New guy with a Raleigh Professional
 

Hi,

Newbie here. Not quite sure where to post this, possibly clydsedale as I'm 6' and 215 lbs. Or of course the intro section. But I thought I'd start here as I have what I believe to be a '74 Raleigh Professional.

I acquired the bike from a deceased uncle in the early 90's.
Lately I've been thinking about starting to ride a bike. Would love to drop a few pounds, a co-worker who started riding this spring has gotten be turned on to the idea. Last night I dug out the Raleigh, I didn't have a clue about what it was, except that my uncle at one point raced bicycles.

After spending all night researching the bike, here's what I have come up with. I determined it to be roughly a '74 by the A serial number and CC cutout on the bottom of the frame. It has a Colnago stem with Cinelli bars. The stem is suspended by Cambrio Rino bearings. The seat tube is a Campagnolo, with a Brooks seat. Brakes are both Campagnolo with Brev Inter markings. It has downtube mounted Campagnolo shifters. The front derailer is a Campagnolo. Rear derailer is a Suntour BL with 6 gears that are also Suntour. Front two sprockets are Campagnolo with Campagnolo pedal arms and pedals. Front hub is a Shimano. Rear hub is a Campagnolo Super (small hub not the big 5 star sheriff one). 36 spokes. Wheels are Mavic G40's and tires are 700x25. My uncle had a serious accident in '74 in a bicycle race. He cracked his skull open and was in a coma for a long time. I'm guessing this is the bike he wrecked as it has been repainted solid red, with a little CyclArt logo painted on it. But I see no frame damage.

Went over the bike today. I have a shop full of tools(I build cars), but I'm going to have to buy some more. Need to get some really thin wrenches to take apart some of this stuff. :) Definitely need to service all the bearings after so many years. I found the rear has a broken axle. It broke right at the end of the threads. Also need tires, and to re-tighten the spokes on the real wheel.

Anyways, how do you seasoned bicyclists feel this bicycle would be for the road? One way to my place of work is 18 miles, all flat empty highway.I know I'm not ready to jump on and do 36 miles right away. But eventually I'd like to be able to. Any tire recommondations? Can old campy axles be found easily? I know the full hubsets are kind of pricey. The cups are races look fine on mine, all I'd need is an axle. Will the Mavic's hold up to my weight?

Whew, sorry for the long-winded first post. Really glad to have found this forum. Incredible place full of information.

The Raleigh Pros were good, desirable bikes. I have a 69 and a 70. Sounds like yours has been changed a bit as they came all Campagnolo, typically high-flange hubs with a Brooks seat, 3ttt stem and GB bars. Other than typical metric sized wrenches and a few allens, you will need some specialized bicycle tools to work on it: headset, bottom bracket, pedal, and cone wrenches, crank puller, third hand tool for brakes, and a wheelstand for truing wheels. All worthwhile investments if you plan to work on bikes.

A good source of tools/basic parts is Loose Screws: http://www.loosescrews.com/index.cgi

As you start riding, take care not to push too high of a gear; learn to "spin" (pedal somewhat rapidly, 70-90 revs a minute or so) and your knees will love you. Start short and increase the distance every few days. Just keep it up and you'll do fine! Good luck.

yeah, dont make the mistake i did. i started out running a tall gear with low rpm's. i learned thats not such a hot idea the next day when i couldnt walk. practice rpm's and rhythm.

Raleigh Pro was the top of the line in 1974, a very desirable bicycle (then and now), and a CycleArt repaint is also top of the line. As dbakl says, loosescrews.com is an excellent place for parts and tools. They sell replacement Campy axles. Another good source for tools and parts is http://biketoolsetc.com. Good luck!

Neal

+1!!!!!!! I would sell 4-5 of my bikes at the chance of owning one Professional in my size!!,,,,BD


I have been hearing horror stories about Cycleart lately? From an LBS, who apparently owns a bike done by them, or a customers bike done by them. Might only be a rumour?

CycleArt is not cheap, and they likely have a bit of a backlog, but they do excellent work and stand behind it.

I'd love to see pictures of the bike. I have a '70 that's off for painting in California (Dr. Deltron though, not CycleArt). I'm eagerly awaiting it's return in full glory. I imagine you'll love riding that bike - if it fits you.

Took a few pictures of my Raleigh. Still needs a lot of cleaning. Heading to a bike shop today, see what stuff I can find.

One more picture from the front

Gonna drop that v-eight in the background into the frame? Man, that bike would SCREAM! Looks like you need some new brake pads too...

Your rear hub appears to be a "high flange" or "large flange" campy record hub. The "small flange" variety does not have any holes, and has much smaller flanges where the spokes connect. It may well be the original wheel, although many Raliegh Pro's did come with the small flange hubs. The bike looks like it may be a little tall for you if your are 6'. You can check somewhat by "standover height", which basically means that when you are standing over the top bar of the bike does it hit you uncomfortably where it counts. The measurement that tells you something of a bikes size is the measurement from the middle of the crank axle up the seat tube to the top. This is called C-T, or center to top. Some people (and bike manufactures) measure from the center of the axle to the center of the top tube bar where it joins the seat tube. This is called C-C, and of course will be slightly shorter on the same bike. If you have a long legs (long inseam measurement), standover is higher than in people with shorter legs, even if they are the same height, if you get my drift. For bikes that are in the grey area, it becomes a matter of preference. I personally like taller bikes, even if the standover height is a little snug or even non-existant, since I have a long torso and all things being equal, the top bar will be longer if the standover height is taller. But, others prefer 1 or maybe 2" of space between themselves and the top bar when standing, at least it makes it easier to deal with the bike when your have stopped at a traffic light or such!

Very nice. I know a lot of people are interested in making a bicycle "period correct" but if you are riding 36 miles a day along a highway, you may want to invest in some more powerful brakes. I've had very good experiences with Shimano 105 brakes; they are cheap but very strong due to their dual-pivot design, and are of excellent quality.

The changeover from large to small flange hubs came between 1976 and 1977, coinciding with the elimination of the chrome stays and the elimination of the fastback style seat cluster.

I need to ride a frame larger than what some would say that I need, too.

1976 was the last year of the Professional "Mk IV" and features fastback, partly chromed stays (and forks), and large flange hubs. 1977 started the "Mark V", which had wraparound stays, with the Nuovo Record dropouts (drilled for the chain holder) which where only chromed at the very ends. Mark Vs marked (pun intended) the intro of small flange hubs. Rims, bars and stems where whatever they had at the time from what everyone can tell, although the rims were usually french (Mavic or AVA) and the bars / stems were either GB or 3TTT. Mine (a 78 Mk V) has nice GB bars and an ok GB stem and came with Mavic rims. Of course Cinelli bars and stems are quite nice as well!

I have a '78 and it is a treat every time I ride it. The bike is very well equipped - your uncle wasn't a slouch. Did you mean a "Colnago" stem and not "Cinelli"? If the stem is branded with colnago pantographs or Ernesto's signature pantograph, selling it on eBay will really help with the restoration process...

Very nice!! I still like the original light blue better. Well, it's not a Pro, but I am trying to buy a 555 Super Course this weekend. The right size and everything. Looks like new in the tiny pics, I have to take a pretty good drive to see it in person.,,,,BD

Thanks for all the tips, help and encouragement. I really want to ride this bike, and not wait for tools and an axle. So I brought it to a bike shop, and told them to go over it. Should have it back by the end of the week. Yes the stem is a Colnago. The bars are Cinelli. And I wish it was still in it's original paint. Since the bike is at the bike shop I can't get measurements. But it is pretty tall.

Got the bike back today. I'm thinking about getting clipless pedals, but for now just got some cheap pedals with straps. If I don't go clipless, I'm going to put some straps on the old campy pedals. Didn't have time to go for much of a ride, gotta leave for work in half an hour. But I did take it out for about a mile. I forgotten how much fun it is to ride. In my limited experience it sure rides nice.

Luker was asking about the colnago stem. I guess I'm not sure what a pantograph is, but I took a picture of the stem. I need to polish everything up on the bike.

Yes that's a pantographed stem (sort of like engraving). You could sell that stem
for a tidy little profit on ebay and replace it with a proper Cinelli stem or 3TTT stem.

The Mavic's should be fine for your weight, especially since they are laced 36 spoke 3x (cross).
when you had it in the shop did they true/tighten the wheels? if not it's something you might
consider.
BTW you don't need to use online suppliers for the tools, I'm not sure where you are but most
local bike shops (LBS) will have a decent supply of tools. Park tools are very good,
some can be pricey but you get what you pay for. I always use the LBS for stuff like that and
have a good relationship with them.
One other thing I'd suggest is get a good repair book. Something like Zinns the Art of Road bike Maintenance, or the Bicycling book or even the Park manual will help.
parktool online has some excellent repair help available ( http://www.parktool.com/repair/ ).

Good luck and keep us posted on progress. oh yah this IS the right place to post this stuff.

Marty

I noticed braze on top tube brake cable guides. Those weren't OE on 78 Raleigy Professionals. they must have been added when it was repainted.

Looks great, and I'm sure it does ride nice. Dr. D could solve the paint problem, and the new decal artist
could handle the decals I bet?

Well, the 555 Super Course sold in one day, sigh. Things are looking up though. After posting a CL wanted ad I found an early Carlton Super Course, and it's owned by someone I know. The price seems fair, and as soon as I get paid by a third party, I will be getting it most likely. Still not a pro, but you gotta love Carlton lugs.,,,,BD

I wouldn't mind getting a Carlton, or Holdsworth, ot Whitcomb for that matter, but since my Professional is still nearly like new - don't need to. :D

Thbbbbbb!;) lol!,,,,BD

Just watched a colnago stem go for $176 on ebay, not as nice as this one (but a 3TTT Record...)

I concur.

Again, I concur, while admitting some bias. :) Capo #1 draws lots of nice comments, and that's with a stock CyclArt color in a Cat. II paint job. Jim and Susan are very easy folks with whom to work (and to ride).