Raleigh Sports Wheel Rebuild - I can't find front hub measurements
 

I wanted a Sports for a while. I found one last year and did a complete overhaul on it. It's a 1973 Ivory Glaze 23" model. I ride 25" frames, though, and I couldn't get comfortable with the north road bars. I had resigned to sell it come spring, but. . .

I was up way too late the other night and, on a whim, quickly mocked up the Sports with the Soma Lauterwasser bars I purchased recently and some beater Berthet pedals. I definitely like the look, and while the saddle-to-bar drop is more than I'm used to, the reach is correct for me.

So, I've decided to upgrade the rims. I'm going to rebuild the wheels with Sun CR-18s and I have three questions.

1. What are the front hub measurements? I can't find them online.
2. Should I use straight gauge or double butted spokes? I'll be using brass nipples.
3. My spoke calculator tells me I need 36 275mm spokes for the rear wheel. I know many others here have done this exact wheel build. Does this sound correct?

Here's a crappy cell pic of the mock up taken at about 3am after too many Pabsts. Thanks in advance for the help! :thumb:

http://gallery.me.com/justinhughes/1...12984884430002

I have read and found in my own experience that CR-18 rims and original Raleigh Endrick rims use the same length spokes.

Considering the minimal cost of another Raleigh front hub and Sturmey rear, you might want to build yourself a second set of wheels and put the originals to the side. It'll keep your workstand free of a bike minus wheels.

-Kurt

My spoke calculator said 274.3 mm and I'd round down.

I don't have the dimensions of the front hub, though.

I like this idea. It should help reduce the weight of the rear wheel substantially, right?

Do you know if J&B sells a front hub that is compatible with the fork? i.e. Are the modern Sturmey hubs actual replacements for Sports? Are the SA hub axles still 5/16" in front and 3/8" in rear? I was going to buy some wingnuts because I dig the look and the idea of not needing a wrench.

Any opionion as to straight gauge or DB spokes for these wheels?

I like it.

The original Raleigh front hubs are 96mm OLN with quite a small axle. You're better off getting a second one used from eBay or a forum member than adapting a modern hub - cheaper too.

You're stuck using a Sturmey hub with flatted axles to fit the dropouts of the Sports. Nothing else will fit without DO modification, which I've long considered a no-no. Raleigh revised the dropout slot size on the Sports and DL-1 in 1977; those bikes don't have this issue.

-Kurt

If you're going with a whole new pair of wheels, you can even go 32/40 on spoke numbers if you want the real traditional look. Those hubs are probably easier to find, too. And, of course, there's the possibility of putting a dynohub in front. I like dynohubs.

Thanks!

Could I just file a flat spot on the axle of a modern, 100mm hub and muscle it in there?

Are the new SA 3 and 5 speed hubs available in 40h? While I dig the traditional look, I'd probably just go 36/36 or even 36/32. I'll consider the inexpensive Sanyo dynamo.

I'm swamped at work so there is no wheel building for me before the end of April. I'll probably just order the wheels from J&B via my LBS. I sent them a pair of hubs recently to build into a wheelset and was quite satisfied with the result.

I have a similar plan in the works. I think I have an extra set of front and rear hubs floating around, let me know if you're in need of some. I'm intrigued by the Super Reverb amp case....

I've found road cases make excellent movable work tables.

I've got a thing for silverface, dripedge Fenders. At one time I had a '68 Showman Reverb, '68 Dual Showman Reverb, '68 Bassman, '68 Bandmaster Reverb, '68 2x12 Fender cab with JBLs, '69 Twin Reverb and this Super Reverb (which is actually a 1970 amp in a 1968 cabinet with original CTS speakers). I'd still like to have a '68 Vibro Champ.

I wish that SR still looked that good. It's been doused in beer and bourbon many times since that photo was taken.

Look closely at the top right hand of the second photo.

http://gallery.me.com/justinhughes/1...12858951000001

http://gallery.me.com/justinhughes/1...12858951600001

Wow man! Nice amps.... I see what you mean about the upper right hand corner of the second picture. This is the place I used to spend ALL my money before I got back into bikes.... http://www.guitarbarn.com/barn/index.php
Super cool place with TONS of neat of gear.

Someone needs to start a thread about vintage guitars and such.

Let's not. This damn forum is a major time suck for me. One in which all we do is post guitar porn and debate/trade tubes will get me divorced. ;)

But. . . . one of the coolest bass tones I've heard was an EB-3 through a Dual Showman Reverb and a 1x15. My bass player wanted to play mine through that JBL cab. My answer was an emphatic, "Hell, no".

I am building up a spare set of wheels for my 1972 Superbe. I have a spare dyno hub and rear hub that happen to be 36 hole, using the CR-18 rims in high polish. These are going to be my riding wheels. If I want to "show" the bike I will put the original Westricks back on.

Aaron :)

Measuring Your Own Hubs
 

I've posted this link once before somewhere:

http://www.wheelpro.co.uk/spokecalc/hubmeasure.pdf

and I hope Mr. Musson doesn't mind, but he
was kind enough to put it up online.

If you're going to do very much of this kind
of thing, you probably need to know how to
do this. Personally, I use a vernier caliper,
a cheap plastic version of which can be gotten here:http://www.harborfreight.com/media/c...image_2173.jpg
http://www.harborfreight.com/6-inch-...iper-7914.html

But there are folks here on BF who feel
pretty strongly that only Fred Flintstone
still uses Vernier scale calipers, so feel
free to go dial or digital.

It's also pretty good advice not to trust
published measurements for ERD on rims.
In my personal experience, my own measure
of ERD dimensions almost always are different
than those published by the makers--one
recently by 6mm, which by the time you
run it through a spokecalc gives you a
difference of about 2mm on the spoke.

The measurements I take myself seem to
work well for me, but YMMV.

Mike Larmer