike1983

Losing daylight, but the weather has finally improved from the ultra-humid, rainy stuff we had all summer. The B&M Lumotec Classic will be an asset as a headlight becomes more and more important going deeper into fall.


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## SirMike1983

1951 Raleigh Clubman - hilly ride tonight to the next town over and back.


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## SirMike1983

Upgraded the 1958 Sports to Schwalbe Delta Cruiser white walls. These are a bit nicer tire than the Duro. The Duros seemed to age prematurely on this bike. These Schwalbes look nice on a 50s bike and bring more cushion and ride quality.


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## SirMike1983

The Farmington River Bike Trail over in Collinsville/Canton/Burlington/Unionville is a great spot if you happen to be riding in western Connecticut. We had nice weather yesterday. The trail has vastly improved over the past 15 years - lots of places to sit and picnic, lots of places to stop by the water or to rest. They're really done a first rate job on this trail. There are a few spots where roots have made the trail bumpy - I suggest a middle weight type utility bike or something that handles bumps. You don't need a full mountain bike, but don't ride something with razor blade road tires either.


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## SirMike1983

Phillips at the Farmington River Trail today going between Collinsville and Unionville.


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## SirMike1983

It has been awhile but, here are a few pictures going back into the spring. Spring begins later here than it did in Virginia - noticeably so. The pictures with few leaves on the trees were actually taken in May. We don't have full leaf coverage until late May here. Early June is a bit more like summer, though we don't get into the truly hot weather until a little later on.





























It has been a struggle to reduce and contain the rust on the dark green roadster over the past year and a half or so. The bike was exposed to road salt when I moved back to the north in early 2019. I completely took it apart last summer and cleaned it, but in a few spots, the rust still has tried to come back. A couple of evenings of work cleaning and filling in paint chips has improved things again, but you periodically have to check the bike over to see if you've gotten everything. It's a lot better than it was last year when I did the first cleaning of the salt. It's yet another piece of evidence that you don't want any exposure to road salt and treatment if you can help it.


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## SirMike1983

An American-made 3-speed for 4th of July weekend: 1947 Schwinn New World.


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## Miq

Always nice seeing pics of your 47 Sirmike!


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## SirMike1983

A few shots from late this summer.


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## Goldenrod

SirMike1983 said:


> In this edition of "Side-by-Side", a comparison of the finer points of the 1970 Sprite and 1958 Sports.
> 
> https://bikeshedva.blogspot.com/2017/10/side-by-side-1958-raleigh-sports-and.html
> 
> View attachment 685577
> 
> View attachment 685578
> 
> View attachment 685579




My lady and I watch British mysteries and the screen shows lots of British bikes.


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## 1motime

SirMike1983 said:


> A few shots from late this summer.
> 
> View attachment 1263396
> 
> View attachment 1263397
> 
> View attachment 1263398
> 
> View attachment 1263399



Nice Racer!


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## SirMike1983

1motime said:


> Nice Racer!




Thanks. I think it came out pretty nicely. The first ride on it was just an evening or two ago. Still a few small things to adjust on the brakes and the bearing tension, but it's fun. It had a little "longer" and a little more "cushy" feel than the Raleigh Sports. But I love having both types in the garage.


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## Sven

Great collection !


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## SirMike1983




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## BroCraig

I love the red letters on the head badge. Were they always red? Mine are black, but my bike is black.


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## SirMike1983




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## SirMike1983

My project for January: reviving this neat old 1930s-era Sturmey hub set: a 1937 Model K and a "Mark II" Dynohub. To go with it is an appropriate black quadrant shifter and pulley. The Mark II is a massive piece of equipment, far larger and heavier than the post-war Dynohub. It dwarfs even the Model K, which itself is sized like an AW.


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## Oilit

SirMike1983 said:


> My project for January: reviving this neat old 1930s-era Sturmey hub set: a 1937 Model K and a "Mark II" Dynohub. To go with it is an appropriate black quadrant shifter and pulley. The Mark II is a massive piece of equipment, far larger and heavier than the post-war Dynohub. It dwarfs even the Model K, which itself is sized like an AW.
> 
> View attachment 1345200
> 
> View attachment 1345201
> 
> View attachment 1345202



I think that's the first picture of a "Mark II" I've ever seen. Thanks for posting!


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## SirMike1983

It's the only one I've ever come across. The Hub of the Universe book, which has become a sort of "bible" of Sturmey Archer for me because of its detail, only talks briefly about it. It seems to have been a short-lived transition between the original Dynohub and the subsequent series of "GH" models from before WWII. There is very little imprinting on the hub. The only imprint is "MARK II".





I'll hold onto it for my hub collection - just not enough spares to use on an everyday basis on a bike, and it's really large and heavy in any event, even compared to the basic post-war GH-6.


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## SirMike1983

Finally, the 2021 riding season begins here in western New England. We've had a moderately snowy winter and several wind storms, as well as several cold snaps where it stays down in the 30s during the day. But finally this week, we're in the 60s each day with dry conditions.  I'm still finishing some work on a couple Raleigh and Lucas bells for various bikes, but everything is pretty much ready for this season.


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## SirMike1983




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## SirMike1983

Spotted this Great Blue Heron while I was riding earlier this week. Then we got a shot of heavy rain and some wet snow yesterday. Hopefully better weather will return soon.


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## SirMike1983

Chilly spring here in New England, so far. Hopefully a little warmer weather is on the way soon. I'm still enjoying this tall frame Schwinn Racer 3-speed on my evening rides.


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## 1motime

SirMike1983 said:


> Chilly spring here in New England, so far. Hopefully a little warmer weather is on the way soon. I'm still enjoying this tall frame Schwinn Racer 3-speed on my evening rides.
> 
> View attachment 1410492



I feel some remorse......  Very nice Racer.  Glad to see it is being enjoyed


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## SirMike1983

Interestingly, the conditions for riding this week have been the same or slightly cooler than when I began the season in the first week of April. It has been well below normal these past couple weeks.


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## SirMike1983

It's pollen and dust season here now. But the weather is getting better and there's enough daylight for a pretty good length ride at the end of the day.


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## SirMike1983

I added one of the waterslide "Hat in the Ring" transfers from Bicycle Bones. It went on just fine by following the directions that came with the decal. I like the extra it adds to the frame.


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## SirMike1983

A classic Birmingham era Phillips roadster.


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## kostnerave

I always enjoy seeing your bicycles. Beautiful!


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## SirMike1983

A few days ago, I got to have a solid little race on the 1960s Schwinn Racer with an incoming thunderstorm to get back to my place in time to avoid the rain and lightning. The Racer made it back with about 10 min to spare, so earned its stripes. 

One recommendation I have to make is that you bring a cell phone with you in your saddle bag and have a weather app/alert on it for lightning. When I got down to the lake in the next town over, everything looked OK. There were some clouds, but nothing serious that I could see from where I the park where I stopped. My phone buzzed and warned of incoming lightning and heavy rain. I figured I'd follow the phone's advice and start my return rather than going farther out.

It turned out to be the correct decision. As I left the woods and got on the main road, I noticed the dark clouds were approaching very quickly. Having looked at the weather radar on the phone app, and seeing the clouds moving in, I gave it everything to beat the storm back to my place. The Schwinn Racer performed nicely and I made it back with 10 minutes to spare.


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## SirMike1983

Nice, long ride on a good evening a couple nights ago. Plenty of hills to climb!


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## SirMike1983

Shady part of the woods in the evening...


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## SirMike1983

A nice evening - got the bike loaded and ready for the next ride.


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## SirMike1983

Had the 1947 New World out the other night. We're finally starting to get some better weather. This summer has been very rainy, humid, and generally cooler than normal. By now, we usually have hot, dry weather. Hopefully some more dry days are on the way though.


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## Goldenrod

SirMike1983 said:


> More dusting off bikes in storage, airing up tires, tweaking seats/posts, etc. After that, I get to ride each a bit, which is the fun part of the exercise. 1958 Raleigh Sports and 1946 Hercules Model C:
> 
> https://bikeshedva.blogspot.com/2017/04/english-three-speed-bikes.html
> 
> View attachment 633923
> 
> View attachment 633924
> 
> View attachment 633925
> 
> View attachment 633926




I do all that each Spring after my wife gives me my yearly hose bath.


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## SirMike1983

Schwinn Superior out and about the other night.


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## SirMike1983

1974 Raleigh Sports with Dynohub and B&M Lumotec Classic headlamp. You can run the Lumotec with a stock tail light and it will give you a boost up front compared to a stock lamp. It's still not a lot of light, but it's an improvement.


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## slowride

SirMike1983 said:


> 1974 Raleigh Sports with Dynohub and B&M Lumotec Classic headlamp. You can run the Lumotec with a stock tail light and it will give you a boost up front compared to a stock lamp. It's still not a lot of light, but it's an improvement.
> 
> View attachment 1482005



Hello Mike, very nice Superbe and nice upgrade. Are those Panaracer col de vie? If yes, how do you like them compared to others?


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## SirMike1983

slowride said:


> Hello Mike, very nice Superbe and nice upgrade. Are those Panaracer col de vie? If yes, how do you like them compared to others?




They're the best tire I've ridden for a stock Raleigh Sports. I'd rate the Schwalbe Delta Cruiser a close second. Both the Panaracer and the Schwalbe are larger-than-stock tires and both have better quality control than something like a Kenda or Duro. The Panaracer in particular takes a lot of the sharpness off the bumps. You will work to get them to fit under the fenders, but once you have a fit, they're worth it. You'll notice the difference immediately if you're upgrading from a Kenda or a Duro.


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## SirMike1983

Another storm... another flood along my ride route. I took the Schwinn Superior 3-speed out and had a look at the high water from the recent rain storm we had.


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## SirMike1983

Nice day for a ride. This is a beautiful, grey 1951 Raleigh Clubman.


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## SirMike1983

Schwinn Superior evening ride. Lots of fall color now, but the days are getting shorter.


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## SirMike1983

Ok, admittedly "fall" now - changing leaves and a Schwinn Racer 3-speed.


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## SirMike1983

Winter cleaning... routine maintenance and adding LED lights to a couple of bikes: 1960s Schwinn Racer and 1950 Schwinn Superior. On the red Racer, I converted the bars from the all-purpose cruiser type bars to the Schwinn north road style. The red Racer also got a new kickstand spring retaining pin, which tightened it up nicely.


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## SirMike1983

First ride of the season. This is the 1964 Schwinn Traveler.


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## Eric Amlie

Looks like the 23" frame. Don't seem to see many of those in the 26" wheeled bikes.
The brown leather saddle is very handsome on the black bike, and I imagine a good deal more comfortable than the original.


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## SirMike1983

Last of the shakedown rides for the 1964 Schwinn Traveler. There is always that last set of little adjustments you can only make after you know how it rides. The brakes need just a little adjustment and the headset just a little tightening. But it came together pretty well.


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## Eric Amlie

I had one in Coppertone as a 12 year old, but this one is very handsome in black.


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## SirMike1983

A few from this evening


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## 1motime

SirMike1983 said:


> A few from this evening
> 
> View attachment 1601789
> 
> View attachment 1601790
> 
> View attachment 1601791



Looks like a nice spring evening ride.


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## SirMike1983

1962 Raleigh Export Model Roadster - love the dark green on this one.


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## SirMike1983




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## 1motime

That Racer wants to go.  The road is ready.  Don't have that sort of riding conditions in Los Angeles...Enjoy!


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## SirMike1983

Nice day for a ride: 1958 Raleigh four speed (FW).


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## Miq

Still so few leaves on the trees there Mike.  I noticed that gives you a little more visibility around the bends in the road. 😀

Neat looking rear reflector/light doodad on the seat stay.  Is there power to it from the bag?  I see the front light looks like it’s powered too.  Pretty stealth and vintage looking still.  Nice.


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## SirMike1983

These are rechargeable lights. With the tail light, the actual light portion comes out of the silver shell and recharges with a USB cord. It seems to be a new-ish light called an "Aluma-lite", where the functional light unscrews from the little shell and you just charge with a phone charger or other USB cord. I should do a review, because it's actually pretty powerful for a tail light, and it looks better than most of the modern, rubber ones.

The front light is a light I made from an old Miller lamp shell - I mounted a cree LED in the light dish and soldered a swith for it. A rechargeable battery rests on the shelf of the lamp bracket.


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## bulldog1935

this is the first time I've been able to see this thread this year - for some reason, CABE "not available" page comes up most often


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## SirMike1983

A couple Schwinn cranks cleaned up over the weekend. The one on the right needed minimal work, but the ones on the left... lots of brushing. If you have a drill press, it's worth looking into a wire brush attachment for it. I'm finding the drill press with wire brush is nice for work where you don't quite need a bench grinder brush but you need something bigger than a Dremel.


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## 1motime

Good idea using a drill press!  Brass brushes are highly recommended especially when plating is loose or needs to be protected


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## slowride

I have submerged steel cranks in evaporust and had success. Just make sure it’s completely submerged or you will etch the part at the “water” line.


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## SirMike1983

We have a nice, new pedestrian bridge here that was built in the past few months. And the weather is getting a bit warmer finally as well. The leaves all came out in the past week or 10 days - all at once sort of thing. Hopefully a good riding season ahead.


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## juvela

-----

luv the "slippery when wet or icy" sign

figure almost looks like it could be surfing...


-----


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## SirMike1983




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## juvela

-----





that's some fine gardening being done there

the gardener makes it look so natural


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## juvela

SirMike1983 said:


> These are rechargeable lights. With the tail light, the actual light portion comes out of the silver shell and recharges with a USB cord. It seems to be a new-ish light called an "Aluma-lite", where the functional light unscrews from the little shell and you just charge with a phone charger or other USB cord. I should do a review, because it's actually pretty powerful for a tail light, and it looks better than most of the modern, rubber ones.
> 
> The front light is a light I made from an old Miller lamp shell - I mounted a cree LED in the light dish and soldered a swith for it. A rechargeable battery rests on the shelf of the lamp bracket.
> 
> View attachment 1605957
> 
> View attachment 1605958
> 
> View attachment 1605959




-----

let the above post be a lesson to readers...

...if Mike capable of this with lighting makes one wonder what may be going on inside all of those Sturmey hub shells of his?!?!


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## Oilit

juvela said:


> ----- View attachment 1645321 that's some fine gardening being done there the gardener makes it look so natural -----






juvela said:


> -----
> View attachment 1645321
> 
> 
> that's some fine gardening being done there
> 
> the gardener makes it look so natural
> 
> 
> -----



Yeah, That's the effect I go for too, at least until the neighbors start complaining! It's amazing what volunteers, sometimes it's a trumpet vine, sometimes it's poison ivy.


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## juvela

-----

trumpet vine: "today i'll cover this fence, tomorrow i'll cover the roof, the day after the whole county..."

have been fortunate with volunteers in recent years that they have done the convenient thing and selected good spots to germinate

have a volunteer privet on the backside o' me garage where the previous shrub had expired

another volunteer shrub began in back yard in a spot previously occupied by a hibiscus which was called home

convey me best wishes to "the bombers" 😸


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## SirMike1983

This has been a good week for riding so far - no rain, warm weather, and somewhat less pollen (still quite a bit). This spring was tough in terms of cold, rainy weather but we are improving it seems.


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## juvela

-----

😉

looks a beautiful cycling area!

am envious of your verdure, living as i do in drought stricken terra

apologies for taking your outstanding thread down a horticultural sideroad

shall endeavour to abide to the topic of two-wheelers...


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## SirMike1983

juvela said:


> -----
> 
> 😉
> 
> looks a beautiful cycling area!
> 
> am envious of your verdure, living as i do in drought stricken terra
> 
> apologies for taking your outstanding thread down a horticultural sideroad
> 
> shall endeavour to abide to the topic of two-wheelers...
> 
> 
> -----




It's fine with me. Where I live and ride, there are more plants this time of year than anything else. Though the automobile traffic on the main roads has gotten pretty bad over the past 2 years...

I thought this big sugar maple was pretty impressive the other day. Behind it is a full-sized colonial for comparison. That's a big tree.


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## Oilit

SirMike1983 said:


> It's fine with me. Where I live and ride, there are more plants this time of year than anything else. Though the automobile traffic on the main roads has gotten pretty bad over the past 2 years...
> 
> I thought this big sugar maple was pretty impressive the other day. Behind it is a full-sized colonial for comparison. That's a big tree.
> 
> View attachment 1646715



One of the advantages of riding a bicycle is you can stop and smell the roses without someone behind you leaning on their horn!


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## juvela

Oilit said:


> One of the advantages of riding a bicycle is you can stop and smell the roses without someone behind you leaning on their horn!




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hmmm, see now that shall needs be fit meself out with one of those big air horns employed by eighteen wheelers for those occasions whenst Oilit be ahead o' me on the road...

---

Mike -

wanted to let you know of a newly begun thread over at BF where many of your beautiful ride report images would fit right in

alas, undesirables such as meself are unable to envoy to ye any PM's...

Bikes on Bridges


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## SirMike1983

juvela said:


> -----
> 
> hmmm, see now that shall needs be fit meself out with one of those big air horns employed by eighteen wheelers for those occasions whenst Oilit be ahead o' me on the road...
> 
> ---
> 
> Mike -
> 
> wanted to let you know of a newly begun thread over at BF where many of your beautiful ride report images would fit right in
> 
> alas, undesirables such as meself are unable to envoy to ye any PM's...
> 
> Bikes on Bridges
> 
> 
> -----




I'll check my inbox settings again. I don't have you on ignore. Box may be full or else I have privacy setting in place inadvertently to limit new PMs inbound.  I'll check out that thread at BF.

Edit: I think I found it - had my profile limited. Should be OK now, at least if I changed the settings correctly.


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## juvela

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thank you!

Officer John Candy was on duty doing his utmost to keep out the riff-raff.   😉 

Must admit am probably about as raff-riff as she gets.  😱



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## Oilit

juvela said:


> -----
> 
> thank you!
> 
> Officer John Candy was on duty doing his utmost to keep out the riff-raff.   😉
> 
> Must admit am probably about as raff-riff as she gets.  😱
> 
> 
> 
> -----



Might have something to do with that air horn, buster!


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## SirMike1983

Had some time the other day to finally sweep out the garage, which means moving bikes out and getting out the push broom. I got a quick group shot of what I had moved to sweep out the back half of the garage. Some of the bikes still have a good coating of green pollen on them... I don't think I've ever had all of them totally clean at one time. I probably should do some more dusting...


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## Miq

That’s some lightweight loveliness! 🤩


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## SirMike1983

Miq said:


> That’s some lightweight loveliness! 🤩



And it could be an ad for Brooks saddles.


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## SirMike1983

Another nice sighting:


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## juvela

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just look at that Oilit!

verily SirMike's gardener merits the appellation "Landscape Artiste"  🌺


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## SirMike1983

Working on a very nice 1967 Raleigh Sprite project, I revisited making bronze green touch-up paint.









						Paint: Raleigh Bronze Green Touch-Up
					

A blog devoted to vintage bicycle repair and cycling in general.




					bikeshedva.blogspot.com
				




Starting with a mixture proposed by user "Willy Dahm" on YouTube, I adapted the recipe to work on the very nice, 1967 bronze green paint. Bronze green varies from bike-to-bike and seems to be more a family of similar colors than one, single color. But the Dahm recipe is a good starting point, and with some adjustments, seems to be workable on many bikes.

The original Dahm mixture:

12 drops of Testors Gloss Bright Lime
1 drop or 2 drops of Testors Gloss Black
The Dahm mixture is a great starting place, and he did well finding readily-available paints to mix. What I found is that Mr. Dahm's mixture, at least on very bright and good-condition 1960s bronze green, should be modified just a bit as follows:

14 drops Testors Gloss Bright Lime (has a metallic component)
1 drop Testors Gloss Black
1 drop Testors Flat Brass (adds little light brown to the mix, with the metal element
Be sure to adjust your mixture based on the final dry of the touch-up. Each bronze green bike seems a little different, based on the paint used originally, please fading and wear. Matching wet paint to original, dry paint may not give the best results. I found the paint went on a little greener and dried a little golder/browner to match the original once dry.


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## juvela

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thanks very much for sharing this tip

looks pretty darn good

readers note that SirMike even kept his fingernails clean



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## SirMike1983

1967 Raleigh Sprite is pretty much done. I'm nearing the end of testing everything out and getting everything finalized. It came out pretty nicely, but condition is king when you find these bikes. Starting with something in very good condition is a big help, versus something where everything needs to be re-done.


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## SirMike1983

Couple from the other night - nice evening for a ride.


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## SirMike1983

Schwinn Superior


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## SirMike1983

1967 Raleigh Sprite - evening ride.


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## SirMike1983

Progress on a 1942 Schwinn New World B.F. Goodrich bike:





This bike started as a bike core I bought from another member. The idea is to build it up into a presentable and functional three speed bike. The war-era frame was produced with a minimum of finishing and polishing. I also took in a pre-war New World bike core, and this war era frame is much less polished than the pre or post war frames. 





But this bike should round out nicely. It will be a three speed with a caliper brakes when it is all done.


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## SirMike1983

More progress. Still need to set up the torpedo tail light and the pedals.


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## SirMike1983

Here is the 1942 B.F. Goodrich/Schwinn New World project more or less completed. I've done a couple short rides to get the fitting and adjustments set up. But I'm sure there will still be more fooling with fitments and the like after longer rides.









I gave this a little bit of a war-era aviation theme. It has the eagle headbadge, wing chainguard, and a USAAF style pin on the saddle bag.









I'm fairly happy with this project so far, especially starting out with just the core of a bike and building up into a full machine.


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## SirMike1983

I may swap those pedals after looking again at these pictures. They're old Torringtons and they run well, but the relic look seems a bit out of place with the condition of the rest of the bike. I have some nicer, newer pedals to try (MKS 3000S 1/2 inch).

I do have a question - are the Persons teardrop pedal reproductions any good? I know the pictures make them look nice, but how are the bearings and surfaces in them? Display only or viable riders? Teardrop pedals would look nice with the wing and aviation theme.


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## 1motime

They are attractive pedals and would fit your theme. Some repro pedals don't have removable axles that allow for bearing adjustment or removal. That might be a deal breaker


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## SirMike1983

1motime said:


> They are attractive pedals and would fit your theme. Some repro pedals don't have removable axles that allow for bearing adjustment or removal. That might be a deal breaker




I did not think of that. Ideally it would be something I could rebuild after a season or two of riding. They look nice enough for sure...


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## Misterotis

SirMike1983 said:


> First ride of the season. This is the 1964 Schwinn Traveler.
> 
> View attachment 1593460
> 
> View attachment 1593461



Might I ask what state you live in? It's beautiful there. I live in parched Southern California, and wish I had places like this to ride. Reminds me a bit of NJ where I grew up.


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## SirMike1983

Misterotis said:


> Might I ask what state you live in? It's beautiful there. I live in parched Southern California, and wish I had places like this to ride. Reminds me a bit of NJ where I grew up.




I live in Connecticut. We had a very dry period in August, but it has equalized back out in the past 3 weeks or so. The riding season here runs April through October. The trade off is that November through March can be snowy and the road salt puts an end to riding for those months. There's always a trade off.


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## Misterotis

SirMike1983 said:


> I live in Connecticut. We had a very dry period in August, but it has equalized back out in the past 3 weeks or so. The riding season here runs April through October. The trade off is that November through March can be snowy and the road salt puts an end to riding for those months. There's always a trade off.



Yeah, in Jersey there would be those winter days where it would warm up and dry out enough to take the bikes out for a bit. As kids we didn't even think about the salt. That Raleigh got a little rusty. I really miss the east coast.


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## SirMike1983

Misterotis said:


> Yeah, in Jersey there would be those winter days where it would warm up and dry out enough to take the bikes out for a bit. As kids we didn't even think about the salt. That Raleigh got a little rusty. I really miss the east coast.




It was not as severe here an issue until maybe 15 years ago. The state and local governments here used screened sand with a little rock salt added to it. Eventually environmentalists prevailed on the governments to change away from sand because they claimed the sand was clogging up wetlands and ending up in rivers and eventually Long Island Sound. 

So the governments moved to a highly concentrated "brine" spray that goes down before the snow storm, and highly concentrated calcium chloride pellets during the storms. These newer products are lethal to steel. You'll see extensive rust on bare steel within days if exposed to liquid brine in particular. These  newer salts also are much more water resistant than the old sand was (you need to soap and scrub off, you can't just hose something down as you did with sand). This stuff can't be any better for the environment, yet we're stuck with it now. We have tons of mechanically fine but rusted out older vehicles on the roads here.

I wish they hadn't switched because the days when you could slip in a winter ride on a warm February day are just about done here. This new junk stays on the roads...


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## SirMike1983

Sprite on the road the other day:


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## Eric Amlie

How do you like the 5 speed hub?
I have one too, but have stalled out on refurbishing it.
I need to get back to it again.


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## SirMike1983

Eric Amlie said:


> How do you like the 5 speed hub?
> I have one too, but have stalled out on refurbishing it.
> I need to get back to it again.




The gear range is excellent and it can be paired with the cog size of your choice to customize where you want the range to start and end. Bearing adjustment is more critical than with the AW. The peripheral hardware has to be good for it work well - good shifter set up, good bell crank, good cable set up, etc. There are a few choices for shifters. You can go original as I have or you can go with more practical using a friction shifter on one side and a Sturmey 3-speed clicker on the other, but whatever you choose, the shifters should be in good working condition. They run fairly smoothly but I don't find they run quite as smoothly as the AW. I would not turn a beginner loose on one,  but it's a great hub if you used to working with old Sturmey stuff. The FW four-speed also is a great hub if you can find one (though you lose some top-end).


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## SirMike1983

1958 Raleigh Sports four speed out for a ride earlier this week.


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## SirMike1983

Swapped this 1942 Schwinn / B.F. Goodrich New World over to a set of pre-war touring bars. I got these from Bobcycles here on the CABE, and they go nicely with this bike. They're just a size or so bigger than the post-war New World type bars. They're pretty comfortable and go perfectly with this bike. The Gyes saddle still needs breaking in. It's definitely harder leather than a Brooks, but perhaps with some time and effort, it will improve.


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## Misterotis

SirMike1983 said:


> Swapped this 1942 Schwinn / B.F. Goodrich New World over to a set of pre-war touring bars. I got these from Bobcycles here on the CABE, and they go nicely with this bike. They're just a size or so bigger than the post-war New World type bars. They're pretty comfortable and go perfectly with this bike. The Gyes saddle still needs breaking in. It's definitely harder leather than a Brooks, but perhaps with some time and effort, it will improve.
> 
> View attachment 1717339



Love those North Road style bars. Is the saddle pretty stable with that front spring? Like the look, and have thought about getting one.


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## SirMike1983

The saddle is stable and the springs are much better than the cheap-o $40 saddles you see on eBay. The metal parts are about on a par with the Brooks. The leather is not as soft as a Brooks is out of the box. Hopefully it will break in - I definitely notice it's harder than a new Brooks when I'm riding it.


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## SirMike1983

A neighbor very kindly gave me the 1968 Raleigh Sports he had owned since he received it brand new. It's always nice when people do something like that, and it's a nice change of pace from all the bad stuff we hear today. It was certainly a bright spot of my summer.
So over the course of the summer and fall, I cleaned up the bike and returned it to form. It was basically all there. A few parts needed replacing, but it's in nice shape. I got it back onto the road just in time for a couple rides at the end of the season. I have some temporary LED lights on it now, but I'll do a better set of retro lights over the winter.


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## juvela

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SirMike1983 said:


> A neighbor very kindly gave me the 1968 Raleigh Sports he had owned since he received it brand new. It's always nice when people do something like that, and it's a nice change of pace from all the bad stuff we hear today. It was certainly a bright spot of my summer.
> So over the course of the summer and fall, I cleaned up the bike and returned it to form. It was basically all there. A few parts needed replacing, but it's in nice shape. I got it back onto the road just in time for a couple rides at the end of the season. I have some temporary LED lights on it now, but I'll do a better set of retro lights over the winter.
> 
> View attachment 1726238
> 
> View attachment 1726239




appears you may have fitted a larger than OEM cog...or maybe it just me auld peepers tricking me again!  😉


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## SirMike1983

juvela said:


> -----
> 
> 
> 
> appears you may have fitted a larger than OEM cog...or maybe it just me auld peepers tricking me again!  😉
> 
> 
> -----




I just noticed I missed this post from November. I haven't been checking here as much with riding season over until spring.

You are right about that - the rear cog is a 22-tooth Sturmey. 48 in front, 22 in back helps with hill climbing.


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## juvela

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thank you for the reply

hope that everyone in CT survived the recent blizzard safely           ;   ^  O


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