mncorrado

Hello -

I am rediscovered biking it would seem with my kids. In any event. I have a Raleigh Technium Olympian Hybrid bike I purchased in 91. It says CX90 on my registration paper I got for warranty.

What kinds of upgrades can I do hardware wise to "improve" it without going broke? Perhaps it's a Catch-22.

The main issue for me is that the bake levers are difficult to reach. I have small hands. The brakes also seem to be connected to the shifters... like its all one unit.

Any information about this bike would be great or any suggestions on how I can update my bike would be great. Where I live there are a number of hills... not sure if that could be helped in different gearing choices or not.

I have included a few pictures...
Jeff

dabac

Upgradeitis can be real costly, and is rarely "worth" it. Replace-with-better as things wear out is about what makes financial sense.
The brake issue is fairly eas to rectify. If you look just at the "inside" of where the cable enters the brake lever base you see a spring-loaded screw. This screw can be used to set the resting position of the lever.
You may need to adjust the brakes to have the pads riding closer to the rim to get decent braking before the levers bottom out against the bar. sheldonbrown.com has a good walk-through of how to set up canti brakes.

Oh, on any bike that's been left for a few years, it usually makes sense to replace pads and even tyres, as rubber dries out over the years.

Charles Ramsey

Don't upgrade it they have a tendency to come unglued. If you must ride with the family keep it under 10mph. Get you a new used bicycle then strip the Raleigh for parts. If Raleigh had any ethics they would recall the frames and do a failure analysis like Henry Ford did.

HillRider

For a bike that old, it's likely the grease in the hubs, headset and bottom bracket has dried to the point of being useless. The best upgrade you can do right now is to have all of the bearings overhauled and relubricated before riding the bike damages them.

OldsCOOL

Nonsense. Technium frames are safe and well engineered. They do NOT come unglued.

mncorrado

Well I hope it does not come apart... the frame I mean. I have rode the bike at 20mph or more many times. I know it does flex a bit but I really hope it does not come apart.

Anyway... yes I understand about getting some grease here and there.

Would something like this work well if I wanted to replace the current shift/brake combo thing?

[h=1]Shimano EF-51 Shifter/Brake Lever Combo[/h]
Thanks...
Jeff

OldsCOOL

It wont.Technium frames are tough and quality made. The bonding process is reliable and sound.

Charles Ramsey

It turns out this information is not hard to find here is one. https://forums.mtbr.com/vintage-retro...ct-562743.html medal expands when it gets hot and shrinks when it gets cold. Aluminum expands faster than steel. This places tones of force on the glue. Glue rots over time as the volatile elements evaporate. Sorry bicycles are not well engineered. Even aircraft that are well engineered fail Boeing had to replace millions of fasteners on the 787 when a pressure test found there was a gap of .001 in the titanium composite joint. One might ask why didn't Boeing just glue the titanium and carbon fiber together because Boeing knows better.

Yukon37

+1 - I still own and ride my 91 Technium Supercourse. Replaced/Upgraded components as they have worn out over the years. IME still a sound reliable bike.

HillRider

This is technically correct but not applicable. The temperature extremes that any bicycle will ever see are a tiny fraction of what aircraft are subject to. Also the "glue" can have a very long useful life. Most of Trek's bonded Al frames from the late '80's are still in fine shape including a friends '88 1100 and my '92 1420.

Folowing up on your link, it seems the failures with the Technium frames were due to rushed and sloppy production rates, not an inherent flaw. So, by now I expect that any Tecnium that was going to fail from defective manufacture would be long gone.

OldsCOOL

I'll remember not to ride my bike at -40f. You crack me up (no pun intended).

Ira B

The only concern I would have is if that bike has been ridden hard off road. While the frames are plenty strong for road use I personally would not quite trust one for serious off road use and I believe that is where all recorded failures have occurred. This is no slam because a high end vintage 531 road frame would not last long being hammered on the trails either.

I have an early production Technium road bike. They catch a lot of flack because they have just about zero bling apeal and were not very expensive when new but mine is, bar none, the finest riding vintage road bike I have ever ridden, and I have ridden some VERY nice/expensive bikes. That said, it is a little on the stiff side of comfy but the butter smooth, arrow straight and true, road missile handling on the faster down hills more than makes up for that.
If you love the bike then obviously whatever you have to spend to fit it out for yourself and how you plan to use it is money well spent.
If you plan to flip it then I would try to keep it as original as possible.

Ira B

Also, You mentioned small hands and difficult brake reach.
I had the same brake levers on another bike. There is a small adjustment screw that allows you to change the reach of the levers. Just be advised that the shorter the reach, the more important proper cable adjustment becomes for proper braking ability.

dabac

They're both shimano, so assuming you have a 7-speed rear, that part should work. The 1st spec google came up with lists those as V-brake compatible, and your bike has cantis.
Some Shimano brake levers can be set for either, but the spec doesn't tell.

But what are you hoping to achieve with the swap?

It's unlikely that they'll do anything for your reach issue(which you should try to fix with the adjustment screw). And unless you current ones are gummed up, they won't shift any faster/smoother either. If yours are gummed up, give them a good internal shot of wd-40 first, that often frees things up.

wrk101

I prefer to get separate shifters and brake levers. I am a big fan of the Shimano Tourney trigger shifters, cost about $15 for a 7 speed setup, including all cables and housings (SL-TX30). Cheap. Front shifter will be friction, which I prefer anyway (rear is indexed). I've installed dozens of these.

Charles Ramsey

OK the difference in thermal expansion between aluminum and steel is .000007 heat the frame 100 degrees that is leave it out in the sun and the chainstay joint will expand .0007 inch. If the epoxy is .01 inch thick then the epoxy has has been pulled apart by 7 percent. West system epoxy breaks when it is pulled apart by 4.5 percent. Therefor your chainstay joint epoxy looks like cracked paint on a 100 year old house. https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/li...on-d_1379.html https://www.epoxyworks.com/16/pdf/flexible.pdf

HillRider

Again, you are correct but, IIRC, those joints are pressed together as an interference fit as well as being bonded. That way the thermal expansion either increases the joining force if the steel is outside or reduces but doesn't eliminate it if the Al is outside.

The fact that so many of these frames have survived over 20 years says the problem isn't fatal.

OldsCOOL

Nor should one limit their speeds to 10mph as was exaggerated in a previous post.

Ira B

These frames will not last indefinitely but I do not think in the real world they are as bad as your numbers indicate.
Consider that the epoxy actually expands more than either the steel or aluminum.
Also consider that these frames would almost stay together without the epoxy.

I ride the heck out of mine, it is one of the earliest production bikes and shows no indications of failure.
That said, I do inspect it regularly and would never leave it in the trunk of my car on a hot day ....just to be on the safe side.

Ira B

Pull over 50 MPH on the hill into our neighborhood every time I ride.
High speed handling is one of this bikes finest qualities.

OldsCOOL

I just regeared my PRE with a 24/13 freewheel and 53/39 crankset....all for the purpose of attacking all these hills in our area. I am shooting for a top-end record this summer on one of our better descents.

The frames on these bikes are very responsive. My Trek 460 was flex-city and when switching over to the PRE I loved how energy was translated to forward movement in "pulses" by each pedal thrust. Hill climbing is a whole 'nuther story, too.

I love this bike and like you I ride the heck out of it. Hard charging the whole way.

bloom87

sorry to zombify this thread but i ride the exact same model.

funny that another model name is "CX"... the geometry is almost good for ... cyclocross.

anyway it's currently my main bike. i've used it for 3 winters. it did fail, but at a cromo-cromo joint (dropouts/chainstays). got it welded back.
in the winter temps can drop easily to -15C here. I do leave the bike outside. it's getting serious use and abuse (curb hopping, etc.)

i have to say i've never ridden a bike that was as flexy. I can easily flex the bike simply by torquing on my flatbars while being on the saddle and not pedaling. it is true that the downtube has a big dent...

anyway, great bike.

and about upgrades : the model just above the olympian had the exact same frame but better parts. i think the frame is worth upgrading.

JanMM

Off topic: I don't remember seeing a post by a 'Guest' before.

Thumpic

Old thread; still funny as s*&! I have flipped dozens of these and NEVER found a loose or even suspect joint. I found this old thread because I got another Technium today to flip. First Olympian for me.

fietsbob

if the saddle is to low raise it , if you get full leg extension with that height the frame is too big for you..

can You stand straddling over it's top tube, and pull it up under you, and get 3" of air under both wheels..

1 hand on the bars , the other on the saddle & pull it up .



Otherwise:
I happen to like paddle shaped Ergon Grips , better than round ones..

Other than that new brake pads and maybe tires

service more than upgrades clean, repack hubs and BB with fresh grease..

but if its wrong sized frame go find a smaller one, that fits ,

rather than spend any on It.




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