Amesja

I stole the second bedroom in our garden condo unit. Its a bike shop now. Shelves, workbenches, bike racks, work stand. 10x12 is plenty big enough.

Who needs guest accommodations? Flip them some money on the rare occasions relatives come to visit and they can stay at Best Western...

WORTH IT.

badmother

Good girl! Welcome.

Sixty Fiver

So, a week from today there is going to be a little gathering of three speed fiends here in Portland and do hope to see some of the locals.

PalmettoUpstate 

Hey we're up to four Raleighs and counting around here. [along with several lesser 3-speeds LOL]

Has anyone following this thread used these rear reflectors as replacement parts: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Nos-Vintage-...item3a77dddcbb ...and if so, what do you think of them?

I know they aren't OEM but I'm not building our "ultimate" restored bikes just yet...

wahoonc

I just bought a few from Yellow Jersey.(scroll down the page)

There is another guy out of somewhere like Cyprus that was selling them too.

Aaron

PHT

Here's what I've done with my daily driver. I needed to get the bars up, so I went with a cheapie Sunlite stem. The clamp was too wide for the bulge of the original bars so I had to change them too. I went with a cheapie black XLC alloy bar with XLC black cork grips- super comfy. These pics also show the upgraded front Tektro dual pivot brakes and flimsy front light. The light works well enough so that I dont have to worry about bringing a separate light source for short trips but it will likely have a short life. The seatpost is an XLC alloy post that I hit with a brass brush to remove the logo and mirror finish. Satin matches the rest of the bike IMO. Even with the mods, I think the bike remains true to its roots. I just need to fit an appropriate saddle one of these days! I destroyed the original vinyl mattress saddle. Its replacement was a nice B67 with a perfect patina to match the rest of the bike but the leather tore right apart near the nose.

Velognome 

^ Looking good for another 100,000 miles

PalmettoUpstate 

So are they OK & are they somewhat "correct"?

I notice that they are correctly "beveled" to fit the fender's curvature and that's certainly a plus....

Nerdy Norm

I bought what appear to be the same ones from an EBay seller in Thailand. He also has them in white. The moulding was a little rough where they had been pressed out, but a few seconds with a craft knife fixed it.

PalmettoUpstate 

I'm gonna try one; and if it's good buy more. Will give feedback on that on this thread.

It appears that there is a cottage industry of "pickers" who pirate the rear fender reflectors, axle nuts, & Brooks saddles from old Raleighs.

Boo, Hiss! [At least this Far East stuff remedies that in the sphere of the rear reflectors, hopefully]

PalmettoUpstate 

FAMILY PORTRAIT
Ides of August, Cicada Cacophony Time, 2012
.
Front to rear, in first pic...

1972 Electric Blue 20" Women's Raleigh Sports
1974 Black Men's 21" Raleigh LTD-3
1979 Silver 21" Women's Raleigh Sports
1975 Brown Men's 23" Raleigh Sports

.

wahoonc

Yes, these are made in India, probably from the original molds. The black surround was used on older bikes, somewhere along the way they switched to white.

Aaron

PalmettoUpstate 

Excellent! I have several bikes that need them. I'm even thinking about pulling the correct-but-goofy Cateye rectangular one off the '79 Sports and putting a white one on it. [Raleighs should have round reflectors; Panasonics and Miyata's rectangular!]

One think puzzles me though, the people at this link, who are apparently selling the exact same item, give the OD as 5 CM:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Refl...item4aba5917c4

But when I measure a white Sturmey-Archer OEM rear reflector - which I am certain is original - on my wife's '72 Sports - it comes out to have an OD of 6.5 CM and the red lens itself is 5.5 CM.

Bad imitation or seller giving imprecise information?

If you have one of the India-made units on hand and an OEM S/A on hand to compare & post observations that'd be great.

wahoonc

On the road this week, but remind me via PM or email this weekend. I should be in the bike shed on Saturday, and can measure them then.

Aaron

woodrupjoe

I used a 70s Raleigh Sports as my daily ride for a few years, about 12-20 miles per day hard riding in NYC traffic. I loved the bike but it was fairly small for me, so when I found a Miyata Commuter (80s 3-speed) with 27" wheels and a 23" frame I jumped on it. ($125 on Craigs- the perfect everyday bike for me.)
So a couple of weeks ago I gave my Sports to a friend but decided to upgrade the front wheel as the braking is horrendous in the rain. I bought one of those replacement wheels from Harris Cyclery but the hub is too wide for the fork. After a short search I found plenty of old Bikeforums reports on the same problem. Wish I had realized that earlier. Annoying to find a product advertised as a direct drop-in replacement not being what it was advertised as. Anyone else dealing with this lately?

sorry if this has been dealt with already, didn't read all 137 pages
Joe

ascherer 

Well, what are you waiting for?

PalmettoUpstate 

Will do; thanks.

Nerdy Norm

The reflector on my 1949 Sports is just under 5cm across. I don't have the reflectors I bought from Thailand (same seller you linked to) to hand, but I remember comparing them when they arrived, and being happy that they were close enough. The only issues were the slightly rough moulding press-outs on the serrated edges (easily remedied, as mentioned above) and the fact that there was no securing nut supplied (annoying, but not a biggie).

mkeller234

Too bad you don't work in IT. Welcome to the forum. Nice job on that wheel, that's still one of those tasks that I haven't accomplished yet.

PalmettoUpstate 

Is the manufacturer stamped on it- either Raleigh or SA I'd assume. The one on my wife's '72 Sports was made by SA and has the precise dimensions I gave above. We need one of the real Raleighphile Graybeards to step up and say when and by how much Raleigh changed the part & whatever other minutia is pertinent.

By 5cm across do you mean the lens or the entire unit NN?

Nerdy Norm

It has a large "R" moulded into the reflective surface and "Raleigh Industries" on the surround. The total diameter (black rubber surround included) is 48.5mm.

RaleighBikeGuy

With the original wheel in, does the bike track straight (none of the three Raleigh's I've had did)? If not, you might consider spreading the fork to accommodate the new wheel while simultaneously correcting the alignment. This guide worked well for me:

https://sheldonbrown.com/brandt/pull-side.html

wahoonc

Okay Reflector size report....

Apparently Raleigh used several different sizes and brands of reflectors over the years. The 3 I have on hand measure out to: 3.8cm/4.4cm that is the black one from Yellow Jersey, it has a plastic base rather than rubber. I believe that is the same size as what Raleigh was using back in the 50's. 4.0cm/5.0cm this is a white rubber housing and is on a 1972 Raleigh Superbe, it is the same as the ones on 1971 Colt and 1970 Sports Standard. 6.0cm/6.8cm white rubber housing, this one is on my bride's 1973 Colt. I will try and get pictures eventually.

Aaron

Sixty Fiver

Today...



Portland Three Speed Ride

PalmettoUpstate 

See mine back to wahoonc below, and thanks!