]Hey I just bought a 63cm Raliegh Supercourse and I was wondering what year it was? The seller said 1974 but I have been looking online and it looks like a 1970. The serial number is on the dropout, it's 0008089. Also, this is the only supercourse that I have seen that has a full chrome fork and hot half chrome. It has a Suntour vx rear derailleur, simplex shifters and Sugino vt cranks. thanks

Here are some pics

IMHO, that is a replacement fork, I firmly believe it's been the victim of a front end collision.

Block decal makes it a '73 or '74. '75/'76 are labeled as Super Course MK II

The Simplex shifters are original; the Suntour derailleur and the Sugino crank are not. GB stem and presumably GB handlebar are original; brakes (presumably Weinmann centerpulls) with Carlton hoods, also original.

You have Carlton's "Capella" lugs, which are very pretty. Big plus.

Redneckwes is probably right about the original fork being lost in a crash. Since the main tubes of the bike are 531 and the fork was hi-ten, there's a reasonable chance the frame survived undamaged, but I can't tell from your photos.

Capella lugs makes it a '73 as does the block Raleigh decal. Definitely a replacement fork and the shifters might be original but not those other drivetrain components.

Neal

I'm pretty sure the top tube is bowed.

-Kurt

Thanks for the info, How can you tell if the top tube is bowed? I guess if it is i'm only out $30

Put a straight edge on the top tube to check it. Oftimes only the fork is damaged in a colision, and as RHM points out, your replacement is made from the same stuff as the original.

The crank was replaced to save a little weight, but the Suntour Vx DR is a marked improvement for shifting.

After you clean it up, I would suggest some Meguiar's scratch-x to restore the paint luster.
Looks like a new saddle and an overhaul is all it really needs, and (provided nothing is bent) you will have a truly remarkable riding machine. (The Super Course has an avid following for good reason).

Have you gotten tired of telling people their fork's bent?

Neal

The steep angle of the headtube is worrying me. Otherwise, all fixed up you will have a jem. SC's are wonderful!

No; the rest of the forum - myopic or otherwise, given the number of false positives - have since taken over that job.

-Kurt

mikehighlife - the quickest way to check for frame damage from a front end collision would be to examine the downtube and top tube near their head tube lugs. Sometimes fingertips are better than eyes at discerning ripples or irregularities.

Maybe it's the angle of the photo. Dead level pics would help out.

top tube does appear a little bowed up in that second photo, right above the S and the E... could just be an optical illusion... but would make sense if the bike took a hard wack in the front

andy

The top photo is obviously foreshortened, which distorts the frame angles in the photos. So there's no way to tell, from that photo, whether the frame is bent. The other photos would all show frame damage, were it severe, and would probably show some hint of it if even mild damage were present. I do see a faint bow in the second photo, as Andy mentioned, but I'm not sure what to make of it. A true profile photo would show the frame geometry much better.

I think the frame is fine. When I trashed my Nishiki, there was a distinct bulge on the bottom of the downtube, just behind the headtube. The paint peeled and everything. Check out that specific area; if it looks okay I wouldn't worry about the frame.

A lot of tall frames like that have a headtube angle that is more vertical than the seat tube. I wouldn't worry about that.

Nice looking bike.

Hey, you're a scientist, too!