I finally finished my latest bicycle restoration project and I’m
pretty happy with the way it turned out. As I mentioned in my previous
post, I purchased a used 1968 Raleigh Sports 3-Speed from my local
church resale center for $20.
I completely disassembled the bike and rebuilt it from the bottom
bracket up. Here’s the list:
– Rebuilt bottom bracket (clean, new grease, adjust)
– Cleaned up cranks, new cotters
– Overhauled headset (clean cups, new grease, adjust)
– Front hubs (clean, new grease and adjust, *I’m not sure if these
hubs should have grease or just oil – there is a small hole for
adding oil in the hub)
– Rear Sturmey Archer hub (clean, add oil and adjust)
– Cleaned rust inside and out on wheels, new tubes and tires
– Cleaned rust from stem and handlebars, new grips (I ended up flipping the North
Road bars upside-down in order to create a less upright position
plus there is a certain “coolness factor” to the way they look now)
– I cleaned the chain and re-lubed it, but I think I’ll need to
replace it eventually. It was the part with the most rust and crud.
– New Kool Stop (salmon colored) brake pads. I used the brakes that
came with the bike and added these pads based on their reputation
for improving the stopping power of these old systems.
– The Brooks 72 saddle was in really bad shape. It was pretty cracked
and splayed out at the sides. I kept a clamp on it for a few weeks
and it has a more acceptable shape now, but I’m not sure how long it
will last once I start riding it. Might need to look for a
replacement.
Thanks to all of the great writing Sheldon Brown has posted on his site. I referred
to the following articles on a regular basis:
2. Three-Speed Parts from Harris Cyclery
4. Threading/interchangeability Issues for Older Raleigh Bicycles
I also purchased the bulk of the parts I needed for the project from
them. Total cost of the project was around $80 (not including the $20
I spent on the bike).
Sheldon also posted a podcast on English 3-speeds. He notes that the bikes were utilitarian, built to be solid transportation vehicles and “to last 100 years and proably many of them will.”
I can’t quite put words to it yet, but there is something that lures
me to these old bikes. Maybe it is their utilitarian purpose, possibly their simplicity or their ruggedness. I don’t think I am the only one who is attracted to these bikes. Cycles Gaansari, a custom shop in Ohio, is planning on a line of modernized bikes that will share the characteristics and ride ability of their English 3-speed cousins of yore. They are calling this new line Pedalwell. It will be interesting to see what they come up with. Given their current bike building philosophy, they should be pretty cool.