Sorry, I had googled it and didn't notice it was just an excerpt.

Paging @rhm.

The leather can't be repaired.* One thing you can do, to keep that saddle usable for a while longer, is cut a triangle of firm foam, the kind that is used for floatation or packaging for electronics, and cram it between the top of the rails and the leather to take your weight off the leather. Sometimes that foam comes in thin sheets that you can fold up and squeeze under the rails. It doesn't really matter what foam you use, as long as it's firm and fits snugly, not so tight that it will push up on the leather.

*If I were to try to fix the leather, I would first remove all six rivets on the cantle plate. Then I'd form a thin piece of leather to glue to the underside of the existing leather with contact cement, and glue that under the place where it's tearing. Then I'd rivet it back together. Whether it would work would depend on whether contact cement can stick to the leather, and I'm afraid it won't. It looks to me like this leather has reached the point where glue will not stick for long.

It is possible to replace the leather (I can do that, but I'm pretty busy with other projects right now) but it's a rather involved process that most people don't want to try themselves.

Thanks for all the suggestions...
I think I'll hang it on the wall.
It's tough to say good bye to an old friend.
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...6af6f36492.jpg

And he does an outstanding job at replacement!

Yes, I've heard good things.
Between the shipping/duties and exchange rate I don't think it
would work out.

Raleigh Oddball

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...cf88a03548.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...0cb1677875.jpg
This one sports a "Super" badge.
A hardware store bike?
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...bcf9979963.jpg
This one looks dangerous...

Picked her up at a second hand store, 1990 Raleigh Caprice, made in England. My wife wants a girly girl bike so I bought it.
As found:
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...b2c16ce6d.jpeg


After going through & cleaning it, re-packing the bearings, checking & lubing the IGH, new cables, chain & tires. Note that my wife likes pink... Long term I would like to build some aluminum wheels, the original steel are heavy & rusty/corroded. I figure it would be a learning experience. There is a shop in the UK that has grips, pedals & the original baskets, just and arm & a leg for shipping... I'm going to see if I can work out a deal for combined shipping. The most important thing is, my wife loves it!
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...0fb1f6fd5.jpeg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...a4d5d6b27.jpeg
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...13ebb1efe.jpeg
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...68379511b.jpeg

Don't throw it away! About 10 years ago I took the old leather off of a saddle that had the leather failing like that, flattened it out and used it as a template for a new bit of leather. The leather I bought was a bit too thin, and I didn't take into account that the old leather was stretched, which meant that the adjuster bolt was close to its limit when all was said and done. So in the future I would use a heavier leather (only slightly though) and make it overall just slightly shorter but otherwise with the holes in the same place. FWIW the saddle I repaired in this manner is still usable. To form the leather I used hot water and a heated iron. If I had a form (like RHM uses) I could have done better.

No, he's joined his other fallen friends on the wall of valor...
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...9c92f0eaaa.jpg
These guys have literally been carrying my ass for years....

There's a four-part series on Stilltoe's relationship with Raleigh

Canadian Vintage Bicycle Show
 

Time is quickly approaching for the re-located CVBS. Excited to bring some stuff to sell and hopefully find some great project material. Burford is just a few miles west of Brantford and not far off HWY 403.
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...26fb5791c7.jpg

Puch Rugby Sport for $100 in CT. Looks like the remains of my initials on the TWT shop sticker, so I would have assembled this bike.

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...20761638657723

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...5b83e04f65.jpg


https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...b0b0df441d.jpg

I'm enjoying the extra daylight we get this time of year. I'm able to take longer rides after work in the evenings.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.co...609_181307.jpg

https://blogger.googleusercontent.co...31971123_n.jpg

The colour reminds me of a Trent Sports, perhaps made in Ireland. Most all the Irish serial number records were lost in the '76 factory fire.

Maybe call it a '62 Raleigh Sports and you're good to go!

Yeah, that oiler port on the BB is consistent with late 50s/early 60s.

This has been a good week for riding so far - no rain, warm weather, and somewhat less pollen (still quite a bit). This spring was tough in terms of cold, rainy weather but we are improving it seems. This Schwinn New World turns 75 years old this year.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.co...614_180939.jpg

https://blogger.googleusercontent.co...614_181001.jpg

The parts with the bike suggest 1950s: the pedals, the eyed heron, the headlamp, the graphics, the steel pulley, the shifter are all 1950s so I think the front hub (also 1950s) is telling the real story.

A coworker found this bike at a garage sale. I went through and cleaned it up, which was more work than one would expect:
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...bacf633749.jpg

It appears to be a Malaysian-built sports from 1980, based on the serial. There were several slight differences from a Nottingham Raleigh.

First problem was the drive crank was bent. I had a similar one in my parts, so no big deal, but discovered the crank spindle was bent while repacking the bottom bracket, One I had was shorter, but still fit. The wheels are rusted out, so found a suitable replacement set from the early '70s. The original wheelset has locknuts on both sides, but is standard Raleigh threading, as well as axle retention clips:
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...8902314581.jpg
original wheel and hub
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...c9ce28de39.jpg
New wheel with retention clips
The fenders are Wald chrome fenders and it was missing the chainguard, but I polished them up a bit and found a Wald chrome chainguard in my parts. Grips were shot, so replaced.

The guy who wants it is tall, so I pulled the seatpost and stem out all the way to the line. If it's too small for him we'll find it a home.

Bit of a mystery.....
heron eye- pre 61/62
old style calipers
oil port
date on hub
Sheldon Brown says FD is 65/66
N should be Nottingham

A couple things: it's missing the "Genuine English Lightweight" graphic on the seat tube that would characterize a typical 1958-60 bike, but neither does it have the early 1960s "Sports" in big red letters on the seat tube, or the gold rings on the seat tube. Other graphics are consistent with the late 1950s. That said, it looks like it does not have the late 1950s pulley boss on the frame but instead has the early 1960s type clamp-on pulley set up. The oil ports disappear in the early 1960s on the Sports.

So it's not something that is a straight-ahead Raleigh Sports type bike, at least as one would commonly find in the US. My guess is you have a Canadian market variant of the Sports, probably from the very end of the 1950s, probably 1959, and hence it doesn't follow the "typical" US market type patterns. My understanding as well is that a red frame and white fenders was one of the preferred color combinations for Canadian market bikes.

Edit: the thing about variants from the non-US and non-UK markets is that they appear with some weird combinations of parts and features and graphics, which being I think this is a Canadian market bike, is the case here.

All good points.
The gold paint accent on the steering tube also points to a Canadian bike.

TA Chainsets?
 

Anybody have experience fitting a TA 50.4 mm chainset to a 1952 Raleigh 27 (Super Lenton), Rudge 127 (Aero Special), or Humber 327 frame? Those three were identical except for headbadge, fork crown, and "livery." Normally it has a Sturmey AW IGH in steel shell, and I may go to an alloy shell. For the chainset, so far the BB cups will be salvaged and a TA 344 spindle, which has the correct bearing race positioning, will be used. Q with the TA chainset and a pista chainring is about 135 mm. I'm not sure if I can realize that, since I haven't fully tested for frame interference and chain lines. I'll soon do a preliminary assembly, but... any comments about the chainline? For track racing or a road fixie one wants good alignment to reliably hold the chain on ... any experience with the setup I'm trying? It will have a modern Specialized chain specified as ½" x ⅛". It does not have much lateral flexibility.

This hot-rodding project is a little like restoring a 1963 Corvette Stingray with a modern General Motors turbocharged EFI V6, though maybe not as sacriligious. Or a VW Westfalia Microbus (:thumb:) with a modern 2.4 liter Audi engine at 250 hp (:love:), with its turbocharger and intercooler. It's also getting alloy rims, double-butted stainless spokes. an alloy seat pillar, and a 1984 or so Ideale 92 saddle. But the paint with beausage will remain original, at least until I get to ride it.

Working on increasing the power output of the legs!

I doubt the chainline will be much of a problem since the SA hub allows you to adjust that. My concern would be if the BB has Raleigh threads, which might have something to say about the axle diameter of the BB.

Nice Sports for $135 in PA.

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...65199458544786

https://scontent.fric1-1.fna.fbcdn.n...yg&oe=62B16836