elijahmccown

Not too long ago I found a Raleigh Record at a dumpster and took it open myself to start fixing it up. I have repaired most everything on the bike and its running better than ever except a slight ticking sound whenever I pedal the bike, and the sound always occurs at the same pedal location. I am pretty unfamiliar with fixing and diagnosing bikes but I believe the ticking sound is due to the bottom brackets, (correct me if I am wrong) But my question is what kind or size bracket I would need to properly replace it and also if I would need anything else if I repair the bracket. Any help is much appreciated.

dedhed

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/raleigh26.html

VegasTriker

When the Japanese adopted a standard for bottom brackets they chose to use the English standard so Japanese made bottom brackets have the same thread as English made bottom brackets. It's easy to find ones with the English thread today versus trying to find one like the French threaded BB on my 73 Motobecane Le Champion with Stronglight cranks. The main consideration is type of axle (square taper?) and width. You may need to find someone with a BB cup remover for the fixed side when you go to replace it. with a newer sealed bearing unit It's never easy to get that side off and with a bike this old may be really difficult. If you are lucky it may only be a problem of replacing the bearings if the bearing races are not damaged.

alcjphil

Important information. A 1972 Raleigh Record bottom bracket would have had Raleigh's proprietary 26 tpi bottom bracket threading. Replacing the bottom bracket with a more modern unit is difficult and will also mean that you have to replace the crank.

FBOATSB

Welcome. The first thing to do is establish when this Record was made and get a drive side photo of this bike in your gallery so we can see it. The Record was considered an entry level model of "ten speeds" for many years. The fact that you can even ride around on it at all, clicking aside, is a good sign.
Edit: Sorry, the '72 in thread title went over my head

Iride01 

If it turns out that your Raleigh Record has a BB that isn't BSA threaded, then toss it back in the bin, the scrap metal bin so it gets re-cycled. No pun intended, might wind up being a can for pork and beans. Raleigh Records, while pretty aren't anything special. And fixing and maintaining a bike that doesn't hold to any standard component still made today will be expensive if you have to pay ebay prices for NOS (new old stock) and already worn out parts sold there.

However if you have it in mostly working condition, then good for you. Ride it. The sound you hear might be from anywhere. For various reasons, many sounds just seem to come from the BB. Usually they aren't.

If you feel the click more so than hear the click, then I'd first swap the pedals on your bike for some others. There is already a current thread on this in the Bicycle Mechanics where this question should have been posted. And many others about mysterious clicks.

Click

Welcome to BF

ClydeClydeson

Don't assume it is the bottom bracket - pedal bearings are very prone to wear out and develop ticks and creaks and pops. Slap a known-good set of pedals on and take 'er for a rip and see if it is improved.

Straightblock

It may be a loose or worn crank cotter pin, too.

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/cotters.html

FBOATSB

In my 2¢ worth of experience, with respect to rhythmic clicking or ticking, would be to lubricate any metal to metal interfaces of the saddle/pillar including rivets.

ClydeClydeson

Yup. There are a dozen things that are IMO more likely than the bottom bracket to make a click on each pedal stroke. I would estimate that a creaking saddle is twice as likely as bottom bracket noise for most similar cases.

juvela

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if your example came through with Brit produced pedals would suggest disassembling them and counting the bearings in each of the four races

inconsistencies at this location were common in Brit pedals at this epoch

this could cause the noise you describe...


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branko_76 

Bottom Brackets rarely go bad but a 50 year old BB should be rebuilt. This involves removing the crank arms, both cups, spindle and bearings. Remove all of the old dried up grease with a solvent, polish all parts with a dry rag to make sure the solvent is removed then apply new grease and reassemble.

The threading of a 1972 Raleigh Record is likely 26 tpi rather than the more common 24 tpi so replacing it will take some effort so it's better to just re-use what you have as long as the bearing surfaces aren't badly pitted or worn.

branko_76 

Here's a thread showing what you are likely to encounter, it's a early 1970's Grand Prix which used the exact same BB as the Record of the era...

1974 Raleigh Grand Prix Rehab..Part 2..Bottom Bracket & Crank

repechage

always chainring bolts to review

JohnDThompson 

If the cups are still serviceable, you may be able to use a standard square taper spindle. That's how I got a crank for my daughter's Raleigh 3-speed frame.

shoota 

Does it click no matter which chainring you're in? Or only on one of them?

Road Fan

Another issue is that 99.9% chance that this crankset/BB uses cotter pins, not a cotterless arrangement. You need to look at Sheldon’s stuff to see how to work on it. What’s wrong with it? Squeaky? Rough? The petaling noise suggests it just needs to be overhauled, cleaned and regreased with new balls. From some I’ve seen lately, the cups and spindle could easily be like new. I would certainly try to repair versus replace.

Road Fan

Yes, a repair along these lines is certainly possible, I’m following this path on my 1952 Rudge! I’m trying to find a pista crank for it.