I am looking for a little advice here for a rear rack to fit my 84 Raleigh Marathon- I've dug through some junk yards and haven't been able to find a rack fitting it, and when I look online at new ones they all seem to want to connect to something between my seatpost and brake caliber on the seat stays but my bike has no holes near there?

I want a rack to then eventually add some panniers so I can start doing a little touring as money is my obvious problem at the moment.

The connection from the rack to the seat stays can be quite a problem in some cases. But this does not have to be very mechanically strong, it only secures the rack in the front-back direction. You could put p-clips (I suggest p-clips with plastic lining) on the seat stays and connect the rack hardware to those.
I also believe that the 1984 Raleigh Marathon has a "bridge" between the seat stays where the brakes are mounted, this bridge has a hole in the center. You could use this to attach the rack, but I think it is more of a hassle to fabricate some attachment to this than to use the p-clips on the seat stays (unless you already have a reflector mounted there).

The bridge does exist but I don't have a reflector there already- I am not sure what a P-clip is but I will do a bit more research on the subject and thank you very much for the advice

P clip: :thumb:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/images/lifeline-clamps.jpg

Here's my new 20+ year old clunker that I have been commuting with.

http://webpages.charter.net/redrange...trav_after.jpg

I think it's a 1977 or so.

It's amazing to me how much easier and more comfortable this bike seems compared to my Schwinn (Pacific) converted MTB.

That aint no clunker! That's a purty bike!

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2543/...8408b06d_b.jpg
I'm hybridifying this early 90s MTB (nearly 20 years old), getting new tires, rear rack, drink cage, cables, lights etc done at MEC.

"Unlike cars, there's not a damn thing wrong with a 20 year old bike."
Oh please - what could possibly be "wrong" with my '43 WWII Military Police Harley, '69 Airstream Bambi, '72 Volvo 1800ES Wagon, '82 VW Westfalia, '84 Paris-Dakkar BMW?
Just because we choose to commute by bicycle, let us not become the bike snobs our bretheren are sometimes prone to become...

Let's put it this way: It costs a lot less to keep a 20-year-old bike on the road.

You forgot flats again.

I don't get a lot of flats- but $3.99 for a 27 tube (twice a week) is still a lot less than keeping a 20 year old car on the road just in registration fees here in Colorado

Twice a week? Where do you ride, the House of Broken Glass? And you buy a new tube for each flat?

It was an exaggeration to point out that the registration cost in Colorado are ridiculously high. I have friends who pay over $600 a year for the right to put a sticker on their trucks.

That complaint probably won't get too much traction around here. Cyclists view these fees as a means to keep pot holes repaired.

I never said it was a complaint- as I am care free I don't really mind :) just making an observation and joke, i've lived in 5 different states in the last 8 years and Colorado is by far the most expensive that i've heard of.

I'm happy with how this project is coming along

I have a Marathon. I have a rack that attaches at the rear brake mount. When I was commuting on it, it looked like this:

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e3...n/100_3315.jpg

The rack is off it now; it's my weekend bike these days. I have this rack on my the hybrid I commute on; it has a similar center mounting bracket that goes to the brake bridge.

I assume you feel the same way about those nasty aluminium rims, hubs, handlebars, derailleur shifter bits etc etc....:D

I'm lucky enough to have steel and aluminium bikes, and love the way they all ride! IMHO rims, tyre choice and pressure have much to do with 'ride quality' as frame material.

Of course a hefty dose of prejudice and maybe a tiny bit of ignorance will go a long way towards forming a strong opinion :D Said very much 'tongue in cheek', no offence meant!!!
Best wishes
Simon

I believe they have MORE to do with ride quality than the frame does.

Kinda helps to have tires and wheels. I've never seen one without travel anywhere but on a rack or in back of a truck.

Hello ... and goodbye ... clunker thread.

Bought this Nishiki International in 1984 for college. Gathered dust
for a lot of years, but it was my main road ride until I bought a
Jamis Quest for weekend fun about three years ago. Have had three
mountain bikes along the way. I've been riding the Nishiki to work (17
miles round trip) about 110-140 days a year for the last three years,
so I put 6,000+ miles on during its twilight years. It's still pretty
solid but the back wheel, hub and cartridge are all pretty close to
shot. Going to retire it though I'll probably hang onto it for
nostalgia's sake. Just bought a 2009 Surly Long Haul Trucker. Hope to
do some touring eventually.

Here's mine. But she aint a clunker.
http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...5/IMG_1912.jpg

^ Nice!

Thanks!
That's a cute companion you got there.

I am the proud rider of a 1989 Nishiki Custom Sport converted to a singlespeed. I will post some pics in a few days...Just barely 20 years old, but man it rides like a dream :)

(Almost) 40 year-old clunker. Makes a very useful bad weather/roads commuter. Surprisingly good ride too!:)


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2648/...565efb4b_b.jpg