devinfan

...the Raleigh Superbe club! What can I say about this bike? It reminds me of riding my very first bike, which was a CCM Mustang with a banana seat. I love the upright posture, the relaxed riding style it engenders, and the incredibly comfortable saddle. I'm not sure I love the way it sounds like pots and pans every time it goes over a bump, or the fact that it weighs 200lbs, but that's minor stuff.

This is one comfortable bike. A couch on wheels. The old Raleigh brochure calls it the "Rolls Royce of Bicycles", but what it reminds me of is my old Oldsmobile Delta 88. Maybe not the fastest thing in the world, but smoooth. I'm not sure why I wouldn't take it on my usual summer ride from Toronto to Niagara Falls and back. One thing I noticed is that people sure don't like being passed by old 3-speeds. I passed one guy decked out in team Rabobank colours, and the wind carried me past as the excuses died on his lips (actually I think he was having some kind of pedal problem, but whatever). Another roadie on his Bianchi kept looking anxiously over his shoulder as I clanked up behind him, he looked as though the devil himself was behind him.

It IS funny sitting bolt upright when you put the hammer down in third gear - I have taken to whistling the Wicked Witch of the West's theme song when I go to pass someone.

And for you Andrew (mapleleafs13), I hope you'll get a good chuckle when you see this bike. THIS is the bike that I was after. You probably thought it was a Colnago Arabesque or something, but I thought I'd surprise you

mkeller234

Love the bike. The story is pretty funny to picture.

23skidoo

LOL +1 devinfan and nice pics too

markk900

You scored a great ride - I too gravitate to the 3-speed on every ride these days.....

10 Wheels

Great bike......

auchencrow

I think there are a lot of us dyed-in-the-wool C&V fans who have gravitated toward these old 3-speeds of late - In part due to the featured bikes we have seen here (like yours ) - and Sixty-Fiver's "for the love of English 3-speeds" thread.


It's not that I'm giving up on my derailleur bikes - I'm not. It's just that I now have a second obsession.

So enjoy your new bike - it is a good bike to obsess over!

devinfan

Thanks for the comments, all. What's been fun about this bike for me is that it is a totally different riding experience. All of my other bikes for the most part have been variations on the classic ten-speed, so evaluating ride differences became pretty subtle - slight changes in geometry etc. But this bike is a whole different kettle of fish. The Superbe is the ultimate bike for taking out just to noodle around and have fun. Yesterday was such a beautiful day here in Toronto I found myself just riding up and down a long series of tree-lined streets just for the fun of riding, with no purpose at all. I guess that's why it reminded me of my CCM Mustang because I never rode that with any purpose OTHER than to have fun.

It also got me thinking that rather than just chasing after every 60's lightweight that I see, it makes more sense (for me) to develop a collection of bikes wherein every bike serves a different purpose. So that means I now need to build a proper winter bike, which I've never had, and get a vintage mountain bike so that I can take advantage of some of the great trails around Toronto.

auchencrow

- We should make Margaret Hamilton our honorary 3-speed president.

Amesja

do-de-do-de-doo-doo!

Raleighs handle so well they even fly smoothly inside a tornado.

Bianchigirll 

great looking Superbe! why didn't you use the kickstand for the pics?

Amesja

It's a beauty of a kickstand too.

Is that the standard kickstand from a Superbe? A bike I bought a few weeks ago had one of those on it but it was really rusty. A week in the OA didn't bring it back although it did take all the rust off of it so I decided to paint it all black -since it was 80% of the way there anyhow after the OA parkerized it. It looks great on my personal '54. Just another benefit of flipping raleighs -I find the neatest stuff for my own bikes. Threw a $10 greenfield on that bike to sell it. Not a bad swap if you ask me!

devinfan

Thanks BG! You can't tell in the pictures obviously but we were having record-breaking winds here in Toronto, and although the kickstand works great, I figured it was better to have something solid to lean against. The fun part about windy days is if you catch a tail wind, when you're sitting upright your body kind of acts like a sail and you can just fly along (evil cackle, green smoke...)

rootboy 

Cool bike. Great story. I'm a little struck by the pics, tho'. There's a Sun Yat-Sen monument in Toronto? Guess so. Interesting.

BigPolishJimmy

Beautiful Bike!

devinfan

It's not too surprising really, Toronto is a very multicultural city with a very active Chinese community. This sculpture is on the edge of Chinatown East in Riverdale park, at the top of the world's best tobogganing hill. There are lots of monuments from lots of different cultural histories all over the city.

sailorbenjamin

There's one for sale in NJ for $80! I'm having a really hard time not getting this one but there's one of my secret grail bikes for a hundred bucks in upstate NY that I'm going to pick up on Sunday so ..... Maybe one of you guys can snap it up.
https://newjersey.craigslist.org/bik/2417977359.html

devinfan

Wow - that one looks great, and its got the original rack too! What a deal...

BigPolishJimmy

I can't tell if it's a sports or a superbe? With that rack I'd guess a superbe, but there's no front dynohub. I am less-schooled in these matters. The brooks looks a little rough, but still it looks like a nice example and worthy of fixing up, ...that is if once you see the profile, it doesn't have a bent fork.

*edit* From what I can see of the head tube, it looks to be a larger frame. I'm very tempted but too many factors mean it will be gone before I could swing it.

3speedslow

You are so right about the " passing other bikes " comment. I have had some nearly kill themselves trying to stay far enough ahead of me when I go on a event ride. It just adds to the joy....

Agreed, very nice bike !

devinfan

Boy I didn't even notice the lack of a Dynohub. Maybe the front wheel went, and when they replaced it they took off the lights because they no longer worked? Or it's a Sports with a Superbe rack, but that seems less likely. I like the look of that bike, and I bet that saddle would come back to life with some proofide and tlc. Offer $50 and grab it!

BigPolishJimmy

Ha, it was gone before I could even begin to hatch a plan. Devinfan your Superbe is Superbe! Thanks for posting it. Did you also post it in the "For the love of english 3-speeds" thread?

mapleleafs-13 

I remember when we were talking on the phone devin, i remember you saying i gotta sell that Gitane (which was incredibly beautiful) you should post some pictures of that bike. anyways crazy possibilities were racing through my head when you said you wanted to keep it a secret about the bike you were going after. In my head i was like whoa, did he get a line on another Cinelli, or maybe a super nice colnago, what did he get!??! as the frustration got me wondering.

Now i realize it was this superbe, although you said i would laugh when i saw when you were getting, i actually think it's pretty nice, although my preference is for nice high end road bikes, i do have appreciation for other stuff, and a nice bike is a nice bike. I've heard people raving over these bikes on the forums, i sold a nice cruiser bike of the same style today, it was an eaton's glider, it was super comfy to ride just not my cup of tea, i need speed. haha, anyways congrats on the nice bike! that front headlight is awesome! i got one like that in a box somewhere.

P.S. You definately won't be zipping by me on my bike, i can guarantee you that

snarkypup

Pretty Raleigh! I wonder how the frame on a Superbe and a Sports differ? Anyone know?

I don't pass anyone on my Sports. I get passed. But I like that it FEELS like I'm going fast, you know, even when I'm not. It's just such a freakin' fun bike to ride.

devinfan

You asked for it Andrew. Next time you're out riding, and you hear a horrible clanking behind you... by the time you look over your shoulder it will be too late.