Rehabbed a '73 Raleigh Grand Sports, not too shabby.
08-20-13, 11:56 AM
#1
Senior member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 175
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 66 Post(s)
Liked 124 Times
in
51 Posts
Rehabbed a '73 Raleigh Grand Sports, not too shabby.
So I picked up a pretty rough Raleigh Grand Sports from a guy. He had started taking it apart, but really didn't know much about bikes. I wish I had before pics, but here is how it stands now:
The script is pretty faded, and the paint has a good bit of "patina" but I didn't want to get too aggressive with it. The chrome cleaned up beautifully though, and the headtube badge is just awesome. I still need to change the brake cables and housings, but I took some pics since I had it out for a shake-down cruise.
It has Stronglight cranks, and the original plastic Simplex drivetrain, which I hear is pretty rare since it didn't stand up to any abuse. Weimann brakes and aluminum wheels. Serial number is stamped on the dropouts. The 70's style shellacked bar tape is pretty yellowed, and the hoods are not in great shape either, but since they say "Carlton" on them, I really don't want to swap them out. As soon as I get the seatpost out, this will be a nice little ride. It may be too small for me though, hard to tell until I can adjust the seat.
The script is pretty faded, and the paint has a good bit of "patina" but I didn't want to get too aggressive with it. The chrome cleaned up beautifully though, and the headtube badge is just awesome. I still need to change the brake cables and housings, but I took some pics since I had it out for a shake-down cruise.
It has Stronglight cranks, and the original plastic Simplex drivetrain, which I hear is pretty rare since it didn't stand up to any abuse. Weimann brakes and aluminum wheels. Serial number is stamped on the dropouts. The 70's style shellacked bar tape is pretty yellowed, and the hoods are not in great shape either, but since they say "Carlton" on them, I really don't want to swap them out. As soon as I get the seatpost out, this will be a nice little ride. It may be too small for me though, hard to tell until I can adjust the seat.
08-20-13, 06:35 PM
#4
What??? Only 2 wheels?
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Boston-ish, MA
Posts: 13,434
Bikes: 72 Peugeot UO-8, 82 Peugeot TH8, 87 Bianchi Brava, 76? Masi Grand Criterium, 74 Motobecane Champion Team, 86 & 77 Gazelle champion mondial, 81? Grandis, 82? Tommasini, 83 Peugeot PF10
Mentioned: 189 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1222 Post(s)
Liked 645 Times
in
232 Posts
That will be a nice bike to ride. I have one of the opposite colors. BTW, that blue is called Lagoon Blue, Carlton's team colors.
You can upgrade that bike very nicely with Suntour derailleurs. Those Simplex derailleurs didn't suffer so much from abuse as just age. Suntour VGT-Luxe or VX would have been a likely upgrade back then. IMHO that bike would look better with gumwall tires, but that's personal preference. They look huge in black. That looks like the original crankset. Very nice.
Just curious. Does the TT decal really say "Grand Sports"? They had a bunch of different versions, for example mine is Gran Sport; some were Grand Sport. I never saw one with "Sports", with an s at the end.
You can upgrade that bike very nicely with Suntour derailleurs. Those Simplex derailleurs didn't suffer so much from abuse as just age. Suntour VGT-Luxe or VX would have been a likely upgrade back then. IMHO that bike would look better with gumwall tires, but that's personal preference. They look huge in black. That looks like the original crankset. Very nice.
Just curious. Does the TT decal really say "Grand Sports"? They had a bunch of different versions, for example mine is Gran Sport; some were Grand Sport. I never saw one with "Sports", with an s at the end.
__________________
Real cyclists use toe clips.
With great bikes comes great responsibility.
jimmuller
Real cyclists use toe clips.
With great bikes comes great responsibility.
jimmuller
08-20-13, 06:39 PM
#5
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Baltimore MD
Posts: 3,332
Bikes: '72 Motobecane Grand Record, '72 Gitane tandem, '72 Raleigh Super Course, '73 Raleigh Gran Sport, '73 Colnago Super, '76 Fiorelli Coppi, '78 Raleigh SBDU Team Pro, '78 Trek 930, '81 Holdsworth Special 650B, '86 Masi GC, ’94 Bridgestone RB-T
Mentioned: 67 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 786 Post(s)
Liked 520 Times
in
281 Posts
Lovely bike, and the forged drops are a plus (are they Zeus?) The Carlton hoods should clean up nicely - they are pvc instead of rubber so they last forever. Raise the seat and stem and you should be good to go.
__________________
The man who dies with the most toys…is dead. - Rootboy
The man who dies with the most toys…is dead. - Rootboy
08-20-13, 07:20 PM
#6
Senior member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 175
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 66 Post(s)
Liked 124 Times
in
51 Posts
Any advice on how to clean the Carlton hoods?
Last edited by guy1138; 08-20-13 at 07:33 PM. Reason: Answered my own question by using my eyes
08-20-13, 07:31 PM
#7
Senior member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 175
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 66 Post(s)
Liked 124 Times
in
51 Posts
...IMHO that bike would look better with gumwall tires, but that's personal preference. They look huge in black.
Just curious. Does the TT decal really say "Grand Sports"? They had a bunch of different versions, for example mine is Gran Sport; some were Grand Sport. I never saw one with "Sports", with an s at the end.
Just curious. Does the TT decal really say "Grand Sports"? They had a bunch of different versions, for example mine is Gran Sport; some were Grand Sport. I never saw one with "Sports", with an s at the end.
And yeah, it's clearly "Sports". I've seen others that have it with "Sports", but I've also seen "Gran Sport" and "Grand Sport". I'll try to get a picture tomorrow.
08-20-13, 07:35 PM
#8
Senior member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 175
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 66 Post(s)
Liked 124 Times
in
51 Posts
Serial number is 305652. Doesn't conform to a lot of the serial number guides that I've seen online, but I don't think they're complete, and Raleigh seemed all over the place with serial numbering, placement of serial numbers and components back in the day.
08-21-13, 09:37 AM
#9
Senior Member
My '73 is 372864 (stamped on nds dropout), so that seems consistent with your number pattern.
08-21-13, 10:16 AM
#10
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Baltimore MD
Posts: 3,332
Bikes: '72 Motobecane Grand Record, '72 Gitane tandem, '72 Raleigh Super Course, '73 Raleigh Gran Sport, '73 Colnago Super, '76 Fiorelli Coppi, '78 Raleigh SBDU Team Pro, '78 Trek 930, '81 Holdsworth Special 650B, '86 Masi GC, ’94 Bridgestone RB-T
Mentioned: 67 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 786 Post(s)
Liked 520 Times
in
281 Posts
I used Fast Orange hand cleaner on my Carlton hoods. And I would recommend Panaracer Paselas over any Kenda gumwalls. A much more supple ride.
__________________
The man who dies with the most toys…is dead. - Rootboy
The man who dies with the most toys…is dead. - Rootboy
08-21-13, 10:27 AM
#11
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Middle Earth (aka IA)
Posts: 20,435
Bikes: A bunch of old bikes and a few new ones
Mentioned: 178 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 5888 Post(s)
Liked 3,471 Times
in
2,079 Posts
Agreed that this is a really nice bike and will make a fine rider. Hopefully it fits or you find someone who will appreciate it. I like the stronglight crank. I have three different ones so I guess I'm a fan of their cranks.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Binky
Classic and Vintage Bicycles: Whats it Worth? Appraisals.
10
11-28-15 03:00 PM
chunky_bacon
Classic and Vintage Bicycles: Whats it Worth? Appraisals.
22
07-30-15 12:37 PM
inkandsilver
Classic & Vintage
6
02-06-12 05:30 PM
RobbieTunes
Classic and Vintage Bicycles: Whats it Worth? Appraisals.
5
06-10-10 01:10 PM
