A friend of mine has been commuting on an old run-down MTB that is too small for him. He mentioned it "broke" and he's without a bike now. I told him I could fix it for him without asking him what "broke" means. He said it's not worth it, because it was always too small for him, and I realize that he's right. Whether the bike is worth fixing or not, it's not worth fixing for him.
Someone left an English 3-speed in the basement of my apartment building long ago. I asked, and no one claims to own it, so I took it and fixed it up. It had been decades since anyone had so much as rolled it along the floor, so it was really stiff. I aired up the tires and applied oil everywhere, and it's good again. There is some rust, but this will be a beater bike, so it's not worth fixing up. There was a lot of dust and grime on it, but it washed off easily.
I can't tell what year bike it is. The rear wheel has been replaced with a wheel that has a SunTour 3-speed hub. I know this hub. It's an exact copy of the Sturmey Archer AW hub, but it has no date code or oil port. I took the indicator chain out and dropped oil in there.
The bike has also had its left crank replaced and its brake pads and obviously the saddle. The seat post moves, and I raised it an inch for myself. It will go higher for my friend who is taller than I am. I couldn't find a proper hammer, so I wasn't able to give the stem expander bolt a proper blow. I wasn't able to free the wedge in the stem and move the stem, but it might not be stuck once it is met with a hammer. The bolt does turn in the stem. I'm leaving it as is for now.
The tires have no dry rot!
I took it for a 2.6-mile ride around the neighborhood. I want to get rid of the rattle from the little ornament on the front of the front fender. Plus there is a click each time the master link comes around the rear cog, so there may be some alignment problem. Maybe the master link is banging on the chainguard.
Ideally, I will overhaul the BB, front hub, and headset. But I'm not sure I will. The front hub is very rough and may not last much longer, but then again, betting against the Raleigh's longevity isn't necessarily a good idea.
Can anyone guess what year this is?
Please remind me: which side does the adjustable cone of the front hub go on?
