BigChief 

I'm still amazed you found the correct short grips. Those, the shallow mudguards and the L shape seat post are the features that stand out as pre war.

gster

Thanks for the input.
yes on the head badge decal and there was a vertical Hercules on the seat tube
that I can make myself.
Unlikely that I'll paint the rims.
I took it out for a short shakedown yesterday which
revealed a few issues.
-rear cog/too small
-valve on rear wheel is hitting the brake pad
-seat post was loose
-handle bars were loose.
I don't think that this bike will make
it into regular riding rotation but
I've enjoyed the process.
It's certainly the oldest bike in the fleet

gster

The bars and lever array are actually Raleigh and came with the
short grips.
In truth all that's really left of the original bike
is
-the frame
-the brake parts and linkages
-the spindle and cups
-the headset

Alloyboy

We had a beautiful sunny day here in Ontario Canada yesterday. I put in an enjoyable three hours on my 3 speed.
Once again a big thank you to Dan Burkhart for supplying me with the 22 cog. What a big difference from the 18 that was on there. Mosquitoes are in abundance this year. Regards.

BigChief 

Well, you could also think of it as a long term project. I tend to like those. Personally, I wouldn't think twice about updating this bike with a 3 speed hub. That would put you on the lookout for a quadrant shifter. Or maybe a 32/40h pair of westwoods will come along. Think stripes! It's very likely that a good crank like the original can be found. That's a pretty common design. And then...there's the pinstripes. As you already know, I'm a tool junkie. A Beugler pinstripe tool has been on my wish list for a while now. Although, I'm a bit discouraged this morning. Maybe I'm just out of shape because of all this rain, but after a short ride today, my knee isn't happy.

Road Fan

I keep thinking, these are so much like randonneuses.

Road Fan

25.4 is the same diameter as for my 1952 Rudge Aero Special, made of straight gauge tubing by Raleigh Nottingham. So your wall thickness is (28.6-25.4)/2 = 1.6 mm.

Road Fan

This would not fit the red Mystery Bike (now seems that it might be a Gold Medal). The bolt holes might line up, but on the red bike and the blue one with a Simplex the mounting tab is as far back as possible and not occlude the dropout. On the Resilion you show here the mount is maybe 4 cm ahead of the dropout, and if you look at how the chain wraps, it most likely needs to be that far forward.

markk900

@Alloyboy - yes it was a great day yesterday and the mosquitoes are horrible. Got to take 2 of the three speeds out for a jaunt: the 49 Humber in its first “official” ride since the repaint this winter - all
went well though I think the new paint allowed the axle to move just a hair as the wide Col de Vie tire started running on the bottom of the fender (fixed).

Later her I took out the IGH converted Trek 600 and it was a joy to ride, other than an irritating creak. Turned out to be a not quite fully done up pedal. All is good and that 531 frame and

modern 700c wheels really made it fly.

BigChief 

I love this bike. It's got all the goodies. Tall pre 55 frame, duplex fork, window shifter and that wonderful chain ring. Great bike. Good color choice too.

julius rensch

great Humber Classic...Jules

3speedslow

25.4 is very common in Sport models, I got a ton of those. This is the first 15” seat pin I’ve seen. Surprised me.
Thanks for the math!

paulb_in_bkln

Derailleurs have come a long way.

paulb_in_bkln

Have you had the Trek since new? Is this its first makeover?

markk900

Not since new - I got it some 10 years or more ago - completely stock except the bar tape was changed and the brake hoods had dissolved. Rode it like that for a while but have done various conversions since then - always wanted a 531 3-speed so I made one. But no fear - nothing permanent was changed and all stock parts ready to go back on.

Murray Missile 

Just took possession of the Raleigh...... It doesn't do the picture justice. �� Original tires look good beyond that it's going to need a lot of TLC. RH pedal bent for sure, not sure about crank arm, stuck in high gear, will know more once I get it home and hosed off.

Update:

Got it home but didn't get to do more than give it a cursory look, yard needed mowed and there are severe thunderstorms headed our way so I've been "battening down the hatches". I rode it about 3 blocks at work and hit some pretty good bumps and there were no rattles, it felt very solid. The saddle and bars are at weird angles, the saddle has to go for sure and I'm not lovin' the bars. One of the fork leg decals is toast and it has some pretty nasty scratches on the rear fender and at the top of the seat stays but other than that the paint is actually pretty decent, should shine up very nicely, I'll clean it up and hit it with clear coat. Some rust on the chrome but some white vinegar and aluminum foil will get most of it. RH pedal is definitely bent but I believe the crank arm is straight, the shifter is toast and the brake levers suck. I also need a taller stem with quite a bit more reach and the bars are too narrow for me. There is a "Made in England" decal on top of the top tube and the head badge says Nottingham England at the bottom, would this indicate it actually was built at Nottingham?

BocaJr

Just picked up this Robin Hood. The AW hub is dated 61, but there is a serial number on the top of the seat lug and 6 1/2" crank arm (perhaps an early 70's flavor with an older replacement rear wheel???) The frame looks in overall good shape and should clean up nicely, Good. The shifter is dead and the pedal threads are stripped on the drive side crank arm, Bad. Lastly, this custom seatpost binder bolt must go! Ugly. The front tire looks as if it was recently replaced with a Kenda K40. The rear tire is very old, cracked and in need of replacement. Interestingly, the rear tire was a Carlisle brand tire. I didn't know the company made bicycle tires.

BigChief 

Looks like a Nottingham bike to me. It's exactly like the LTD model in the 1977 catalog. Any 22.2mm (7/8") stem will fit the fork tube. The good thing there is that any more modern stem will have a 1" clamp so you will have a larger choice of upright bars to choose from and will be easier to find levers you like. The Raleigh bars are 15/16".
Also, if you don't mind spending a bit, Tektro R559 brakes fit these bikes and work great.

gster

Looks like a good bike for a fix up.

SirMike1983 

Recently got this 1951 Raleigh Clubman back together and back on the road:

BigChief 

Yes, looks like a good Robin Hood with a few bugs to fix. Even has an alloy Sir Walter kick stand. That's a more premium item that I'm sure that didn't come standard. There's too many late 60s features to date the bike 1961. I'll guess 67-70 A 1961 hub is also a good deal. They tend to be better than the later hubs.

jackbombay

So nice!!!

how does that upper hand position work out?

SirMike1983 

The top position is just OK. Most of the time I use the drops where the rubber grips are, and the lower position is reasonably comfortable (actually a lot more comfortable than I though it would be). But I wanted a second position to just mix it up a bit on longer rides. The tape is just cloth Newbaum's, but it gives enough grip to mix up the positions a little. I'll try it for a season and see how it goes. I've tried using both my hands on the tape and laying my arms out forward on it and using the friction to control the bike. It tracks well so it doesn't take much to keep it straight. It's rock solid at higher speeds and it corners like it's on rails.

But if I find I'm not using the tape enough, I'll remove it next season and just go with the John Bull grips. I still like the North Road bars best of all.

I have a Wright's narrow saddle on there now. I'm going to a sprung Brooks Flyer. The roads here are punishing on that saddle.

Things are a little cramped - there's a fair amount over overlap between the VO toe stops and front fender.

It's very light for a vintage steel framed bike and you really notice that if you're used to the Sports models.

With the right cog, I don't feel overwhelmed by the hills, even though it's just an AW hub. The AW is so simple and basic, but still does the job.

The Panaracer Paselas were a great tire choice, I think.

I love the bike as a change of pace from the Sports and rod brake roadsters, but it's not a substitute for the Sports as a more relaxed, utility-type bike. I think you really have to own both to appreciate how they each do their own thing well.

BigChief 

Wow. That is a magnificent bike. I'd love to know more of the back story. Still hoping to find a club level project myself.

Murray Missile 

Thanks, looks like a match to the '77 catalog to me as well. I have an old alloy MTB stem on another 23" road bike that would be just about right and looks just vintage enough most people wouldn't notice. I was getting ready to decommision that one anyway. I also have a pretty good selection of DiaCompe brake calipers that would probably work nicely. I have a couple sets of R559's but they're pretty long reach. I'll have to scrounge up better levers, all I have are MTB levers and they'd look way out of proportion to the rest of the bike. Hoping to get the big chunks cleaned off tonight and get a date off the rear hub but I'm 99.99999% sure it's a '77.