3alarmer 

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...this was a project that took some time. Here are some images from the first ride today.

3alarmer 

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...I think this is the bike that Peter Kohler used as an example on his history page, as originally sold on ebay to someone else. Anyway, that's pretty much what it looked like when I got it. It had been a wall hanger.




Like all the "time capsule" bikes I've worked on over the years, this one had some significant mechanical issues. On the upside, it was pretty much all there. More later.

bikemig 

Cool bike, subscribing to the thread.

TenGrainBread 

Very nice. Do the Benelux mechs work well?

ThermionicScott 

Me too! Interested to hear some ride reports.

3alarmer 

...once you get them adjusted correctly and lubricated well, they are very solid performers. I think it helps that on the front of this bike, there's only a two tooth jump, from 47 to 49, and the chainrings are now pretty straight (after an hour or two of bending and banging on them. ) I honestly did not expect the rear derailleur to shift nearly as well as it does. Quite smooth and effortless. It runs backward, like the old Suntour Skitter. So with cable tension released, it seeks out the largest rear sprocket, and pulling the cable shifts it to the smaller cogs in back.

I did have a kind of near death experience figuring out how to pull out the broken pull chain remnant from the spring guide rod. It's designed to be in there free, with the anchor pin loose from fully seated by a full turn. So it should just screw right out. This one was pretty solidly seized in there. So after a session with a MAPP gas torch and some Freeze Off, when It was still not free, I was kinda stuck and looking on e-bay for a different one.

Then as I was looking at the damn thing in the bench vise, it occurred to me that the special tool I needed would look a lot like the slotted spindle you use to install helicoils. I looked at my collection of that stuff, and an M6 helicoil installation tool is exactly the right diameter to tap in there with a small hammer. It grabbed the top tongue of the pin and with some more Freeze Off spun it out easily. Here is a diagram of the assembly (courtesy of someone on Classic Lightweights).

Hudson308 

Wow, that is a time capsule! Beautiful bike.

I've got one from the early 60's I think, but it's a totally different animal.
Mine looks like a standard roadster frame with different bits bolted on, whereas yours is designed as a "sport" bike from the frame on out.

USAZorro

I have a Lenton Sports that splits the difference between those two. It has the graphics of Hudson's and the white head tube of the O.P.s. It's hard to find caalogs with these models in them, so knowing the year can be problematic.

Two fine examples of the gold here.

Hudson308 

What color is yours? Got pics?

RokLenart

Amazing job! How much did it cost you to get it in such a good shape?

Best regards,

Rok

sykerocker 

Nicely done. Always glad to see another one back on the road.



Before . . .



. . . . . . . and after

USAZorro

This project has been stalled out with the house hunting, recent move, and projects around the house that have priority.



Yes. The head tube is ever-so-slightly bent.

John E

I never understood the 49-47 combination. Several I have seen come with my personal favorite 49-46, which works brilliantly with something like 14-16-18-21-24 in back.

I am glad you got your bandspring rear derailleur to work satisfactorily. I gave up on a similar unit and replace it with an early Campag. Gran Sport, which was a huge improvement.

jlaw

Very interesting and nicely done - love that suicide shifter for the FD!

djkashuba 

Glad that bike found you Mike. Beautiful job and thanks for documenting your work here.

-D

3alarmer 

...it was more or less all there when I bought it some years back. Most of the stuff I changed out was stuff I had around here in the "parts from god" boxes, and I took those 27" wheels Super Champion wheels off semething else when I changed it out to 700c last year.

...yeah, I'm thinking black plastic fenders . Cheap, functional, and they sell a set with reflective striping on the sides. I have the original white ones, but I don't much trust them after all these years. And the black will go nicely with the gold of the frame.

...hey thanks. I put a two part urethane clear coat over everything when it was stripped down trying to preserve the original paint and decals. I think that's why it looks so shiny in the pictures.

...this is a good place to mention that the setup and adjustment procedures for the Benelux Mark 7 are documented in the "documents" section of Disraeli Gears. That helped me with mine. Six pages of which pages 2 +3 are the most helpful.



...thanks. I never had a bicycle with one of these on it before. Simple and effective, but again, mine has only a two cog jump. Works flawlessly.

3alarmer 

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...rode it 20 miles today. I managed to put a small tear in my bike shorts from the combination of the narrow Brooks Swallow saddle and the original seat post and clamp, with the bolt end sticking out farther than the narrow nose of the saddle. Found a suitable 25.4 (maybe 25.5...I had to sand and wire wheel it a little to get a nice fit,) alloy single bolt post out in the post milk crate. Had to install an M8 helicoil in it to get it to work. I would have been disappointed if it had been easy.

I really like those shorts, so I hope I can repair them.

It rolls along about like you'd expect from a straight gauge 531 Raleighish club bike from 1958. It's not gonna set any land speed records, but it has to be much faster than it was with the original stainless steel rims and ancient tyres.

I was agonizing over how original to keep it, because it was so original. Then I put the wheels in a stand and saw how far off they were from dished on center. So it was an easy decision to make to go with a more rideable wheel set. I guess I could rework the original wheels, but I would then never ride the bike, so limited appeal in that.

sykerocker 

Are you having any shifting problems on the front derailleur on your bike? When I restored mine, I used a 10-speed (old nomenclature, 5-speed rear) chain on it although the derailleur seemed to have enough width to handle a single speed chain. So . . . . . I find out if I don't shift the front carefully and quickly, the chain drops between the chainwheels. And I do mean "between". As in getting the chain out means carrying an old screwdriver in the tool bag to use as a lever. It loves to stick itself down there.

By the way, my picture of the finished bike was taken immediately after it was put back on the road, and before I put the final set of wheels on it. Which are period correct (no, I can't remember what components I used, will have to walk out to the barn to check), bolt on hubs and steel rims, but aren't the factory specced components. Someday, hopefully.

I do love the more relaxed geometry of the bike, it's my second favorite ride after my Raleigh Tourist. And, boy, is it fun to show up at Ashland Coffee and Tea on a Sunday morning while the usual crowd is around. All those carbon Colnago's and Trek's . . . . . and the jaws hitting the pavement.

3alarmer 

...I think that the chain standards for these were only gradually changing in 1958, so here is a photo of my (original) crank and chain rings. I've never seen one quite like this, and the small ring (47) seems to have some kind of filler along the edge, and appears to be riveted to the larger one (49). Also, the Benelux front changer on mine is clearly labeled on the inner plate. They came in a number of variations with regard to chain width and the rears (to my understanding) could be bought in 3, 4, and 5 cog versions. Mine is 4, but I can find a sweet spot where it hits the 4 largest cogs on my 5 cog freewheel reliably, and will occasionally shift into the smallest cog when I have it pulled all the way and am going very fast downhill. I've so far been unable to remove the original 4 speed freewheel, and I don't want to screw up the hub, which appears to be original. Another day, another time, maybe.

3alarmer 

...it's raining here this morning, so I took some more pictures of some of the original components that I did not use. I need to figure out if I'm up to rebuilding something on the wheels using the exceptionally nice Velo Orange 27" polished modern rims and these original hubs before I offer them up to someone, but I'm so old now that it's looking less likely. I'll PM you if I decide to part with them. I think it's possible I'm no longer interested in museum quality restorations.

Note that at least one of the rims has been relaced with an Araya look alike, but I think the original Dunlop on the other wheel is the legit original. Also note how far off dish both wheels are as received. I suppose that by installing one wheel with the dish offset in the opposite of the other, the bike rode nicely sideways down the road.

It's interesting trying to scope out the history of these older bikes as I deconstruct and reconstruct them.

3alarmer 

...somewhere along the way, someone (not me) drilled the down tube for a bottle cage. When first I discovered this, I was disappointed, but then I considered that it's straight gauge steel tubing, and that worse things have been done in the name of progress. As sold on ebay, the holes were covered by some antique bottle and cage with straps as attachments. So the bike was probably ridden more than the ebay "historic time capsule" version would suggest.

Anyway, when life gives you lemons, you thread the holes and use them to mount a bottle cage.

3alarmer 

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...finally, the original bar and stem of steel. And the original pedals that work out OK for me with my wide feet using spacers.

3alarmer 

...nobody here cares except the Tweed Ride people. It's very discouraging.

Hudson308 

My Lenton has typical English 26" roadster wheels, albeit with a 5-cog freewheel, but I've got an early 60's (Raleigh-made) Triumph Sebring with Dunlop 27" clinchers. I'm also torn on which direction to go with the Triumph, because I love all the unusual old components. The rims are in decent shape, and would probably be serviceable with Kool-Stops. The Lenton however, will likely get 700s laced to the original hubs. My Lenton just isn't as rare or unusual as the examples that you guys are sharing.

capnjonny 

If anyone on this thread is still out there, I just found a 1958 Lenton grand prix and want to know if anyone has found a match for the gold frame color.