1974 Raleigh Grand Prix Rehab...Part 5...Frame Alignment
05-16-20, 02:53 PM
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1974 Raleigh Grand Prix Rehab...Part 5...Frame Alignment
I started assembling the bike today and got the derailleurs working great. When I tried to install the rear brake pads, I could not get the wheel centered in the seat stays. Checking the frame with a Park Frame Alignment Tool, I could see that the stays were off-center by 1/4". So with some scrap lumber I built this fixture to hold the frame securely while I wrenched the stays over with a 8 foot long 2x4. The fixture being attached to the floor proved to be very effective.
Last edited by branko_76; 05-16-20 at 03:33 PM.
05-16-20, 02:58 PM
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05-16-20, 03:30 PM
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Nice setup! When I've done that job, I install a couple of bottom bracket cups that I'm not terribly fond of and then place the frame in my vise, holding it by the cups.
05-16-20, 03:32 PM
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I thought of doing that but my work bench is so cluttered that it was faster (and more fun) to just build this thing.
05-17-20, 12:19 PM
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Interesting. I see conduit clips securing the dummy front axle. How is the bottom bracket shell secured, just the bottom bracket spindle riding in the two holes?
05-17-20, 12:45 PM
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05-18-20, 10:27 PM
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Aligning the seat and chain stays did not help. The wheel was still offset to the non-drive side by 3/8". Although not evident in the photo, I could see that the wheel was not parallel to the seat tube.
05-18-20, 10:37 PM
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I almost gave up but after giving it a day to sink in, I took some measurements and found that the non-drive side seat and chain stays were slightly longer than the other side. With the help of AutoCAD, I input the wheel radius, the axle length between the dropouts and the amount of offset. Using the "alignment" command, I was able to get the exact measurement that the axle needed to drop on the drive-side to center the wheel.
Using a fresh "flat bastard" file, I took off about 1.5mm from the inner bottom of the drive-side dropout.
*remember kiddies, files only cut on the push stroke, dragging a file across the work surface on the return stroke will only shorten the life of the file...
Using a fresh "flat bastard" file, I took off about 1.5mm from the inner bottom of the drive-side dropout.
*remember kiddies, files only cut on the push stroke, dragging a file across the work surface on the return stroke will only shorten the life of the file...
Last edited by branko_76; 05-18-20 at 10:44 PM.
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05-18-20, 10:39 PM
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Since the d.o. has no integral derailleur hanger, the hanger attached to the simplex derailleur will position the axle...
05-18-20, 10:41 PM
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The wheel is now centered and is also parallel to the seat-tube...
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05-19-20, 06:21 AM
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Well done! I have had many bikes with odd misalignments. You do what you gotta do you make them "right".
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04-10-24, 01:31 PM
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I started assembling the bike today and got the derailleurs working great. When I tried to install the rear brake pads, I could not get the wheel centered in the seat stays. Checking the frame with a Park Frame Alignment Tool, I could see that the stays were off-center by 1/4". So with some scrap lumber I built this fixture to hold the frame securely while I wrenched the stays over with a 8 foot long 2x4. The fixture being attached to the floor proved to be very effective.
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04-10-24, 05:45 PM
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I envy your amount of workshop space. 
__________________
"Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." --Theodore Roosevelt
Capo: 1959 Modell Campagnolo, S/N 40324; 1960 Sieger (2), S/N 42624, 42597
Carlton: 1962 Franco Suisse, S/N K7911
Peugeot: 1970 UO-8, S/N 0010468
Bianchi: 1982 Campione d'Italia, S/N 1.M9914
Schwinn: 1988 Project KOM-10, S/N F804069
"Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." --Theodore Roosevelt
Capo: 1959 Modell Campagnolo, S/N 40324; 1960 Sieger (2), S/N 42624, 42597
Carlton: 1962 Franco Suisse, S/N K7911
Peugeot: 1970 UO-8, S/N 0010468
Bianchi: 1982 Campione d'Italia, S/N 1.M9914
Schwinn: 1988 Project KOM-10, S/N F804069
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04-10-24, 06:18 PM
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differing effective seat stay lengths is one of the nastier frame alignment problems to solve...
have had a couple frames come through where the unequalness could not be solved by the method you employed
---
on a visit to Bob Freeman on Bainbridge Island (Seattle) to receive a giro of his collezione in September 2001 he showed me his Baines/TJ Cycles Flying Gate
all of that thought/care/planning and use of the very best materials on a bespoke frameset and Trev had constructed it with dissimilar effective seat stay lengths so that the machine's stern round thing sat in there gollywompus
-----
differing effective seat stay lengths is one of the nastier frame alignment problems to solve...
have had a couple frames come through where the unequalness could not be solved by the method you employed
---
on a visit to Bob Freeman on Bainbridge Island (Seattle) to receive a giro of his collezione in September 2001 he showed me his Baines/TJ Cycles Flying Gate
all of that thought/care/planning and use of the very best materials on a bespoke frameset and Trev had constructed it with dissimilar effective seat stay lengths so that the machine's stern round thing sat in there gollywompus
-----
Last edited by juvela; 04-12-24 at 09:50 AM. Reason: addition
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04-11-24, 07:19 AM
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Isn’t this about the time someone comments on British manufacturing quality?
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04-11-24, 09:53 AM
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The brake bridge brazed on a slant sure caught my eye
I’ve always pictured Bike Boom manufacturing to be like that movie scene in “The Court Jester” with Danny Kaye where they compress his knighthood training into one day using a process that normally takes a few months.
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04-11-24, 11:20 AM
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You know, I've taken as many pokes at Bike Boom British quality as most of us. But, at the same time, I am also impressed by my three early '70s Raleighs that are in near daily use that all still look good and ride great, despite being 50 years old. I have few other material possessions that have held up so well for so long.
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04-11-24, 01:28 PM
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And I will admit that I kinda have a hankering for an early International.
04-12-24, 07:36 AM
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