I'm quite impressed that you make your own springs.
I'll have to remember that little trick for the future.
I think I made one years ago with a staple.....
didn't work.

Guitar strings! That is some major resourcefulness. I'm going to have to file that tidbit away.

Super Superbe
 

Quite happy with my purchase and happy that I spent $0.00 to fix up.
Pump and leather saddle were not included in original purchase.
It also came with a 17T rear sprocket that's been swapped for a friendlier 19T.

Attachment 580984

You're ahead of me. I put on some normal brake levers and a mid 60s printed face shifter. Got the spokes tensioned on the rear wheel using my scientific wiggle method and trued the wheel :innocent:
I need to make up the cables and see if I can work out a soft dent in the fender. It's got all new bearings, a new chain and a 20T cog. I think the Brooks mattress saddle is original to the bike. Really ugly though. I'm going to hate finishing off this project using it.

Attachment 581023

Attachment 581024

I'm only ahead because I didn't do a full breakdown on this one.
I didn't re-pack the BB as I didn't want to disturb the original Raleigh acorns
(I poured some heavy oil down the seat tube )
I didn't repack the stem.
I left the tires on it etc.
I already have a very nice, original tall Superbe and don't really plan to hang onto this one too long.
Yours is coming along nicely and the green looks good against the red BG.

I am considering giving an offer for this Dunelt 5-speed. Hub is date stamped 67 11. no front fender otherwise looking mostly complete & original.

https://minneapolis.craigslist.org/r...277071875.html

NICE! :thumb: Is that a generator front hub?

A rare bike.
I'd buy it at that price.

Raleigh paint Question
 

I have brought a few Raleigh Sports home from the Bike exchange for some love and have had success Clear coating the original paint with Rustolium clear lacquer.

Currently I am working on a black 69 Sport which, after I stripped it down and cleaned it, had excellent original paint, with most of the decals in great shape .

What I have done so far is paint everything with Naval Jelly, then sand with 1000 grit paper to set up the paint. On the rear triangle and forks I then sprayed it with Rustoleum gloss black lacquer.

On the main tubes I spot painted it with gloss black then sprayed the whole frame in Rustoleum clear lacquer.

Overall the frame now looks like new. I had to paint over the thin pin striping in some places (I could never duplicate that THIN gold stripe) but the bike is looking great.

Here is my question:

What paint did Raleigh use on the old Sports? was it enamel or lacquer? Did they clear coat ?

So far I haven't had any compatibility problems.

I do wonder about longevity if I use black or clear lacquer. From my experience painting cabinets I know that clear nitrocellulose lacquer will yellow over time. It probably doesn't matter with black but might with some other colors.

Right now I am waiting on some gum wall tires I bought off amazon and I will have it on the road.

Here are a couple pics of old projects. The root beer '78 had just a little fading on the top of the rear fender and looks like new. Sold it in the spring at the Bike Exchange semi annual bike sale to a young lady who was in love with it.

The silver Sport frame was in pretty rough shape paint wise. After de rusting with naval jelly and a clear coat it looked surprisingly nice. Still had lots of chips and scratches but the gloss really brought out the original colors.

The last pic is the current project "Before" . I tried soaking the seat to reform it and it just disintegrated! the old leather just crumbled. I think I might try to make a new leather saddle for it . If anyone can tell me what weight leather was used(I'm guessing 10 oz. ) and has any source for the rivets I would like to know.

In a past life I was a hippy leather craftsman selling hand made leather purses on the street corner and I still have all my tools.

jster- No dnyohub. Thats ok. I need another three speed like I need a hole in the head. My OCD is kicking in & I will offer $75 in the ad e-mail response, but willing scrape together nickels to do the $100

But it ain't a three speed, it's a five speed! ;)

Just noticed this. For that price it should be at your house already. :thumb:

I'm partial to Dunelts. Someone busted in my shed door last year and stole my '67 3 speed.


Attachment 581225

@capnjonny I believe they did use lacquer with a clear coat.

That was a nice bike and a damn shame!

That SUX! Damned thieves. Need to have an open season on them. :mad:

Tektro R559s on a Sports
 

I used a pair of Tektro R559s on my Rudge Sports scorcher project. This is supposed to be a hot rod style. It already has a alloy case AW hub. Aluminum front wheel and a CR-18 rim is planned for the rear. I figured the aluminum brakes would fit nicely with the scorcher theme. On the front, it works fine, but the housing compression over the length of the rear brake uses up too much of the lever travel. I was hoping the new cable would settle in but I've been riding it a while now and it hasn't changed much. I was careful to square the housing ends and they are fitted to new ferrules. So in my opinion, the Raleigh lever and the R559 just isn't a good match for the rear brake. I'll leave one on the front, but the rear will be getting an old steel caliper with Kool Stops.

Thought I would mention this here.

I am putting a trade request on that FT sub for a set of pre 73 levers and Raleigh North Roads bar, maybe some grips as well. For trade I will have a nice set of 1972 fenders and chainguard in blue.

Looking to keep my scorcher project going. Anyway, PSA over!

@BigChief, you could install cable stops so you'll have two short lengths of housing.

Hmmm, interesting. Did some research. They come in 28.6mm. That would mean I'd need 1.5mm shim for the 1" top tube. a strip of inner tube would be 1mm around the diameter. That's only a half mm short. I could glue two strips together if it didn't quite tighten up.
Might try that. Thanks
edit:
Brain cramp...I could use Sturmey Archer fulcrum clips.

Hey all, first off i am super glad someone linked this thread to me! I have a post in the main C&V forum about my return to biking and my first purchases which are a 69 Triumph 3 speed ladies for the wife (though i ride it as well) , a 73 Raleigh Sports 3 speed which needs a overhaul and now today i got a 64 Raleigh Sports 3 speed but the chain guard looks like the 70's one...lol so I am not sure...lol

Loves these bikes already and I look forward to a long road of learning and growing with them.

Hey welcome! You've come to the right place. Pull up a Brooks and stay awhile.

Yes, welcome to the 3 speed club! Those Jetsons chainguards do go back to the 60s, but I've never seen a Raleigh Sports in this configuration before. The chainguard, the twist grip shifter, brake levers, rims, color, and wire chainstays are all unusual for a Sports. Never seen one like this before. I love this thread, I keep learning new things all the time. Could this be a Canadian Raleigh?

I never considered that, the seat is a red /white similar to the Canadian one and its made by a company called Wight iirc (i cleaned it a little)

I am excited to see what this bike turns out to be and i agree the color is most unusual, like a burnt orange when cleaned. I'll snap a pic tomorrow when i wash her.

@Scipunk look under a clip or clamp and you might see what the original colour was. Burnt orange is stunning but it might not be what it left the factory with.