Ring lock or wheel lock. I have them on several of my bikes. Pretty much standard issue on city bikes in that part of the world.

Aaron :)

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8227/8...8f04f811_z.jpg

Great Synopsis!
 

You're killin' me putting that pic of your rod brake Raleigh up there...

Regarding your first link: That is an excellent overview of the "sit-chee-aye-shun" as it exists today. The prose I'd amend is this:

"These bicycles have the sought-after full metal case around the chain to protect the rider's pant legs, as well as other add-ons friendly to hauling a day's gear. They even come with their own small pump mounted to the frame, as the old English machines did."

I'm sure we'd all agree that another reason for the full chain case is the fact that it preserves the running gear from the usual crummy, wet winter weather of Western Europe; which is somewhat approximated by our Pacific Northwest and to a lesser but still not negligible extent in our Northeast, Tidewater, and other "rust belt" areas. [not that tidewater is "rust belt" - it's the most generally prosperous region of the USA; what with all the bomb makers and spys living there - ergo: Fairfax County, Va.]

My other point is that the pumps, while definitely aesthetically pleasing, have been obsoleted by the CO2 cartridge inflators...

Danka!

[Aaron #4563 ]

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and the great outpouring of 3-speed bicycles from the American manufacturers would certainly bear that out.

IMO, the Chicago Schwinn products are, in many respects, right up there with the Nottingham Raleigh products of pre-10 Speed bicycledom.

I have quite a few Schwinns now - along with quite a few Raleighs - and I have this idea of re-purposing the rusty rims and handlebars ans stems on the near-basket case bikes that will be resurrected as "beach beaters"...

Anyway, to those who care to offer advice, what I'd like to ask is whether any of the commonly available "rust remedy" paints can be applied successfully directly over the rusty parts?

[IOW, stuff like "Rustoleum" etc.]

Obviously, the final result will be sorta funky but I just can't see parting out some of these bikes just for the SA hub alone...

Here's the latest 3-speed I picked up; the drop bars are coming off and some reasonably decent "swallow" style bars are going on there. This bike can be brought back to something pretty decent so it is NOT the kind of bike of which I am speaking above... What I wanted to ask about it is how to get the bad dent out of the rear fender if that's possible. The chrome appears to be in good shape...

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=333723 http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=333724

I picked up this pair of 1969 Raleigh Sports Gold Editions yesterday. These may just be keepers, I really like the look. I posted them in the catch of the day thread.

I've been avoiding 3 speeds for a long time. Bought these from the original owner, they have been sitting for many years, still have original racks and pumps. One S-A hub is 15 69, the other is 16 69.

One twist shifter cratered, the remnants of it are still there. I've got a lot to learn on these two. I've also got a tired 1961 Popular Special, that could serve as a donor if need be.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3788/9...ccbe46a7_b.jpg


http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3774/9...36eb3b14_b.jpg

The white pedals are wild!

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3799/9...b9f89732_c.jpg



thrifty bill

Bill, that is a nice pair of bikes and you don't see white Raleigh pedals every day.

Give the hubs a little oil and go for a ride and check your mailbox.

Thanks Keith, got it! I'll probably pick up some heavy weight oil tomorrow, rebuild the front hub, and give it a short ride.

I've got to pick up the donor bike that is sitting in SC right now. Drats!

Here is another Gold Edition Sports acquired 3 weeks ago. This is on the DC Seersucker Ride along the C&O Canal, my son borrowed it to ride in the event. The Gold-Editions were produced from 1968-1973, and were considered a "budget" version of the Sports. They have Endrick rims, Twist-Grip shifter, and White mattress saddle and handlebar grips. This one has the more traditional hockey-stick chainguard. The candy Gold color really pops on a sunny day. I replaced the white saddle and grips with Black. This one will receive a proper tune-up and maintenance when I finish my current project, a 1953 Sports Tourist.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5321/9...63d3a4ca_b.jpg
WP_20130707_015 by 73emgee, on Flickr

I used to ride my Sports on the C&O when I lived in Bethesda. I have been running basic street gumwall 26 x 1-3/8 tires on it for years. It rode OK on there, but I found it tended to have a bit of sideways bounce and hop on there. I usually stuck to the Capital Crescent up there. I've had better luck with the Raleigh DL-1 and the Hercules 650b on that sort of mixed dirt/gravel surface. Are those tires larger than the usual Kenda type for Raleigh sports or just a different tread?

whether any of the commonly available "rust remedy" paints can be applied successfully directly over the rusty parts?

I have not had any luck with this, it is best to remove the rust. Use a wire wheel if you don't care about the finish in the end or an OA bath if you do.

About the bike you linked to with the dented fender, the attachments don't work. I have been able to get dents out of fenders with some careful hammer work (ball peen). Go slow and back the fender up with some soft wood like pine. You will still see where the dent was but it will be straight. The following pics show the before and after on my daughters Hollywood.

Before:
http://i901.photobucket.com/albums/a...d/DSCN4481.jpg

After:
http://i901.photobucket.com/albums/a...d/DSCN4502.jpg

Hope this helps.

Yes, remove the crease and then the rust. Plain fenders like that blue one can be rolled on a fender roller/English wheel. Raingutter type fenders like on a Raleigh Sports generally get carefully hammered
out using a forming block and a ball peen hammer. Go slowly and be sure not to pound it too far out, thereby stretching/cracking the metal.

http://www.bikeshedva.blogspot.com/2...n-fenders.html

For rust cleaning, it depends on the fender's condition and the paint damage situation.

Oxalic Acid on a 1949/50 Columbia fender before and after conditions:

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nm7JGKH2K-...0/IMG_2802.JPG

Here is an example of a hybrid method involving both a Dremel wire brush and Oxalic acid:

http://www.bikeshedva.blogspot.com/2...id-method.html

Between the two, I like the brush a little better.

I have a cheapo body tool kit with 3 hammers and 4 dollies. It has been very useful for smoothing out fenders and chain guards. At the price I don't mind reshaping the dollies with a belt sander to fit the job at hand. They can be had at Harbor Freight or Amazon.

They are 26 x 1-3/8 Kenda's.

Ah- that's basically what I have but with the smooth street tread. I love the concept of a vintage ride, especially with all the cool trails we have in the VA/MD/DC area, but I just can't get into the clothing/fashion part. For me it's all about the bikes and the ride. I'd love to see a 3 speed/vintage ride group around here like they do with Lake Pepin over in the midwest.

OK, probably a dumb question, but the Raleigh Sports both have the cable housing stops on the chain stay. So there is no exposed cable along the DT or TT, and no pulley on the ST.

Does it work better with much less housing, a stop near the headtube on the DT or TT, and a pulley on the ST? I have a donor bike available with this setup, so I could do a transplant. The step through Raleigh Sport I picked up has a modern trigger shifter which looks out of place to me, so I will probably use the donor bike's older trigger shifter.

Thrifty Bill -
I've never concerted from twist-grip to SA trigger shifters but if I did, I would install the TT fulcrum sleeve and ST pulley for the very reason you cite: Less compression in short housing.

I agree about a local 3-speed ride. Would like to do the Lake Pepin someday. Until then the closest thing I found to organized 3-speed rides locally are the DC Seersucker in the summer, and DC Tweed in the fall, many great vintage bikes participate. When your ready to organized a local ride contact me. :)

My 1958 Royal 3-Speed
 

This is my 3-speed, made in England in 1968 all origional even the tires. I called it a 1958 model in the title but it's a 68.

http://imageshack.us/a/img600/2983/1ulz.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img845/7523/wx0k.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img836/3079/yhxj.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img33/4756/ucej.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img41/2299/iblm.jpghttp://imageshack.us/a/img837/9618/nv39.jpg

I would be interested in something like Lake Pepin on the here on the east coast. I am in the central part of NC, probably about a 5 hour or so drive from NOVA. However work takes me through the DC area every couple of weeks. :D

From what I gather if you want THE BEST tire for general riding on less than perfect surfaces the Panarace Col de la Vie is the one to spring for.

I have ridden the sister event to Lake Pepin, the ABCE Tour, great fun too.

Aaron :)

Also would love a Lake Pepin-ish tour on the east coast, something for us in MD, VA, NC. And I have a feeling Maggie would accompany me on the ride.

This afternoon I finally put her on my Ranger and, as you predicted, she loved it. Definitely feels a lot more comfortable with an AW than with a five or seven speed freewheel, even when indexed. So, the fall project is to find a decent, clean-up-able 21" men's frame, or a 19 or 21" women's. Anything from a Sports down to an AMF Hercules is acceptable. That Ranger is one of my pride and joy restorations, so I really don't want her to start riding it too often and getting feelings of ownership. She really wants a ladies Tourist, but I figure that's going to take a while to find. While I'm at it, a 3-speed Schwinn Breeze is also acceptable in a pinch.

Syke,
I will keep my eyes out for bike for Maggie. I am traveling a lot up and down the east coast this fall. Primarily between Philly, PA and Savannah, GA. So if something pops up and you need it transported let me know.

Aaron

@Yo Jimbo - love that bike - and with such well preserved paint and decals it looks like a lot of fun!

If we can get enough of a mass, we probably could do something on the Capital Crescent or Mount Vernon trail, perhaps with a riverside or canal-side lunch at the end, where the bikes can be shown and checked out by everyone.

The full cable housing is good on bikes that see more inclement weather... it shields the cable from water and contaminants quite well and the shifting performance is still very good unless the cables are left to sit... a Raleigh 3 speed that gets ridden regularly is nearly self maintaining while bikes that have sat for decades tend to have more issues.

Took the 1935 Hercules for a ride today and took a couple quick shots

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g4ihYoLqJq...0/IMG_3007.JPG

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Zajbh1Wybx...0/IMG_3009.JPG

Thanks alot, I screwed up though, I ment to say it's a 1968 model.

Man, you got yourself a nice little time machine there. Take care of it. I've noticed that English roadsters built (and rebadged) for American distribution seen to be a lot rarer than the original Raleighs, Phillips, Hercules, etc.

Sounds like a plan, let me know how I can help :thumb:.

Looking at the pics of your Hercules, are those the original handle bar grips? If, not where did you find them?

They are not the originals, but are old stock from the 1950s or so I'd say. They're "Apex" label and seem pretty close to what the Hercules catalogs depict. They were an Ebay find after doing some searching.

That is pretty fabulous.