folder fanatic

I decided to post a simple photo of my new folding bicycle just purchased today-a somewhat rusted but otherwise good condition Raleigh Twenty. It needs some work so I will keep this announcement rather low key for now until I finished with it's restoration.

AEO

If I didn't know any better, I would say that it looks exactly like mine before I pulled it apart to attach new stuff onto it.

ddez

Nice little bike. Looks like its all there. Good find.

gbalke

I've two of these little beauties, both dated 1970 and in the same Coffee Brown color as yours. I'm almost finisshed with the restoration of one of them, still need to
find the shift cable for it. For some reason, the previous owner removed the complete shifting system from both bikes.

wahoonc

Nice

It is in a lot better shape than my first one was. Why a Twenty when you have the other bikes?

Aaron

juan162

Do you really have to ask?!? One (or even 3) is never enough, even if you have some amazing rides in the fold already! I almost pulled the trigger on a 4th folder myself, but two of my 3 are still currently 'under construction.'

folder fanatic

Good. I am rather sure now that I pick the right bike for the restoration project.

I have not looked at the rear hub closely quite yet. It still needs some rust removal to see the dates on it in order to more clearly to get a idea how old it is. I feel a bit more lucky in that parts-removal-by-the-previous-owner aspect. The only thing appears missing is probably the front basket (which I don't miss as I prefer to sew my own handlebar or saddle bags for my other bikes). I do try to keep as many original parts as possible until I get more familiarized with a particular bike.

Actually I wanted one even before my first folding bike-the Dahon Boardwalk. We wanted to buy the Dahon new as I was not too familiar with folding bicycles in general which made me a bit cautious toward them & no Twenties were available at that point in time. I always liked and used both new and used European made bikes since the late 1960s when I was little (although I did have Schwinns too). I do make a point to grow as a person as well as a folding bike owner. After all, I am the Webmistress to the World Of Folding Bicycles series. Besides that, I felt drawn to this particular bike as I need a new bicycle challenge every now and then beyond riding techniques improvements. My Dahon Boardwalk might donate some of it's working parts to this bike and become a single speed again. My Piccolo might donate it's saddle too. And it's a good possibility that one or both of the Dahons might find new homes (due to help financing this endeavor) and introduce others as they have done me to these wonderful, beautiful bikes. I won't know for sure until I actually get an estimate on this particular bike by a mechanic selected for his knowledge on these types of bikes.

I know this bike will not fold as compactly or as technologically advanced even as my now old Dahons are. But I am not interested in compactness or high tech in this case.

Many people have commented on these bikes becoming an addiction....hmmm, I wonder. But in any case, I am totally dependent on cycling as my number one way for transportation. Buses/trains/even taxis are now a very distant number two. The transit fares are going up next month, paired with service cuts, around here and that simply means I will use them far less along with the additional bonus of not putting up anymore with the problems that come with frequent use. So I will own at least 2 working folding bikes at all times it seems. And the money/time spent on this bike's restoration will be well spent.

Dynocoaster 

Nice find, I just found a Stowaway circa 1975 with the larger wheels and it is nice. Nice to have an old and new folder.

Sixty Fiver

I love my Twenty and have had no burning desire to add another folder to the fold...

randya

That bracket in front is actually for a light

Sixty Fiver

My old folder is a little bit new... only the frame, fork, and stem are original and a new fork and stem are in the works.

juan162

Well, that is by far a much better reason for having multiple folders than mine! I have this strange affinity for little wheel bikes. Well anyway, you couldn't have picked a more solid or well documented folder to have. It should be a very reliable ride. Keep us updated on the build.

Foldable Two

To put into 'Big City' terms, "You are really get'n into it girl!"

Lou (Near Philly tonight)

gbalke

The OP mentioned basket, not bracket. Her photo shows that the bracket is in fact there.

randya

I'm assuming OP may have thought the bracket was for a basket.

folder fanatic

Thank you for posting your photo of your unique and stunning version of a Twenty. It gives me great ideas on how to proceed with this endeavor, even before I set foot inside a bike shop. Perhaps this a "cure" for folding bike addiction-or at the very least wanderlust.

I plan to as I am now updating both my Flickr pages and my Google pages just for this bike's journey into becoming at the very least ridable & fold-able again-the folding levers are frozen solid but are not too rusted or appear to be damaged or missing that little rubber parts in any way beyond this (see below). The people here on this forum, even on Brompton Talk has been so helpful in guiding me in it's history, features, and both present and future possibilities. I feel like it is my Birthday, Christmas or the like in anticipation of something becoming far more than it is is now. The only thing I lack is a clear idea of how it looks all folded up.

Heh, Heh I am not called "Folder Fanatic" for nothing!

I am glad that I posted the little photo. At the very least, I know now I have the bracket. I will keep it on. And thank you Randya for taking the time to get those photos of that huge light. I should think about lighting for this bike even now at this early date.

You are right. I might use this bracket for a bag's support of some sort which I will design for in the future. Right now I want to take the time to rid it of rust, grime, and other corrosion byproducts.

AEO

some steel wool should take care of that rust.

folder fanatic

The man that sold me the bike told me the same thing. He did add to buy a fine or very fine grade and use WD-40 on the chrome or bare metal parts only. He warn me not to get any on the paint itself. I am heading out the door to get some today.

cycle_maven

A crumpled ball of aluminum foil with a little lemon juice or vinegar will be less likely to scratch the chrome, and does just as good a job on the rust.

jur

+1 on aluminium foil! Don't use steel wool! It will dull the chrome. Use WD-40 with alu foil and it does wonders. I was reluctant to believe this combo until I tried it.

Sixty Fiver

"Thank you for posting your photo of your unique and stunning version of a Twenty. It gives me great ideas on how to proceed with this endeavor, even before I set foot inside a bike shop. Perhaps this a "cure" for folding bike addiction-or at the very least wanderlust."

I initially built up my Twenty as a drop bar / fixed gear model after toying with the idea of running a 3 speed and it stayed that way with very few changes until I re-geared it this weekend.

The Phillip's was a little easier to retrofit with a nicer crank as the bb was 72 and a bit and a 73mm cartridge fit perfectly after I re-tapped the bb to standard... the Raleigh bb is 76mm and will need to be re-faced to do this.

Was given a very nice Suzue cartridge bearing hub and built a new wheel around that, re-spaced the rear to 125, and fitted the derailleur and bar and shifter.

Will be getting some frame work done to add canti / v brake mounts in the rear and am having a new custom fork built so I will have better brake options and eyelets for fenders and a touring rack... will also get a braze on mount for a front d so I can rock a 10 speed drive and some bottle cage mounts.

This little guy is gonna see some serious miles and would like to use him for weekend trips and short tours.

If there was an interest I would be willing to organize a group buy on some hand made forks and think I could swing a good price as I work with the builder and would make it a cost plus shipping deal.

Will be keeping the fork angles I have as I like the handling of my Twenty and with a proper headset will be even better as then I can ride it with no hands...

Leo H.

Interesting thread. Pardon my uncouth, but what is the allure/desire for Raleigh folders? I have nothing against them, but I've noticed there's some sort of cachet that isn't visibly obvious to me about these bikes that I'd be happy to have explained to me. They look like a decent, workaday, basic folding design...not that there's anything wrong with that!

There is an example of a relative of your '20' nearby: https://reno.craigslist.org/bik/1754933154.html but I'm drawn more to a similarly priced Bickerton also in the area.
I understand they're totally different platforms, and I guess I'm not looking to be convinced, but more in the way of a 'compare and contrast' essay.

Thank you,

Sixty Fiver

You'd have to ride a Twenty to appreciate their virtues and in their stock form the ride compares very favorably with the full sized Raleigh Sports which is a very nice riding bicycle and to this day there are few folders that have a ride quality that can come close.

I have logged some decent mileage on stock Twenty bikes and logged even more on my drop bar version as it is lighter, faster, and for me... much more comfortable set up.

The stock Twenty suffered from really anemic braking in the 406 version but the 451 model braked better as it was fitted with Raleigh steel brakes and not the weak alloy brakes the export versions were fitted with.

They are a very solid and dependable bike and have a fold that is suited for smaller living quarters, the boot of a car, and in many cases were used on sailboats as on shore transport.

They are a favourite among people like myself who have the skills and tools to customize their rides and people have been doing this for just about as long as the Twenty has been around... by upgrading the wheels to alloy and installing better brake pads the bike gets much much better.

The Bickerton is considered to be one of the first true folding bikes, it is very lightweight, but is not noted for it's ride quality.

folder fanatic

I am taking notes now:

• Replace Steel Rims With Alloy Ones (Ready To Go With a special last year UK made Sturmey-Archer AW Hub & Rear Wheel)
• Good-Very Good Ride Quality-even at the plain stock as purchased level
• Poor Braking Set Up (But my Brompton has prepared me in how to deal with this issue i.e. excellent brake pads added)
• Not the smallest fold but acceptable for most situations
• Solid & Dependable (highly valued by me personally)

And this morning marked the first day of cleaning off the corrosion and grime of almost 40 years. (Before & Afterwards)

I cleaned up the top section (handlebars, latches, & shifter somewhat) and can see the little bird now!

Sixty Fiver

With alloy wheels and better brake pads the stopping power up front will improve dramatically and you will be able to stop in the rain but even with Kool Stops the rear brake is still more of an ornament than a brake.

My Twenty has a Rush Pro sidepull (bmx) up front which has really good power but when the new fork and brakes are installed I expect to have insane stopping power.

Here's another...

Built a drop bolt on my other Twenty so I could mount a shorter reach rear brake and was using V brake drop levers as I replaced the front fork with a suspension fork and v brake.

That put the S in STOP.

Using drop bolts means that you may not be able to use the stock fenders.

This required a lot of mods as I re-tapped the bb and had to cut down the headtube by a few mm and re-face it to fit a new headset and fork but the result was great... used a Nitto Technomic and lost some foldability but gained a lot of performance.

Took her through the valley and rode with guys on full sized bikes who were blown away at how fast this bike was (gearing was set rather high) and they could not follow me when I opted to take a detour on the trails...

Sold her to a friend who was looking for just this kind of bike...