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1950 Raleigh Clubman

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Grips - the old ones are shot. If they'll come in one piece, I use a utility knife to make a slit in the grip, then pull off each half. If it's beyond that point, then I usually remove with a putty knife if I can chip them away. Any remaining "goo" from the grips is wiped clean with acetone or rubbing alcohol, whichever I happen to have on hand. Don't get any solvents on the paint - they won't hurt the plating, but they can pull paint if you are sloppy.

With an old saddle like that, I use a Proofhide. I haven't ever tried sanding surface cracks, and I don't think it is necessary to do so. Check around the rivets (especially the nose ones) for deeper tears. If the saddle is structurally OK, apply proofhide per the usual instructions. It may be necessary to do a second coat after a couple of days if the saddle is very dry. But the second treatment should be more sparing. You want to get a little bit of moisture into the saddle, but not so much that you over-soften it. Do not tension the saddle while the leather is very dry, or right after proofhide treatment. It may distort or damage the leather.

The FM hub should get fresh grease in the bearing races and fresh oil in the core of the hub. You may need to blow it clean with WD-40 before re-lubing. General maintenance is somewhat different from the AW. Some of the FM series hubs have a fault with the left-side ball cup whereby the ball cup teeth break off and destroy the hub if the rider attempts to ride the bike after the tooth has broken free. (see http://www.classiclightweights.co.uk/sa-maintenance-blakeley-rest.html ). You'll want to check closely for rattling or play in the hub that indicate something would be wrong. I'd clean the hub first and then see what turns up. Sturmey materials are online here: https://www.sheldonbrown.com/sturmey-archer/fc.html .

The purpose of the FM is to give four gears in relatively close (the FC is even closer) ratio. This gives the rider a good chance at accelerating through the gears quickly from a start and then hitting a desired cadence. The trade-off is you lose some of the overall range that you get on the general-purpose AW and FW hubs. I like the FW better for hills but the FM is good if you're a stronger rider or have a flatter area where you're riding.

Many thanks Mike for all info on FM, saddle, and grips. Instead of flip top filler there is a spring loaded ball fitting (as is bottom bracket) as if made for special proprietary oil dispenser . Looks to me similar to grease fitting. Guess I will have to unscrew. I’ve always disassembled and cleaned AWs but Since parts more difficult to source for FM /FC and therefore risk of opening up and damaging , you think safer to just flush it and add oil and grease bearings? Some say not to use wd40 as residues will remain behind cut the oil when added later, etc. is this just people going overboard or should first flush with wd40 then mineral spirits?

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Thanks very much for the additional images and information. :smiley:

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wrt mudguards -

you might have a go at solvent bonding the cracks before going at them with epoxy or super glue

solvent bonding can "melt" the crack back together

it is the material used to assemble items from plexiglass

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wrt catalogue entry -

now you are going to have to take up pipe smoking! :D

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shop transfer -

fascinating as the way it weathers it exposes the original manufacturer's transfer underneath

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delighted to see who was correct as to pillar size...

...some folk should not be let near a turing thingus keyboard :eek:

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shall look forward to seeing frame after it exits the ablutional tub

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I don't know what polymer the fenders are made out of, but if you find a solvent cement that contains Methylene Chloride it is a lot hotter and will bond more plastics. Look for a specific "plexiglas cement" and check the SDS. Hobby shops will have Plastruct "plastic weld" which might be easier to locate. My west coast local favorite is this stuff from TAP Plastics:
https://www.tapplastics.com/product...tyImoqL1SFi_JOCRD0o6SLazFNX9XRQEaAk3qEALw_wcB
If it is going to work it will sit on the fender and leave a sticky spot. If it is not going to work, it will bead up and roll off. I would back up any cracks with an additional layer of plastic on the inside as well. That is a very cool bike!
 
Nice looking bike and really cool find. That roached Brooks bag is somewhat of a piece of art, a true wall hanger.
Inside the bag is a large reflector and the remnants of a wasps nest...unfortunately as I unlatched the leather buckles to remove from saddle the leather was completely dry rotted and immediately tore. Oh well like you said nice wall piece!
 
I don't know what polymer the fenders are made out of, but if you find a solvent cement that contains Methylene Chloride it is a lot hotter and will bond more plastics. Look for a specific "plexiglas cement" and check the SDS. Hobby shops will have Plastruct "plastic weld" which might be easier to locate. My west coast local favorite is this stuff from TAP Plastics:
https://www.tapplastics.com/product...tyImoqL1SFi_JOCRD0o6SLazFNX9XRQEaAk3qEALw_wcB
If it is going to work it will sit on the fender and leave a sticky spot. If it is not going to work, it will bead up and roll off. I would back up any cracks with an additional layer of plastic on the inside as well. That is a very cool bike!

Thank you Andrew!The fenders are made of celluloid (nitrocellulose)which I understand is the precursor to modern day fully synthetic plastic. It is extremely flammable and supposedly today only used for making ping pong balls.
https://www.britannica.com/technology/celluloid
After all this still not sure what to use to chemically weld; will keep looking.

Cheers, Steve


53FE6F63-5CE2-4C27-814B-451387083CDC.jpeg
 
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Yikes! Celluloid is very very flammable! Look up celluloid repair on the web and there are a lot of sources- mostly on old fountain pen sites. Most suggest some hot solvent and sacrificial celluloid filler material. Look around for ivory looking table knife handles from the 1930s. I'm leaving town say after tomorrow but I could send you one I have.
 
Yikes! Celluloid is very very flammable! Look up celluloid repair on the web and there are a lot of sources- mostly on old fountain pen sites. Most suggest some hot solvent and sacrificial celluloid filler material. Look around for ivory looking table knife handles from the 1930s. I'm leaving town say after tomorrow but I could send you one I have.

Many thanks Andrew for offer to send sacrificial celluloid ; no need to rush , I can wait; in the meantime I will study up on methods; plenty of other work I can do on the bike in the meantime; I will also use this method to mend the other fenders from the rudge I found last week .
https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/1951-rudge-pathfinder.153713/
 
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Thanks very much for the additional images and information. :smiley:

---

wrt mudguards -

you might have a go at solvent bonding the cracks before going at them with epoxy or super glue

solvent bonding can "melt" the crack back together

it is the material used to assemble items from plexiglass

---

wrt catalogue entry -

now you are going to have to take up pipe smoking! :D

---

shop transfer -

fascinating as the way it weathers it exposes the original manufacturer's transfer underneath

---

delighted to see who was correct as to pillar size...

...some folk should not be let near a turing thingus keyboard :eek:

---

shall look forward to seeing frame after it exits the ablutional tub

-----
Your thoughts on how to treat the rust on the frame and fork?
1) remove the rust.
downside here is if there is rust under paint , will lose paint. I have tried OA method but did not like results because it’s indiscriminate; “eats” aluminum, chromium and this bike has both. Don’t think best option.
Evaporust works well but pricey; how will bare metal areas look adjacent to painted ones?
2) leave rust: some people simply gently remove any loose rust and then apply boiled linseed oil (I know highly flammable) as it supposedly reinvigorates and preserves the old paint while preventing further corrosion.
Thoughts?
 
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Methyl Ethyl Ketone (MEK) is often used to weld cracks in celluloid. Acetone can also be used, but it can cause bubbles in the weld if you're not careful. The solvent is worked into the crack by capillary action - gently open the crack and closing just a bit until the solvent works in. Once the solvent is in, the crack is pushed together and held in place. Ideally, the joint is clamped together overnight, but sometimes you just have to sit there and hold it together for a few minutes, and then set down over night (where you can't get a clamp to push it together). The solvent joint may take a couple of days to fully cure. After it has cured, sand and polish the resulting seam level. It's easier said than done. Sometimes the weld is not as strong as the original celluloid, sometimes it turns out fine. I've found the job to be hit-or-miss.

Andrew is correct that if the crack leaves a "gap" of any sort, you're going to need liquified celluloid. Celluloid chips/shavings are melted into a thick liquid using solvent and then the liquid is worked into the crack. Cure time would be a week probably. Sand and polish the seam flat when cured.

If you're dealing with anything more than minimal cracks, I'd replace the fenders.
 
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