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Very nice upgrades. That model Avenger has an awesome frame.View attachment 272321
Philler Bill got a shiny Nexus 8 rear and a Sturmey drum stopper up front.
Smiles per liter.
What have you been riding lately?
- Thread starter GuitarlCarl
- Start date
Help Support Rat Rod Bikes Bicycle Forum:
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Awesome 3 hour ride yesterday along Port Philip bay in Melbourne and then through town on my recently reincarnated HD. It has plenty of speed with its simple 6 speed Shimano drivetrain and 80psi DTH tires.
'83 Sidewinder Rat BMX
The wife & I did the Grant Wood trail from Springville to CR again on Fri in the on & off rain (sorry no pics). We only did around 16 miles as the wife ran a 8K the day before. We also stopped at a shop in CR called Goldfinch that the wife frequents for her bike bags, I had never been in there. They're a Kona dealer & they actually had the derailleur hanger for my Shonky project in stock! One of the owners/mechanics has a sick Shonky DJ bike that he built, so we talked shop for a while.
Sunday, we did the Bee branch trial to the Heritage trail in Dubuque (24 miles roundtrip). We stopped at the Durango Depot next to the Heritage trail so the wife could have a bloody mary. Their bloody mary's are fairly popular with riders in the area as they have extra pickle juice. The wife had a minor low-speed crash on her hybrid on the way back (no blood, no foul). I was proud of her as the 1st thing she said was "is my bike okay?"
I'm on seat #3 on the Haro & still not happy...
Most of the trails along Mississippi are currently underwater so we stuck to the high-ground. The Coast Guard actually closed the river to boat traffic due to flooding.
The boss's bloody mary, my 7-up in the background.
Sunday, we did the Bee branch trial to the Heritage trail in Dubuque (24 miles roundtrip). We stopped at the Durango Depot next to the Heritage trail so the wife could have a bloody mary. Their bloody mary's are fairly popular with riders in the area as they have extra pickle juice. The wife had a minor low-speed crash on her hybrid on the way back (no blood, no foul). I was proud of her as the 1st thing she said was "is my bike okay?"
I'm on seat #3 on the Haro & still not happy...
Most of the trails along Mississippi are currently underwater so we stuck to the high-ground. The Coast Guard actually closed the river to boat traffic due to flooding.
The boss's bloody mary, my 7-up in the background.
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1988 Fuji Ace
2 year only model in the catalogs.
The crank arms didn't match and the right pedal threads were trashed. So I replaced the crank with a similar age road crank.
It had presta valve tubes but I replaced those before they blew our around the stem in the shrader size holes.
Rusted shift cables replaced.
Wheels were replaced before I got the bike with heavier USA made hybrid wheels. Trek's Bontrager Hard Case Race Lite tires that sounded and felt like I was riding on fresh tar.
I made it 3 miles then stopped at the local bike coop to replaced the clicking chain. It measured about 3/16" extra long in 10 inches.
The slender fork sure has some flex. Tig welded frame. Combines for a smooth ride.
44 mile ride yesterday. Only caught in the rain once. (4 times on my previous ride)
Next up is to do a flat bar conversion. There is just no local demand for low to mid range road bikes with dropped bars. With the heavy wheels it would do okay as a townie. I probably have to put on handlebar mount shift levers to sell it.
2 year only model in the catalogs.
The crank arms didn't match and the right pedal threads were trashed. So I replaced the crank with a similar age road crank.
It had presta valve tubes but I replaced those before they blew our around the stem in the shrader size holes.
Rusted shift cables replaced.
Wheels were replaced before I got the bike with heavier USA made hybrid wheels. Trek's Bontrager Hard Case Race Lite tires that sounded and felt like I was riding on fresh tar.
I made it 3 miles then stopped at the local bike coop to replaced the clicking chain. It measured about 3/16" extra long in 10 inches.
The slender fork sure has some flex. Tig welded frame. Combines for a smooth ride.
44 mile ride yesterday. Only caught in the rain once. (4 times on my previous ride)
Next up is to do a flat bar conversion. There is just no local demand for low to mid range road bikes with dropped bars. With the heavy wheels it would do okay as a townie. I probably have to put on handlebar mount shift levers to sell it.
The wife had a minor low-speed crash on her hybrid on the way back (no blood, no foul). I was proud of her as the 1st thing she said was "is my bike okay?"
I believe that'd make a great birthday present!
I earned that shirt!
Sounds like she did as well!
I rode my Kustom Kruiser Roadster for Bike Night (where I earned the shirt from a friend a while back
) and the theme was "Blue". We had about 75 that made it to the ride on a lovely evening.
Sounds like she did as well!I rode my Kustom Kruiser Roadster for Bike Night (where I earned the shirt from a friend a while back
) and the theme was "Blue". We had about 75 that made it to the ride on a lovely evening.
The pause that refreshes
1974 Charles Roberts racing bike. Made in London England. #196 of who knows how many bikes he made. Charles passed in 1979 and his sons carried on production. This bike was purchased new from Michael's Cyclery in Ames Iowa by a friend of mine (Jim H) who passed away during the pandemic of lung cancer (non-smoker). His widow gave me the bike as she knew I'd appreciate it. New tires, grip, seat. Tune up. It fits me okay. The gearing is full race. 52/46 and a 13-19 five speed New Winner freewheel. Shimano Dura Ace cranks and hub. Weinman Carerra brakes. Cinelli stem & bars. Rigida clinchers. Jim was a student at the time so that explains the budget build. Never one to worry about it being "all campy". Jim and I shared the same birth month & day but not year. So every year I get the bike out as a moving memory of Jim and send the photos to his widow. Jim won the freewheel division at the All British Cycles Event one year on this flashy bike. I rode 44 miles today and I rarely got out of first gear. Second gear for a while. 3rd on a downhill and I tried the big ring just to make sure it shifts. The legs quickly said no to that. Campy Neuvo Record friction shift is rock solid. The brakes have some off brand neo plasticky pads which need replacing before the next outing. Now 50 years old. This was a go fast bike for it's age. Comparable to what they used in the Pro Euro races. Still fast but my legs aren't.
As a kid Jim H was in scouting. His scout leaders were Jim & Elizabeth Young. As newly weds they rode an English 3 speed tandem bicycle from San Francisco to the east coast and on to attend the 1938 75th year joint reunion of the blue & grey at Gettysburg. Jim Y was a civil war buff and was exited to camp out with the soldiers. They rode the tandem back to San Francisco passing through Cedar Rapids on the way. Elizabeth said it was a pretty town so they decided to relocate here. They got jobs at the local news paper. Elizabeth wrote a book on the double USA crossing titled "Bicycle Built For Two" . The originals are hard to come by and often cost more than their tandem did. There was a paperback reprint about 25 years ago. We met her when she was guest speaker at the Midwest Tandem Rally in Minnesota. We were sure surprise to hear she lived in our town so we introduced ourselves and met many times since. Elizabeth wrote another book about the family hiking trips along the St Laurence sea way and across Europe. As a college student she would spend her summers in Europe where she once met der furher on a train. Elizabeth was a tall good looking blonde, the ideal look for Germans in the 1930s. Jim told me that story and I later asked Elizabeth about it and she wasn't proud of that and changed the subject. As my wife has pointed out, her family wasn't hurting for money during the 1930s depression. Before she died she gave me her last bicycle and a box of maps where she traced all her trips. A red 1970s Raleigh 3 speed. My wife has ridden that Raleigh at the All British Cycle Event and the Lake Pepin 3 Speed Tour.
Remembering Last Reunion Of Civil War Veterans (9 minute audio)
As a kid Jim H was in scouting. His scout leaders were Jim & Elizabeth Young. As newly weds they rode an English 3 speed tandem bicycle from San Francisco to the east coast and on to attend the 1938 75th year joint reunion of the blue & grey at Gettysburg. Jim Y was a civil war buff and was exited to camp out with the soldiers. They rode the tandem back to San Francisco passing through Cedar Rapids on the way. Elizabeth said it was a pretty town so they decided to relocate here. They got jobs at the local news paper. Elizabeth wrote a book on the double USA crossing titled "Bicycle Built For Two" . The originals are hard to come by and often cost more than their tandem did. There was a paperback reprint about 25 years ago. We met her when she was guest speaker at the Midwest Tandem Rally in Minnesota. We were sure surprise to hear she lived in our town so we introduced ourselves and met many times since. Elizabeth wrote another book about the family hiking trips along the St Laurence sea way and across Europe. As a college student she would spend her summers in Europe where she once met der furher on a train. Elizabeth was a tall good looking blonde, the ideal look for Germans in the 1930s. Jim told me that story and I later asked Elizabeth about it and she wasn't proud of that and changed the subject. As my wife has pointed out, her family wasn't hurting for money during the 1930s depression. Before she died she gave me her last bicycle and a box of maps where she traced all her trips. A red 1970s Raleigh 3 speed. My wife has ridden that Raleigh at the All British Cycle Event and the Lake Pepin 3 Speed Tour.
Remembering Last Reunion Of Civil War Veterans (9 minute audio)
Another red one.
It's only taken 6 months for my nice Schwalbe whitewalls on the '82 Malvern Star Sprint 12 to turn into 'gumwalls' - but they work anyway. It's still one of my favourite rides. Out and about today:
It's only taken 6 months for my nice Schwalbe whitewalls on the '82 Malvern Star Sprint 12 to turn into 'gumwalls' - but they work anyway. It's still one of my favourite rides. Out and about today:
- Joined
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It's more fun to ride a slow bike fast...
Today we rode the most "Berlin" track you can ride in Berlin. We circled the whole former western part of our city on the so called Mauerweg. A marked route that mostly follows along the former Berlin Wall. It's 165 km long and we made it (with a few breaks) within 12 hours. At shortly past seven this morning we started at the Brandenburg Gate and we're back there around 7pm. After that I put another 15 km on top for my way back home. So with the 2 km to the S-Bahn Station this morning I put 182 km on my clock today...
My ride of choice for today was the Wolverine:
We were a very diverse group (defined by bikes): 1 Brompton folder, 1 Cruiser, 2 Bullit cargo bikes (one with e-motor), 1 e-Bike, 1 3-speed (mine), 1 MTB, 2 touring bikes, 1 gravel...
A few shots from underway:
Break time at the Sakrow church
Another water break
Km 150, you can already see the famous TV-tower, when you zoom in (left, above the trees)
Getting closer
Almost there
It was a long, but fine round with very fine people...
Meanwhile one of our fellow co-riders put together some video footage of our adventure:
https://mastodon.social/@radxberg/112789883292326414
My ride of choice for today was the Wolverine:
We were a very diverse group (defined by bikes): 1 Brompton folder, 1 Cruiser, 2 Bullit cargo bikes (one with e-motor), 1 e-Bike, 1 3-speed (mine), 1 MTB, 2 touring bikes, 1 gravel...
A few shots from underway:
Break time at the Sakrow church
Another water break
Km 150, you can already see the famous TV-tower, when you zoom in (left, above the trees)
Getting closer
Almost there
It was a long, but fine round with very fine people...
Meanwhile one of our fellow co-riders put together some video footage of our adventure:
https://mastodon.social/@radxberg/112789883292326414
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MattiThundrrr
Rattus All Terrainus
Got out early this morning on RockRat in an attempt to beat the heat
Didn't work, was steaming by 8
Didn't work, was steaming by 8
1972 Peugeot PX10
Out for the annual Bastille Day ride. Viva la France.
Same basic bike that the french pros rode in the Tour De France.
Reynolds 531 frame. Higher end french parts. Simplex ders but not the all plastic versions. Simplex made many models. These have steel plates with plastic trim. Working on putting more oem parts on it. The guy I got it from bought it from Alexi Grewal's father in Colorado in the early 1970s. Some parts were changed out since and he wanted to put it back more to stock but decided to let it go. I've replaced the crank and pedals with a Stronglight crank. I have another Mafac racer for it. I have 1 lever but without the top pad. I need a shorter stem on it as the bike is a bit big for me. They used to only make this model in 23" frames. They sold them with tubular tires/wheels or clinchers. Need another Simplex qr with the rubber grip too. Would have come with an Ideal leather saddle but I gave up my brooks club card long ago. The ride is different. A bit flexy up front but it doesn't slow down when you go up hills.
Out for the annual Bastille Day ride. Viva la France.
Same basic bike that the french pros rode in the Tour De France.
Reynolds 531 frame. Higher end french parts. Simplex ders but not the all plastic versions. Simplex made many models. These have steel plates with plastic trim. Working on putting more oem parts on it. The guy I got it from bought it from Alexi Grewal's father in Colorado in the early 1970s. Some parts were changed out since and he wanted to put it back more to stock but decided to let it go. I've replaced the crank and pedals with a Stronglight crank. I have another Mafac racer for it. I have 1 lever but without the top pad. I need a shorter stem on it as the bike is a bit big for me. They used to only make this model in 23" frames. They sold them with tubular tires/wheels or clinchers. Need another Simplex qr with the rubber grip too. Would have come with an Ideal leather saddle but I gave up my brooks club card long ago. The ride is different. A bit flexy up front but it doesn't slow down when you go up hills.
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MattiThundrrr
Rattus All Terrainus
Downtown Duck
Is there a "Bikes in the Doorway" thread?
Is there a "Bikes in the Doorway" thread?
With a threat of thunderstorms last night I rode my Kustom Kruiser again for Bike Night. It had great fenders, tires at optimum pressure, top of pile, comfy ride etc. so, perfect! 169 showed up for "Superhero" theme!
Since that really isn't my thing, I was counting on clouds opening up to be "Rain Man" (yeah, I'm an excellent rider. 5 minutes to Wopner...) It stayed dry so was just a dork on his comfy Roadster...
169 showed up for "Superhero" theme!
Since that really isn't my thing, I was counting on clouds opening up to be "Rain Man" (yeah, I'm an excellent rider. 5 minutes to Wopner...) It stayed dry so was just a dork on his comfy Roadster...
1973 Raleigh International.
1 owner. yes, i bought it new in 1973 from the lbs where i worked in high school. The lbs owner told me he wasn't happy with me riding my Sunset Orange Schwinn Varsity with chrome fenders to work at a Raleigh Pro Shop. Kinda like driving yer toyota to a UAW plant in detroit. He made me a decent offer on the last unsold Raleigh from the 1973 order and told me "get rid of the Schwinn" which I did. I rode it on SAGBRAI, Second Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa and some weekend bike club rides and weekend tours for the next year before I moved on to race bikes. I rode Sagbrai with my next younger sister who rode a bright yellow Peugeot UO8 mixti. Some part changes and upgrades to the Raleigh. Clincher wheels right out of the box. The lbs owner was sure I wouldn't want or need sewups that the bike came with. He traded me the oem wheels for the parts to build my own. Campy high flange hubs, Three Star stainless spokes, Milremo branded Wienman dimpled rims in 27". I don't think 700c clinchers were available then. I replaced the bland GB bars and stem with TTT brand and again with Raleigh engraved bars & stem about 5 years ago. Ooh, and Raleigh Heron imprinted bar wrap. Brooks cambium saddle. I gave up on the narrow brooks leather saddles a few decades ago. Gearing is 52/42 and 14-16-18 -21-24 5 speed friction shift. I'm hopping the low is okay for this years "Hilliest of All Time Ragbrai". Stock brakes were Weinman center pulls. Same brakes that came on countless 10 speeds during the bike boom. The lbs shop owner gave me a set of DuraAce side pulls in 1974. I replaced those 5 years ago with Campagnolo Records to match the rest of the bike. Its now "Full Campy". I have the original Campy pedals but I moved to Shimano spds about 25 years ago. Today I added the rear rack and bag, computer, strap on wb cage (few bikes had wb bosses in 1973), pump, changed the pedals to spuds. 27 pounds dry. Took it out for about a 50 mile ride. The computer magnet kept turning on the thin spokes so it would stop registering. And the default calibration was about 5% off. I am riding this bike 50 years after its first Ragbrai on Ragbrai LI (51). 1974 - 2024. About 5 years ago I took the fresh update to the ABCE and it earned a best road bike award. Chrome fancy lugs and shiny original paint.
One item, on the smaller frame sizes, the Raleigh Carlton factory builders would cut the points off the head tube lugs so the brass Raleigh badge would fit. Raleigh sold these in 20.5, 21.5, 22.5, 23.5 and 24.5 frame size.
There is some disagreement among the experts on the serial numbers vs years on this model. I still have my receipt some where so I know when I bought it. Raleigh would change colors every couple of years so color alone won't nail it down to 1 year. The following years were a much flashier coppertone. I later had a coppertone that got stolen and my brother had an identical coppertone that he sold.
The Raleigh International and Schwinn Paramount were nearly identical bikes. Because Raleigh made their own GB bars and stem, that's what Raleigh put on the bikes. Those GB bars were pretty weak. They would sag near the stem after a few thousand miles. Schwinn didn't make aluminum bars so they use the much nicer Italian Cinelli bars & stem. The rest of the 2 models were the same: tubing, brakes, gears, etc. The Paramount was Schwinn's top model but Raleigh had the Professional which out spec'd both the Paramounts & International. BTW, 1973 was when Masi started production in the USA with a level of lug work that just blew everything else out of the water. $375 for a Paramount or International, $475 for a Pro but at $600, Masis sold as fast as they could make them. I remember one busy saturday at the shop, there were about 30 customers jammed in there trying to buy bikes and this guys walks in the door, skips the line and in a loud voice says "I'll take that bike in the window". Every one just stood there and watched this guy lay six $100 bills on the counter and walk out with the bike. Jaws hanging loose on the $150 bike customers.
1 owner. yes, i bought it new in 1973 from the lbs where i worked in high school. The lbs owner told me he wasn't happy with me riding my Sunset Orange Schwinn Varsity with chrome fenders to work at a Raleigh Pro Shop. Kinda like driving yer toyota to a UAW plant in detroit. He made me a decent offer on the last unsold Raleigh from the 1973 order and told me "get rid of the Schwinn" which I did. I rode it on SAGBRAI, Second Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa and some weekend bike club rides and weekend tours for the next year before I moved on to race bikes. I rode Sagbrai with my next younger sister who rode a bright yellow Peugeot UO8 mixti. Some part changes and upgrades to the Raleigh. Clincher wheels right out of the box. The lbs owner was sure I wouldn't want or need sewups that the bike came with. He traded me the oem wheels for the parts to build my own. Campy high flange hubs, Three Star stainless spokes, Milremo branded Wienman dimpled rims in 27". I don't think 700c clinchers were available then. I replaced the bland GB bars and stem with TTT brand and again with Raleigh engraved bars & stem about 5 years ago. Ooh, and Raleigh Heron imprinted bar wrap. Brooks cambium saddle. I gave up on the narrow brooks leather saddles a few decades ago. Gearing is 52/42 and 14-16-18 -21-24 5 speed friction shift. I'm hopping the low is okay for this years "Hilliest of All Time Ragbrai". Stock brakes were Weinman center pulls. Same brakes that came on countless 10 speeds during the bike boom. The lbs shop owner gave me a set of DuraAce side pulls in 1974. I replaced those 5 years ago with Campagnolo Records to match the rest of the bike. Its now "Full Campy". I have the original Campy pedals but I moved to Shimano spds about 25 years ago. Today I added the rear rack and bag, computer, strap on wb cage (few bikes had wb bosses in 1973), pump, changed the pedals to spuds. 27 pounds dry. Took it out for about a 50 mile ride. The computer magnet kept turning on the thin spokes so it would stop registering. And the default calibration was about 5% off. I am riding this bike 50 years after its first Ragbrai on Ragbrai LI (51). 1974 - 2024. About 5 years ago I took the fresh update to the ABCE and it earned a best road bike award. Chrome fancy lugs and shiny original paint.
One item, on the smaller frame sizes, the Raleigh Carlton factory builders would cut the points off the head tube lugs so the brass Raleigh badge would fit. Raleigh sold these in 20.5, 21.5, 22.5, 23.5 and 24.5 frame size.
There is some disagreement among the experts on the serial numbers vs years on this model. I still have my receipt some where so I know when I bought it. Raleigh would change colors every couple of years so color alone won't nail it down to 1 year. The following years were a much flashier coppertone. I later had a coppertone that got stolen and my brother had an identical coppertone that he sold.
The Raleigh International and Schwinn Paramount were nearly identical bikes. Because Raleigh made their own GB bars and stem, that's what Raleigh put on the bikes. Those GB bars were pretty weak. They would sag near the stem after a few thousand miles. Schwinn didn't make aluminum bars so they use the much nicer Italian Cinelli bars & stem. The rest of the 2 models were the same: tubing, brakes, gears, etc. The Paramount was Schwinn's top model but Raleigh had the Professional which out spec'd both the Paramounts & International. BTW, 1973 was when Masi started production in the USA with a level of lug work that just blew everything else out of the water. $375 for a Paramount or International, $475 for a Pro but at $600, Masis sold as fast as they could make them. I remember one busy saturday at the shop, there were about 30 customers jammed in there trying to buy bikes and this guys walks in the door, skips the line and in a loud voice says "I'll take that bike in the window". Every one just stood there and watched this guy lay six $100 bills on the counter and walk out with the bike. Jaws hanging loose on the $150 bike customers.
