sykerocker 

Restored this one last summer, was a gift to me from one of my long term customers. It's a Raleigh Royale. S/N 4719028 (which according to the 60's serial numbers should be a '69, but it seems much older).

Steel frame, no markings (some stuff from the seat tube are missing) but I'm assuming good old Raleigh 2030. Cottered crank, 48-46, the design reminds me a lot of what's on my Lenton Grand Prix. Derailleurs are Simplex Prestige . . . . . but . . . . . the shifters are white, the rear derailleur is white on the housing for the bottom spring.

Brakes are GB 88 center pulls. Araya rims with three piece steel hubs (assuming not original). Rear cluster is Sun Tour (obviously, not original). The mudguards appear to be original, pity the rear was broken off, but I cleaned and mounted them anyway as they really set off the frame. The Raleigh head badge is a bit fancier than what I usually used to.

Anyone care to guess what year it is? I'm assuming this isn't an American market model as I've never heard of the Royale, and my searches on catalogs isn't turning up said model. Then again, I've noticed that the catalog index seems to jump from 1962 to 1967. Any information as to where the bike fits in the Raleigh chronology would be appreciated. Nothing terribly rare I'd guess, it rides like an early 70's Record, but the Simplex gear shifts better.

Piff 

If I'm not mistaken the that's the "anniversary" headbadge, which corresponds to 1969-ish.

edit: Found a bit of info to corroborate my memory:

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...eadbadges.html

kohl57

Looks to be a c. 1965-66 Raleigh Royale. This model was out of production by 1967 and was first introduced in 1962. Looks pretty original and complete. The final versions did indeed have Simplex derailleurs rather than the original Cyclo-Benelux ones. The white delrin levers are quite original. Check the Simplex derailleur closely, they often have a two digit date stamp on the cage. The hubs look quite original right down to the original domed axle nuts.

Peter Kohler
Washington DC USA

sykerocker 

Yeah, the wheels seem to have been rebuilt. The hubs are what I'd expect from an early-mid '60's British bike, but the rims are obviously not. Was the Royale an American model? Over the years I've gone thru as many Raleigh catalogs as I can find on-line, but have never heard of the Royale model prior to this. Plus the styling seems to have more in common with the, say, 1962 Raleighs than the late '60's models. Raleigh tube plus Simplex, would this have been replaced by the Grand Prix?

kohl57

FYI... the Raleigh Anniversary headbadge was introduced for the firm's 75th anniversary in 1962 (it being started in 1887) and was used on "lightweight" models (a term that was rather hopeful for all these 2030 "racing" models introduced that year) and up to c. 1970 Internationals, Professionals and Competitions.

Peter Kohler
Washington DC USA

Piff 

Interesting, I appreciate the correction.

kohl57

These were sold to the US and UK market as the "Raleigh Speed Range" introduced in 1962 when Raleigh gave up all Reynolds 531 production in Nottingham and entrusted that to Carlton in Worksop. So this represented the Raleigh "lightweight" range going into the 1960s.

The Royale doesn't show in the original 62 brochure (see below) and I think it was, in fact, the Sprite model with a new name as the Sprite name was used by Raleigh US for a five speed Sturmey Archer hubbed sports roadster model from 1966 onwards.

https://threespeedhub.com/wp-content/...og-1962-UK.pdf

Peter Kohler
Washington, DC USA

sykerocker 

I find it very frustrating that nowhere on the internet are there catalogs for 1963-66.

gugie 

Reynolds 531 

Damn. You guys are GOOD!

dweenk

I have a Raleigh Royale from the mid to late 60's (wild ass guess) with a serial number preceded by "M" which may mean a Malaysian build. It has steel rims, wingnut axle bolts, Huret derailleurs, and a Belgian bike registration plate. I need to dig up photos so I can add them later.

kohl57

A Malaysian made Raleigh from the mid 1960s? I'd eat it on toast if it were. These date from c. 1972-75 at the most. In fact, the company that made them didn't even go into business until 1971.

Peter Kohler
Washington DC