1989Pre 

I like the color scheme on this! Are you riding it? How do you like it? If you get the number off the bottom bracket,
I can tell you the date of manufacture. Seems like nice components, too.

1989Pre 

plonz: The origin8 clamp-on shift bosses do not slip without a stop underneath the downtube?

Rippstar

Yeah, I love this paint job and decals (especially on the top tube)! Unfortunately it's not rideable yet. I pulled off the components, cleaned and touched up the frame, serviced the headset, then got busy w/ other projects and had to set it aside for a while. Here's the current state of the frame and a closeup shot of the serial no. under the bb. Looks like it reads R908000196. So i think that makes it a 1990, but please correct me if I'm wrong.

plonz 

I saw no issue with the Origin8 clamp on boss. Very sturdy and wasn’t going to move on the tube. Basically the same as the clamp on bosses of old and probably even a little more secure.

That said, I didn’t log enough miles on the bike to see if there could be an issue over time.

1989Pre 

Yes, March 21, 1990 and the 196th bike produced during that shift.

1989Pre 

That is good to know. The reason I ask is I tried a Huret clamp on a bike, and it slipped and wrecked the
finish at that spot. I think there is special tape that will protect it in case.

T-Mar

As noted, it's a 1990 model. There were three models of the Olympian that year, the Olympian FT (road, triple chainrings ), Olympian CX (hybrid) and Olympian (road, double chainrings). Raleigh classified as a "Sport Performance" bicycle, as opposed to "Racing". It was the bottom of the nine Technium road models offered that year. MSRP was $375 US. Claimed weight was 26 lbs. Factory literature lists the saddle simply as "Brooks racing".

Rippstar

Thanks for the research and info @1989Pre & @T-Mar! I'll be sure to post photos of the finished build when I can carve out some time to put it all back together.

tough_boots

Here’s my Tri-Lite converted to single speed that I use as my daily commuter— only about three miles each way. I will eventually upgrade the wheels but it’s done for now. It’s got a few lost paint chips that need sealed and touched up— but of course it does. Its got a chill late 80’s vibe, super comfortable, and smooth as any classic New Order jam.

Thomson Elite seatpost
Brooks C17 saddle
original Dia Compe Alpha 5000 calipers
Tektro FL750 brake levers
Nitto b201aa risers
All City 612 crankset (with Shimano sealed cartridge bb)
Fyxation Gated Slim pedals
Alex rimmed rear wheel with flip flop Fuji branded hub
Araya rimmed front wheel with Campy hub
Velo Orange Porteur Rack
Armadillo Elite tires— 25’s

CallmeChester

I currently have an '86 440 listed on craigslist in my area. I'm thinking about getting it and turning it into my daily commuter. It's in pristine condition with perfect paint and all original parts except for the saddle. Supposedly it's been in storage for ~2 decades. Any idea what price I should try to get it for. Even thought it's in really good shape I think the current listing of $250 seems steep...

I'd post a link and/or pictures but apparently I can't do that yet (somewhat long-time lurker, newbie account). If anyone wants to see it to give an opinion search Raleigh Technium in Milwaukee, WI craigslist to take a gander. I'm hoping to get it for a decent price because, even though after looking at the old catalogs it's not my favorite of the early colors, it was love at first pic and I can't even tell you why!

Thanks in advance for advice. I originally started looking to buy a semi-competitive road bike that would pull double duty as my commuter when not on group rides but then multiple people on here suggested it may just be better to get a dedicated, cheaper, commuter bike and save up for a nicer bike to use otherwise. That lead me to finding this listing in my area and diving into the forums trying to figure out what was up with the "thermal bonding" dissimilar metals and all the other details I could find.

OTS 

CallmeChester Welcome to the Forums.
You are one post away from being able to post Pics.

Your Question might be better answered HERE:
Classic and Vintage Bicycles: Whats it Worth? Appraisals.

CallmeChester

Thanks. With this last post I can go to that thread now and post a link. Sorry for posting on the wrong thread but I got to see a lot of sweet Technium along the way!

OTS 

CallmeChester No worries
We were all new here once.

seat_boy

$250 seems steep for a Technium, no matter it's condition. They don't seem to demand the money of old Treks, for instance.

I've bought two: one in great shape that was $25, the other was in good shape but with a bent rear wheel, $50. I sold them for somewhere in the $100-$150 range.

WGB

Just to keep the thread rolling......

Just realized I don't have a shot of the serial number, though being US made it might not be needed.
Updated - added Sn photo - SN is R914500030 (hard to read!)

Confused by this number as R = Raleigh
91 = year
450 = can't be a date?
0030 = model?
Can it be (19)91 - 45th day, 0003 bike of the shift and the last 0 should be a B for afternoon shift??

@Schreck83 picked up for me, see Raleigh Technium Olympian.





I grabbed it for the groupset and wheels but after staring at it I decided it didn't deserve to be stripped for parts and recycled and last Saturday we had a nice warm day with driving rain and I stayed in the garage and stripped it down and rebuilt it. Rear wheel was very much out of true but "seems" to have tidied up. I didn't remove the bar tape as I didn't have any white replacement tape. Tires had rotted so added

CallmeChester

Well after posting a separate question to the What's it worth section I ended up picking up the '86 440. (Don't worry I got it much cheaper than the ridiculous $250 it was listed for! Though $145 might still be over paying I ended up riding it around his neighborhood and it was A BLAST to ride... couldn't help myself.) Already tore it down into pieces and re-lubed/greased everything... but I couldn't get the crank apart

A few questions for y'all before I show the pictures of it cleaned up.

1. Since the rear triangle is steel has anyone tried to fit a 7 speed cassette?
2. The Dia-Compe brakes do indeed seem quite cheap for for now seem to be fine, other than new brake pads should I look to replace these ASAP or just ride them out for a while?
3. I know I need new tires before I start riding, any suggestions for good 27" x 1 1/8" tires? Or does anyone know if there is room to upgrade to bigger wheels if I'm going to be getting new tires anyway?

WGB

CallmeChester

If yours came with a 6 speed, provided your RD will reach the 7th cog, it should work fine with a 7 speed though you may have to cold set the rear, wondering about dishing...?

Nothing wrong with the Dia-Compe that new pads won't cure (except see below)

Everyone here swears by Paselas for 27". There is a whole thread on 27 tire choices. You can certainly fit a 700c wheel that will have lots of room for a wider tire, but that might add to the expense. I looks like your brakes are bottomed out and pads can't go lower. If you switch to a 700c wheel you'd need different brakes. Notice I didn't say new, I said different as there are bound to be used/cheap sets locally. I'd stick with the current 27 inch set up and ride it but maybe you have a Co-op in Milwaukee that could offer advice?

​​​​​​The ultimate 27" tire reference thread!

​​​​​

Milwaukee Bicycle Collective
2930 W Clybourn St, Milwaukee, WI 53208, United States

Chuckk

I've had a bunch of Techniums over the years, but the second generation, 90's bikes came and stayed.
Love the aluminum lugs and exotic steels

1993 Raleigh USA MT500
Front half of the frame is 7005 double butted aluminum bonded to a Tange Prestige steel rear triangle. Only two bond points!
Have had it for at least 15 years, and built as a SS, 7 speed, and now with a group off a neighbor's cracked Gary Fisher frame.


1993 Raleigh USA Technium RT600 Competition
Reynolds 531 main tubes and fork, and 4130 steel stays


Nice timeline for Technium at Mombat: https://mombatbicycles.com/MOMBAT/Bik...s/Raleigh.html

RobertUI 

I just posted this in the Show us Your Raleigh thread (Show us your vintage Raleigh!!!!!) but I'm hoping someone here can give me some info. Long story short, I bought this frame to make use of some of my extra road bike parts. I would love to know more about it, I thought the date was '92but I don't think I'm reading that right (looked at Sheldon's site R921520257).

1989Pre 

Yes, it is a 1992. I'm not sure I've seen that nice, violet color before.

T-Mar

Unfortunately, I don't know the idiosyncrasies of the graphics. All I can say is that it is 1990-1992. The Technium Team existed in 1989, but it didn't use 753, had different graphics and employed horizontal dropouts. At the end of 1992, it was replaced by the similar SP-2000. The 1990-1992 versions of the Team were all spec'd with full 753 (including fork) and full Dura-Ace STI. I've only got the price lists for 1991 and 1992 but the 1990 catalogue doesn't mention it being available as a bare frameset.

T-Mar

While it was built in 1992, it is a 1993 model, as Raleigh was still using model names in 1992 but switched to model numbers for the 1993 model year.

shoota 

Looks like I got the same one. Got it for free but man this thing is rough!

RobertUI 

Progress pic... the bb and 600 crankset should be added this evening!

1989Pre 

Looks good already. I like the way the saddle makes the bike look.