calebcrosby

Hey all, this is my first post here. I picked up a Competition Mark 2 for $140 that seems to be perfect in every way, rides like a dream. As a kid I had a Grand Prix or two and OMG is this smoother and more better! Love this bike. I ride very little bc my son gave me a Mountain Bike and until now I didnt realize what was I was missing- road Raleigh! I was rained in the country in Maine and road everywhere - about 40 mile a day (gotta swim!) and I w/o knowing it was spoiled by decent road bike- Oh what a diff! it's so great to be back!


So I want to doll it up with a couple things, Brooks saddle, a rear rack and something for under the seat. Questions someone here might know about are:


1. I'm 60 and can't ride on the drops all day- is it easy to get lever extensions for brakes? My Grand Prix had them, not sure if I can add just the ext lever or need to replace whole handlebar brake assembly.

2. Can anyone recco a rear wheel rack that has a hinged clamp? I see many w/o it but for ease of use I don't think a clamp can be beat.

3. I need to find a Brooks B17 - if anyone has one they will part with I'm looking.

4. I am curious about an under the seat leather thing - Ive found a couple on ebay, just after any wisdom on carrying junk, iphone will prob go on handlebars, so just junk, cards, cash, headphones


Well thats it- I'm in New Orleans and the riding weather is getting nice - cheers !


Caleb White

Bad Lag

For an "under the seat thing", look here - Jandd

They call it a tire bag nut mine holds a tool kit, a spare tube, a patch kit, tire irons, eyeglasses,... they hold a lot.

Bianchigirll 

Good Morning. Welcome to the forums

we love photos here! There is a security feature that requires ten post over two days before you can post pics, but if you upload them we can still see them.

Riding the “hoods”.



Interrupter levers. I’ve never used these but I think lots of people like them. It seems to me you need pretty wide bars though.

USAZorro

Welcome to C&V.

I hear you. When I graduated from bikes like a Grand Prix to a 1978 Super Course about a year into college, THAT was a revelation to me. That bike got stolen from me about a week before I joined the Navy and I didn't get back to cycling until about 2002 when my son was preparing to take a bike trip on the C&O Canal. I got a crappy MTB for that, and then I came across a screaming deal on a 1972 Fuji Finest. It was night and day. Soon afterward, nostalgia caused me to get the same year/model/color Super Course, but when I got it, I had been spoiled by the Finest.

Anyhow, I have a bunch of 70's Raleighs now - among them Competitions (2), an International, an RRA, a Professional Mk I and a Team Pro, and with each of them, the spoiling that was done by that Fuji no longer exists. Frankly, I enjoy the ride of the International the best out of all those, but it's a close call.

Enjoy your new bicycle. Bianchigirl left you some excellent guidance. I've had hinged Pletscher racks before and they worked for carrying a tent and sleeping bag, but they tend to rattle around. A Blackburn or Soma will be a bit more secure and can handle a bit more weight.

Pompiere

I installed a pair of these levers on my wife's bike and she loves them.

calebcrosby

Well I shall begin to post with liberality ! I want to show pics!

Classtime 

Congrats on finally getting the 531 bike. Drops hoods ramps tops—none of us ride the drops all day. I recommend holding off on modifying the cockpit yet. Your body will adjust if you give it time.

calebcrosby

Did not know about IL's but that looks perfect for me. Starting to wonder if might remove and re-wrap the bars and remove the old levers

calebcrosby

I agree its always best to not react but I'm 60, in good shape, play a lot of team tennis but my back will not bend to those drops and the brake reaction delay is not going to work. I live in New orleans and bike 95% on trials but that bloody 5% ....

Bianchigirll 

Sixty - schmixty! I think 60 might be young here.

Playing team tennis is good exercise, I guys I haven’t held a paddle since the battl of the sexes LOL, but you’re using you muscles a different way so give it some time.

in my late 20s early 30s when I first got really serious about riding and trying to race I alway had trouble with my hands going numb. These days I adopted a more upright riding position because of back issues a viola! My hands don’t get numb as much.

There are lots of things that all go together to get the ideal position where you comfortable and relaxed on the bike.

daverup 

Here's your album,
https://www.bikeforums.net/g/album/26879496

USAZorro

Here's a thing I did with an older Super Course. Others here have done similar many times over. No need to go nuts with 81 speeds like this, but just to illustrate the concept.

calebcrosby

I tried to send 2 pics but it's not letting me so I'm spray posting to reach 10, please suspend judgement ;-)

daverup 

I linked your album above. If you post pics there, we can see them.
With your current brake levers, interrupter levers won't work. That said, I'd change to aero levers and add the interrupter levers.
They are so much better than the old "safety levers". Looking at your picture a bit closer, I think your brake levers once had the "safety levers" and someone removed them. This leaves the brake levers out at a higher angle.

alcjphil

Here is an example of a set of aero levers on my Limongi which could be used in conjunction with a pair of interrupter levers to provide braking from the bar top. Note that my handlebar height is lower in comparison with saddle height than on your bike. You might also note that the brake levers can be mounted higher on the drop of the bar to bring the levers closer to your hands. I am 72 years old and am able to ride for extended periods on the hoods of my brake levers. Those old "safety levers" you had on your Grand Prix are far inferior than a set of interrupter levers which are even used by professional riders for races like Paris Roubaix where they ride a lot on the bar tops and need really good brakes. I would never put a rack like one of those old Pletchers on your bike, they very often damage the frame where they clamp to the top of the seat stays. They are also not very rigid . I had one on my first road bike and it scraped the paint on my seat stays. Seat bags, are a good solution and are available in sizes with ample storage capacity

52telecaster

Welcome to the forums, I turned 66 this fall and have neck and shoulder issues that have me riding upright. I love old 531 raleighs!

Bianchigirll 

that’s a great looking rig. Those Hurret derailleurs are some very nice little bits.

Pcampeau

Your Competition looks to be in great original condition and it’s a beautiful bike! If you switch out the brakes I’d recommend saving the black Carlton lever hoods, they’re getting kind of hard to find. They appear from time to time on eBay but usually all you can find are the more common white hoods. If you save the bits you remove they can always be put back by the next owner who may enjoy having them, that being said, there is no shame in doing whatever you need to do to your bike to make it comfortable for you to ride. Competitions from this era are really great for building into upright riders or going with touring configurations. Looking forward to seeing more pics of your new ride.

Classtime 

Seeing the pics, and if that's how you're riding it, two things: first--move the levers up to make it easier to ride on the hoods. lining up the tips of the brake levers with the bottom edge of the drops is standard. You might be able to reuse the bar tape for a low cost experiment.
second--those bars look to have a very long reach which is cool, but a shorter stem might make you happy. I just love the classic look and that is a great example. You WILL adapt and be the envy of your fellow trail riders.

calebcrosby

I love this. Is that a B17 saddle? Can I bug you for what kind of pack that is behind seat? And what kind of handlebars? they look like Raleigh, I still have my grandparents Raleigh 3 speeds in a garage in Maine. your tires look a bit thicker than mine, I may have to do this too. I took a 360 off my bike on the firdt ride in my neighborhood! Not used to a road bike's thin tires and narrow handlebars on a New orleans bit of sunken concrete pavement- got the tire caught and well anyway bike ok rider ok, crowd of people were sort of amazed at the whole thing!

Any I love this set up! I'll go this way if my experiment is not enough, I've tinker built a couple aluminum clamps that fasten on to handlebars and have a 12" riser post that bends out into a handlebar, one on each side of stem - I actually bought a tube break (bender) to get them right. I made this for a friend bc I have a small machine shop behind my house - but now I get to try them myself. This will be delicious after a few hundred hours of prototyping.

BTinNYC 

A less aggressive stem and moving the brakes up will make a big difference.

Also, I think your flexibility will increase a lot during the first couple months back on the bike. It sure did for me.

Either way, it's great that you're back in the saddle!

rustystrings61 

This is my 1973 Competition Mk. II, which I have set up in mad-scientist, all-roads mode. The germane thing here is the cockpit setup - I wound up replacing the stem with a 10cm Nitto Technomic to put the tops of the bars level with the saddle, the way the cycling manuals 50-100 years ago recommended for dropped-bar general purpose riding. I also chose to go with a set of basic but still very nice and comfy Tektro aero levers (<$20 on eBay, new in box), which, combined with stainless brake cables and Teflon-lined housing and a set of Scott Matthauser brake pads, makes the already pretty good Weinmann Vainqueur 999 centerpulls serious stoppers. It currently wears a handlebar mounted bottle cage and an older Rivendell Baggins bag from the brief period they used Duluth Pack as a supplier.

I don't think anyone has mentioned yet how adaptable and flexible these bikes are. The '73-76 Competition with the sloping fork crown and the rapid-taper chainstays appears to be THE tire clearance king in 531-tubed Raleigh/Carltons. I have room for at least 35s with mudguards, maybe 38s even. And that's not including those who rebuild these to work with 650B wheelsets and convert them into French cyclo-camping or randonneur machines.

Because mine came to me in tattered, badly rusted and corroded condition (the fork chrome had sloughed off like a snake skin!), I felt no guilt in reaching for the wire brush and the black Krylon to fix the fork blades. The mad-scientist, no mechanical gear-changer gearing is a 42/44T chainset with a 17/19T Surly Dingle fixed cog on one side of the hub and a 20/22T White Industries Dos Eno freewheel on the other. Maybe 20-30 seconds to dismount, loosen the quick release and switch from a 70-in pavement to a 60-in gravel fixed gear, perhaps a full minute to pull the wheel out and flip it 'round to select either a 60-in general noodling or a 52-in gentle single-track freewheeling mode. The 35 mm Continental Cyclocross Speed tires can be switched out for a more pavement oriented set of 32 mm Paselas, depending on my mood.



As originally built, photo taken immediately after the first shakedown ride.



Seen here it its natural environment.

calebcrosby

wow, what a beautiful bike and good info. thanks for the details on what you did. I'm taking notes. what size tires are you riding 1.5?

calebcrosby

I tried replying to so many of these great posts and killer photos! Man I love y'alls rides!!! but i was limited to 5 per day. not sure if that limit is still active but did some work to bike and will post photos of where I'm at soon

Caleb

noobinsf 

You just need two more posts to be able to post pics...