BigPolishJimmy

Craiglist posting of the bike I missed out on last week. Now it reappears with a higher price, went from 75 to 200 dollars.

https://swmi.craigslist.org/bik/1874904695.html

I really like the look of this frame, but now it's out of my range. It'd be different if I didn't already have a bike as nice as this, but as it stands I actually have equal to slightly better bikes. I was hoping the person who beat me to it would actually be riding it. Either the original seller got a lot of responses, decided to tell everyone the bike was sold and relisted, or it was picked up by a flipper. Oh well, my bike lust aside, more power to them I know flippers have to eat too. I'm not posting a "Is it worth it" thread, I know that it's only worth it if you want a 'minty' fresh entry-level vintage bike. Condition makes this bike, but the steel wheels take away from the desirability, suffice it to say it's not the same deal it was last week. I know better deals are out there and I got one the very next day, gotta keep saying sour grapes... stupid bike lust.

Anyhow what I want to ask is "Did Raleigh ever make bikes in the US?" The new ad says 100% american made, but the 3 Raleighs I have are labeled 'made in England'.

bobbycorno

Nope. This is from the Huffy ownership era. All of the bikes were made in Japan (and Taiwan?), and were nothing near the quality of the English bikes. I worked for a Raleigh dealer at the time - they were c**p, especially the low-end ones like the Capri.

SP
Bend, OR

ColonelJLloyd 

I'm not Raleigh expert, but I can hear them coming.

I'm sure the bike in question was made somewhere in Asia. The seller is looking at the Raleigh Bicycles of America (or something to that effect) headbadge and is making an awfully big assumption. Actually, I'll bet there's a "made in Taiwan" sticker on it!

randyjawa 

Several of the bigger names (manufacturing numbers wise) elected to build bikes in foreign markets in an effort to avoid high tariffs imposed at the time. Raleigh was and still is, no different. So, the answer is yes, Raleigh did build bikes in the US.

The Raleigh Technium pictured is a US Raleigh. Though I might be mistaken, the Raleigh headbadge used for US made Raleigh, looked like the one pictured.

RaleighTechniumFu.jpg RaleighTechniumHe.jpg

ColonelJLloyd 

^^The bike was sold by Raleigh USA, but I highly doubt it was manufactured in this country.

brian3069

From Sheldon Brown:

American made Raleighs manufactured in Kent, Washington, By Derby Cycle

Sample number: R 003310123 A

• R (all)
  
• Digits 1 & 5 are year. Sample is from 2001
• Digits 2,3,4 are day (001-365). Sample is from February 2
  
• digits 5-9 are sequential. Sample is the 123rd bike built that shift.
  
• A = morning shift B= evening shift. Sample is morning shift.
  Letter code may or may not be present, depending on production schedule.

ColonelJLloyd 

Well, I'll be. . . Any idea which models/years of the Kent, WA bikes?

I still believe the Capri in question was made in Asia.

Chris_in_Miami

Two Raleigh of America bikes that I've seen recently (a Touring 12, and my friend's Wyoming) have "made in Taiwan" decals on them.

As far as the Capri goes, I'd have to have a very good reason to buy it for $75. You're not missing anything special, be patient and something much better will come your way.

Doohickie 

The Capri was a low-end Raleigh USA bike made in Asia, when Raleigh USA was a licensing of the Raleigh name by Huffy. In general, these are decent bikes (I have a Marathon of that era), but the Capri was either the lowest or next to lowest offering, and not worth anywhere near $200.

There was a renaming during the Huffy years, but here is the Huffy/Raleigh catalog from 1985; the Capri was equivalent to either the Record or the Sportif (both 30 lb. bikes). You can tell it's a Huffy-era Raleigh USA bike by the distinctive lettering spelling out RALEIGH on the frame.

BigPolishJimmy

A Very Good Reason =="My Size" 64cm bikes in good shape are fairly rare to come by. There's no way I'd pay $200.00 for it, someone else might but I won't. I like the color scheme very much and it's pretty, but for 200, I'm going to have to have alloy wheels & chrome forks and stays. And you are right better deals are out there, in fact I got my Nishiki Custom Sport(double-butted Cro-mo/alloy rims) the very next day for less than what the Capri was originally going for.

Chris_in_Miami

I can sympathize with that, I usually find 58cm+ bikes, and I'm too short for anything over 54cm.

cudak888 

The Techniums were the Kent, WA frames.

-Kurt

big_heineken

I have that exact same bike and I can guarantee you that it was made in Taiwan. I converted mine to a single speed, then to a cyclocross bike. It's a lot of fun to ride, but it's no light-weight.

tcs

Yep.

"Of all the bikes we tested, undoubtedly the most technically innovative is the Raleigh Technium 480, which is made in Raleigh's new facitity in Seattle, Washington." - Bicycle Rider, September, 1986.

Bicycle Guide magazine even had a big feature story on the factory and how the bikes were manufactured.

Then of course Mike Melton hand built built a small number of very special competition Raleigh bikes.

tcs

WNG

The Raleigh USA products are the Technium line and possibly the higher end all steel race models. The Techniums are easily discerned by their unique looking lugs to glue the 6061-T8 aluminum tubes. They also all have Technium decals, but if they are gone, the lugs and BB shell are the tell tale signs.

redneckwes

Outside of the Huffy era I know,

I remember reading somewhere, that in the boom era Raleigh was supposed to be building bikes in Enid Oklahoma.

As indicated in the serial number ID sheet.

I've never seen an "E" serial number myself.

cb400bill

My 1993 Raleigh C-50 hybrid came with this seat tube decal.

ron521

Is a bike manufactured as part of an agreement between Huffy and Raleigh more properly called a Huffeigh?

olly708

I have a Raleigh Randonneur, purchased new in 1995 from a UK Raleigh 5-star dealer. I still have the original sales receipt. The Randonneur was Raleigh's top of the range touring-specific bike, supplied with front & rear Blackburn racks, Brooks B17 saddle, Shimano Deore groupset with triple chainset, high quality wheels (Mavic rims/stainless spokes/Continental Top Touring tyres), Campagnolo headset. It even came with a special braze-on fitting on the rear chainstay to hold three spares spokes - and was supplied with spare spokes too! This particular example's frame is constructed using Reynolds 708 steel tubing (with internal spiral ribs in the tubes for greater strength - so lighter and stronger than 531 and required low temperature silver brazing), although previous models were made using 531 tubes. This bike retailed in the UK in 1995 for around £700 (sterling) - that's well over $1,000 - almost 20 years ago!

I was always under the impression that the Randonneurs were manufactured in Ilkeston (in Derbyshire, UK) by Raleigh's Special Products Division - where all the Raleigh Professional Racing Team frames were made. The serial number (stamped into the underside of the bottom bracket shell) of the Randonneur I own starts with the letter "E". Using the chart posted above - this indicates it was produced at Raleigh's Enid factory in Oklahama .......however.....the bike is still in original condition with nothing having been changed from new (even the tyres are original) and the frame still wears it's original frame sticker stating " A product of Raleigh Industries Ltd. Made in England".

I find it difficult to understand why Raleigh would produce a top of the range touring bike in the USA, then ship it to England, where they still had manufacturing facilities for high end bikes - or why there would be a frame sticker stating it was Made in England, if in fact it was made in the USA. Can anyone shed any light on the models that were produced in Enid, USA in the mid-1990s, please?

Gravity Aided

If you note, many Raleigh USA stickers, as above, say "Assembled in Seattle, USA" Assembly, in that context, is a lot different than "Made". Having owned and ridden a lot of Raleighs from many eras, I have to say the Raleigh USAs were heavy bikes, and not the quality of the earlier English built bikes. That being said, they offered value for money. But Schwinn was doing greater things in that era, and building better bikes once you got to the Columbus Tenax Steel models. I've owned both a Technium and a Record from that era. Both were big frames. I usually ride a 62 or 64 cm frame. I still have a Grand Prix 60cm from Nottingham. These are all good bikes, but I see little or no comparison between them. I agree with Big Polish Jimmy, not worth $200.00, although such size frames are difficult to find, they are out there. And often hard for the seller to move.

oddjob2

Huffy era 1986 Raleigh USA Competition, Reynolds 531, says made in Taiwan.

a77impala

I bought my daughter a 200 min bike years ago, it says Made in Seattle USA. Aluminum frame,
rapid fire shifters.

redneckwes

Olly708,

If Raleigh had a factory in Oklahoma USA it was long closed by 1995, I would assume that the "E" in your serial number means something else.


My 2,600th post!

T-Mar

On a related but sadder note, Raleigh's other North American manufacturing facility in Waterloo, Quebec is shutting down later this year, after 40 years of manufacturing bicycles for the Canadian market. I imagine that a lot of Canadian built Raleigh were marketed in the USA.

Gravity Aided

That is a sad note. I hate to hear when a bike plant closes.