niliraga 

Finally a moment to take some better photos, after more (very cursory) cleaning to reveal more of the condition. I don't dare turn a bolt on this, beyond verifying that stem & post turn freely. Rims surprisingly true and spin well, cranks & headset show no play nor indexing, but brakes will need freeing up before she's at all rideable -- but all that work will be the fun stuff for someone else.

The peppering on chrome/steel all seems to be ready to come off with very little effort, and the front rim seems to be the worst of it all, with a chunk of material missing around the valve stem and some rim dings. Beyond scuffed paint, the only frame rust I can find is a tiny patch on NDS, right under the upper headset races.

Fenders are totally shot, saddle is newer, the "GB" locknut is missing from the front brake pivot bolt, but other than that seems to be ... all original?

bikemig 

This is such a cool bike. Are you going to be able to sell it? I'd be sorely tempted to keep it if it were mine.

niliraga 

=) oh, I am tempted, which is why I picked it up on a mad impulse in the first place. However, there's only so much of a fleet you can keep in an 800sf apartment, and no room for "trailer queens".

If it had been in worse shape and/or stripped of its original parts, I would totally find a way to rebuild that frame into the kind of runabout that could easily justify its presence, but this one deserves a finer retirement than that.

rustystrings61 

I briefly owned the next iteration of this bike, even down to the same color. Mine had a cable-operated Cyclo Benelux front derailleur, the same rear mech, and was an 8-speed. I got mine from its original owner, who had ridden it on AYH trips in the late 50s and early 60s. I wound up selling mine to a gentleman who has kept it in his collection for nearly 20 years now.

This is a BEAUTIFUL example, and I hope that if you part with it, it finds a good home!

niliraga 

the rack/pinion FD seems super smooth, but of course I can't tell how it actually works in practice as you're going down the road.

Ideally, I'd love to find someone here on BF who's been waiting on one of these for a similar collection, and who has something I am waiting on (hello, 61cm Expedition!) -- so will likely start things off with a cross-posting in the "For Trade" thread

clubman 

Spectacular example!

MeadMan2

I don't buy bikes that are not my size, but man I think I would break that rule if I had a chance to buy this bike! Love it!

bikemig 

Hah, it's my size but fortunately I don't have a 60 cm Specialized Expedition to swap with the OP.

3alarmer 

...if you end up trading it to someone interested in keeping it "all original", I have a set of those fenders here that I took off my Lenton Raleigh Grand Prix (same year) that I will probably never use. I'm afraid of them, because I have seen what can happen when you suck up a fender in the front, and it is not at all pretty. But they are white, like yours, and doubtless the same make and model.

I put some more modern fenders from SKS. They no longer sell white ones, but I guess if I were really ambitious, I could paint them.

Anyway, I think they're hard to find, so let whoever it is know I have them. Thanks.

niliraga 

Thank you! Just posted this in the Sales subforum, since I've included a dollar price as well as my preference for trading this inside the BF world. Will make sure your kind offer here gets seen as/when the time comes...

oneclick 

Front mech clamp is upside-down.

And I'd be getting rid of that horrid kickstand; the only way to have one is with a frame-fitting (tube or plate), clamping the chainstays is just plain wrong.

niliraga 

i know, that upside down Benelux plate is a chuckle. i mean, how hard was it ...

normally I'd be will you on the kickstand, but this is an original equipment Suresta, so I think quite appropriate for it to stay for the time being. Not sure it's clamping the chain stays - the mount looks like it's somehow set in between the stays, and not making the normal chainstay-smashing sandwich.

himespau 

So cool