Originally Posted by
oneclick
His serial starts with W; the probability of 26tpi is close to zero.
If there is any doubt, a known 24tpi cup will mesh with another 24 tpi (as it should), but will rock back-and-forth when a mesh with 26 tpi is attempted.
I was wondering about that. If it's a higher-end Raleigh, it should indeed have a 24TPI BB.
Unfortunately, the OP didn't indicate what model Raleigh he had and I didn't want to assume. His reference to the Sheldon Brown site and apparent willingness to re-use his existing spindle though pitted also led me to believe - perhaps wrongly - that he'd already determined that he had a Raleigh-proprietary 26TPI BB and didn't have too many other good options.
If the OP's BB is in fact threaded 24TPI, I'd guess he shouldn't have much of a problem finding a replacement spindle. He's indicated his existing spindle is marked 5SS, which I believe should be 32/55/37.5 - and he's in Italy.
Only issue I'd foresee might be finding one that's JIS if that's the taper he needs. I'd also guess he shouldn't have much problem finding a set of replacement BSC or ISO cups if necessary, either.