lostarchitect 

Hi all.

I've got my eye on a 1960-ish Popular Special for my friend, but I've been unable to get much info on these bikes online. All I really know is that it's English, it has a SA 3 speed hub, and it says "Sport Model" on the frame. Does anyone know about them? Any info would be appreciated.

sillygolem

It's black, and it has cream-colored tires.

Really, you need to take some more pictures. Badging, lugs, and chainring will help the most.

"Sports" models are bottom of the line for 3-speeds. That's not a bad thing - it just doesn't have things like hub generator.

cycleheimer

Could be wrong, but most of these bikes were very similar and made by Raleigh after about 1960. Some were re-badged for AMF, etc. Condition (mechanical, paint and decals, chrome finish, rear fender reflector intact), presence of original components (or exact replacements...for example, that seat is a replacement), and price seems important IMHO.

cycleheimer

Pix of the fork crown would also be helpful.

rhm

That, there, is a Raleigh. I found one in an NYC dumpster several months ago; AW hub dated 1960, Raleigh dropouts, Raleigh lugs, and Raleigh in every other way. I have a few photos with which I can prove it. Noglider has it now, he can confirm what I say.

randyjawa 

Look on the rear hub for a two digit number indicating the year the hub was made. That will give you a close idea to vintage. If you want to get closer yet, take some time to look through How Old Is My Bike?

wahoonc

We had a blue one of those years ago. My brother stripped it down and flipped the North Roads over and rode the hell out of it. Someone stole it from behind the church one day...AFAIK it was made by Raleigh. Get a nice large picture of the whole drive side and we can confirm it. Probably 2nd or 3rd tier Raleigh built.

Aaron

lostarchitect 

I don't have the bike yet, so I can't take any pictures. I was hoping for some general info about the line.

lostarchitect 

That was my suspicion. When I have it in hand (probably Friday) I'll post some pictures.

lostarchitect 

That's great, thanks for the info. As soon as I have it I'll post some pics where you can actually see something.

lostarchitect 

Hi All. I now have the "Popular Special" in hand and I have some photos here. It looks to be mostly original, as far as I can tell. There was a crap saddle on there but I removed it and replaced it with a Brooks B-72 that I happend to find on Craigslist the same day I bought the bike. Lucky. I know it "should" be black, but we'll take what we can get. Any info you may have about this line would be great. I'm assuming it's made by Raleigh? The SA hub is dated 1960.

So what I'm planning to do with the bike for my girlfriend is as follows:
-New tires & tubes (recommendations please)
-New brake cables & housings
-front basket
-She wants some kind of lights--any suggestions about what would look good and still be good and bright? No dynamo.
-general tune up, lube and cleaning
-Not sure about a new chain until I clean the existing one

Without further ado, here are the pics:

lostarchitect 

And a few more:

auchencrow

For performance and price, I would go with these tires (available from Niagara):

Panaracer ST Daily Commuting 26 x 1-3/8 590 ISO

That you stated you want a bright light suggests that you may be better off with a unobtrusive modern LED light, for the sake of function.
Converting a vintage style light to LED is a possibility also, but I'm not sure about brightness or battery life. You have the placement of the basket to consider too.

cycleheimer

You can get one of the following from Nashbar ...

"Cute" $10 light


$20 light

David Newton

"Popular" was a line of Hercules, so Raleigh carried over some of that lingo after 1960. It is a Raleigh clone, as many others have stated. I think it is a particularly nice one, I like the chain ring, it's special, as is the fork crown, but the frame is straight up Raleigh Sports, Ladies model.

rhm

Weinmann aluminum brakes, that's an unusual feature on a Raleigh Sports. But as I recall, the one I had was the same. Looks like the same bike, but yours may be in better shape.

New cables, new chain, I dunno. Yes, if you feel unsafe on it as is; but I am in the 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' camp on these things. Cables can break, even new ones; until they do, they don't need replaced.

I would suggest changing the cog on the rear wheel. It is probaby 18T now, and a bigger one --22T for example-- will make the bike feel lighter when you start out from a stop.

sillygolem

The tires look like raised-center CST's (Cheng Shin) which means they're recent: Unless there's something wrong with them, I'd keep them on there.

You'll need to oil the hub: 20W non-detergent is best. You can pick up a quart at an auto parts store, or get a bottle of 3-in-1 for electric motors (blue label) that comes in a can that's easy to get to the oil port. It'll need 3-4 drops every month.

Sheldon Brown has a lot more info here:
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/english-3.html

The handlebars are a little smaller diameter than modern bars. When you mount things like lights, you may need to add something to shim it, like a small piece of rubber. Depending on the clamp design, this may or may not be an issue.

auchencrow

+1, but you will likely need a slightly longer chain. (- But you still don't need to buy a new one: Your LBS should have some offal from a 1/8 chain that they can give you for free.)

lostarchitect 

She's decided that she loves tires with a reflective stripe on the sidewall. Eh. I don't really care for them, but it's her bike. So I'm looking around for them. The LBS had them in cream only--I voted for those--but she wants black. Also, the existing ones aren't ancient, so she can ride on them for a while, but the sidewalls do have cracks, so I'm looking to switch them out in the near future.

lostarchitect 

Yes, I think it's pretty cool, too. I'm glad she likes it, I was worried for a bit.

lostarchitect 

The chain, I think, is totally fine. I cleaned and lubed it, and it seems totally sound to me. The cables were pretty rusty, and the GF didn't like the old white housings, so I went ahead and switched them out for new ones, and black housings. New pads, too. Also trued the wheels, since they were off a bit.

I've mentioned the gearing thing to her--thanks for the advice--and she's going to ride it for a couple weeks first to see if she's OK with it as is, or if she'd like it a little lower. This is her first bike in at least 10 years, so she's a little nervous about everything, and I'm trying to ease her into it.