This has to be a relatively frequently asked question but I just don't get the search system here on bike forums . Can anyone recommend a rear rack for a Tourist that would be both practical and a good match for the appearance? It's a 1980 so I'm not trying to go over board on recreating classic.

Thanks

@browngw and @BigChief

Thanks for the replies! I think I'll be saving up for a DL-1 or comparable full roadster sooner rather than later. I'm really excited to try out such a bicycle. The only thing I've had that came close were American balloon-tire cruisers with full complements of accessories, but the idea of having a more slender, taller wheel set and generally better-quality construction seems like it will make a big difference. Cheers!

-Gregory

@erileykc The DL-1 Tourist was a classic right to the bitter end in 1980. Unfortunately, it's tough to find parts for them. There's one place that makes custom rear carriers for them, but they're hand made so I don't expect they will be inexpensive
DL-1 rack

Don't forget to get back to us with some pictures when you do.

Some 200 odd pages back :) someone posted pics of their DL-1 project, and they'd managed to find locally (US) one of these racks
Looked really good and was a good fit.

Another local Toronto bike for sale.
A CCM Galaxie 3 Speed
Reasonably priced at $95.00 OBO.
Probably from 1969/70.
Could be a nice project for someone other than me...
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...4e09113a0c.jpg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...a7dcf9a636.jpg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...3406ece779.jpg

Go to craigslist and do a saved search for Raleigh Tourist
If one pops up you'll get a notification
Tip:
Also search for Raliegh Tourist as people often
mis-spell Raleigh.
I found a very nice Superbe that way....

You're right. I have a pair on one bike and I've been dumb to experiment with anything else. Not expensive and easy to service.

!!!

Wherever you go I hope there's a pub.

Am I remembering rightly that where the Sylvans now use rivets to hold the pedal cages they used to have screws?

The more I think about this the more inexplicable it seems. The Wrights built and sold maybe 300 bikes in the late 1890s and in 1903 they became two of the most celebrated men on the planet. Yet people looked at a bicycle out of the Wright's shop and thought, "Oh that old piece of junk. Who'd ever be interested in that?" Doesn't make sense.

The 2 pairs I have here are riveted. You can service the bearings. The joint at the inside bearing is very close and well fit. Dirt doesn't get in and the front has a threaded on cover. Very well made pedals.

Thanks for the tips, gster! And once I find something I'll certainly get back and share it here. Cheers!

-Gregory

The question I'm really dying to ask: Do you own the special wrench for the dust caps?

Things are stacking up a little on this end, too.

Finally came across an image of what I believe is a pair original early 50s handlebar grips used on Raleigh, in this case Rudge bikes. This is from an eBay ad for a very nice maroon short frame pre 55 gents Rudge. Boy, these are rare.


https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...c608f95ce6.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...6f2e634513.jpg
ebay rudge

I like the MKS Sylvan for my Raleigh Grand Prix (1973). For 3-speeds, MKS is still making a traditional block pedal without reflectors - the 3000S.

https://www.sella-berolinum.de/media...0s_720x600.jpg

I ordered two pairs from a seller last year because they offered a sale on the pedals that made up for the cost of shipping. It ended up being a good deal - the MKS 3000S pedals are much like the old 1950s-60s era pedals. The quality is good and they can be rebuilt (traditional end nuts, not rivets).

A Pletscher or Wald rack would work aesthetically and both are inexpensive.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...f59c8aaa01.jpg
Niagara sells them for $3.11, plus Niagara shipping. If you don't have one of those, you can use a Campagnolo tool #710 .

MKS makes some nice pedals. In addition to the touring pedals they make a shorter version whch they call "track". Appear to be exactly like the touring, but shorter. Too narrow, but I have a pair on my 56 Sports fake club bicycle.

Their road pedals are pretty ok copies of the old Campagnolo NR and SL pedals. They offer them with black cages like the SL and a pearly sort of satin finish which mimic the NR pedals. But, of course, they are no real match to the originals.

Above is a photo of an MKS road pedal NR copy with a #710 which was bought in, I believe, 1986. Getting the pic in the proper place isn't as easy for me as it used to be. Have to work on that.

If I go for another set of Sylvans I'll get the wrench. Just looked at Mikashima Industrial Co., Ltd.'s website. It's a pretty amazing selection of pedals, just in the Sylvan line--15 including the Ezy (quick on/off) versions, not counting different colors. I have a set of the Ezy pedals on a foldcycle, they have screws holding the cages, that's what I was thinking of in that earlier post. I take it by "getting the pic in the proper place" you mean down low with pedals on the bike? Amen to that.

Indispensable. Still a lot of folks riding at the beach barefoot or with flipflops.

Amazing old bike. The grips look like hard rubber, not the plastic used now. I had a pair somewhat like these on a bike during the 60s, but a soft black rubber, not very durable. Now I remember, my hands would come away covered with black stuff.

Eastman Roadster Update:
Awhile back I found a very nice Eastman leather saddle, the problem was finding a 3 rail saddle clamp...
Brooks has one at 19 pounds ($60.00 by the time it reached me) .
I managed to adapt a "flat" clamp that seems to work.
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...7d31ef039c.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...39228d12dc.jpg
I just need to find some appropriate black grips and we'll call this one finished.
It's only been about 10 years...
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...924039730e.jpg
I put this one together after seeing a Pashley Path Racer on display but couldn't afford the price.
Also has the MKS 3000 pedals.

After months haphazard searching I've finally found a bike quote I remembered by the writer/traveler Eric Newby. From Round Ireland in Low Gear, 1987: "Ever since the 1890s, when for a time it was fashionable, though never as a competitive sport, cycling had been and still is hopelessly déclassé. Even today the only socially acceptable bike for a member of the British upper crust is one that looks as if it has been retrieved from a municipal rubbish dump, and probably has."