NOglider,
I dig that bike. I'm glad you didn't make into a fixie immediately.

I like it. Those fully rigid mtbs make great commuters! I have one myself (a jamis explorer). Is that a butchered brooks?

No need to do that. I have a fixie already. I bought the one on special from Nashbar a few months ago. it's the first NEW bike I've bought in 30 years! And I've owned a heck of a lot of bikes. I should write about that fixie, because it's lovely, and it only cost me $304.

Anyway, I'm totally in love with this Raleigh. My opinion of the mid- and late-70's English Raleighs isn't that high, but clearly, 1971 was an excellent year. You can't see it, but the brazing in the lugs is very clean, quite unlike the years that followed. I'm not sure how that affects ride, but the ride on this bike is gorgeous. The handling is incredibly sure, yet it doesn't sacrifice much maneuverability. Also a pleasant surprise is how well the bike climbs. I would expect a long-wheelbase bike to be sluggish on hills, but not this one. I expected this bike to be merely acceptable, but it's actually a joy.

So far, I think I have the oldest bike on this thread. 38 years!

I commute on all my bikes... this one is 76 years old.

OK, you've got me beat by a long shot. What is it? I'm dying to know about it.

It's the oldest bike I have in that it is a 1933 CCM Rambler, a gentleman's coaster bike.

I found it at our local bike co-op and was able to ride it home the day I found it as despite it's scruffiness, it is in very nice shape and is a very nice bike to ride.

Besides overhauling the bearings I have rebuilt the rear wheel with a period and colour correct hoop (I have to do the front) and changed the chain ring from a 52 to a 48 so I can better handle hills.

I also ride a 1940 CCM and a 1948 Rudge on a pretty regular basis.

Wow. I was going to say it looks American (because of the one-piece crank), but I was wrong! I've never seen an old CCM, but of course, we don't have many here at all.

The Rudge. That's the one bike I like better than the Raleigh Sports. Boy, would I love to have a men's Rudge my size. Please post pictures of that and your other bikes!

Yes, I trimmed the Brooks B-17 Special British Racing Green down.

CCM's are to Canada what Schwinns are to the United States... we also have an abundance of old Raleighs here.

Most CCM bikes one sees have Astabula cranks - there was also an insert that replaced the American bottom bracket with an early cartridge that is used with a cottered axle / cranks. I suspect my bike originally had the cottered cranks and was upgraded at some point in it's life.

I had a nearly mint 1978 Raleigh Sports but then I got the Rudge (a 1948)... this was my rain bike all last summer and no bike I have ever owned rides any nicer. Those rod brakes work much better than one would think... even in the rain.

The Rudge was given to me last spring and it too was in rideable condition when I got it.

This is my do everthing commuter bike. It is a 2003 cannondale badboy. Front wheel and deraileurs are whats still stock. I am waiting for the spring bike show to pick up some new fenders and a front rack.
Currently has 26" cx tires, raceface crank and 8 speed road casette, tied brooks flyer.

Shellaced and twine bars.

Nice bike Pyze! What sort of handle bars are those?

pyze - that is a sweet bike.

Besides Sixty Fiver's other bike above, you missed a few others....

Doohickie - Your DL is such a fine looking bike.

noglider - This thread goes back 5 years and has 176 pages of fairly awesome bike porn... there are a lot of folks here on BF who ride some pretty awesome old bikes.

I can`t miss the chance to say once more that I REALLY groove on that Rudge. I`ve seen it before on other forums but there`s no pain in seeing it again.

Pop over to C&V and take a peek at some of the Rudges that other members own... they make my bike look downright scruffy.

What I like most is that despite the fact the bike is 61 years old it still works so exceptionally well and the SA hub is the smoothest one I have ever used... this was when SA hubs were at their peak in terms of quality,

By 1948 Rudge had been bought up by Raleigh and unlike some of their captive brands Raleigh kept Rudge as a top of the line model... the bike weighs 38 pounds which is actually light when you compare it to a Raleigh Superbe or a fully equipped DL model.

The gearing is also quite low so it makes for much easier hill climbs... I have one short 12 % grade and can handle this without getting out if the saddle which is good as the bike is not made for that.

You're right. I could look at the old pages of this thread and oggle for hours. Bike porn indeed!

I like the rod-brake bikes with 28" wheels, but I never really liked them better than the caliper brake bikes with 26" wheels. Is there something I'm missing about the older design? By the way, I've heard them called Bobby Bikes, for the officers that would ride them.

The difference in ride between a 26 inch wheel and 28 inch wheel is impossible to miss.

In what ways?

A wheel as large as an English 28 with a higher volume tyre will suck up the bumps like you would not imagine... throw those into a roadster frame with those ridiculously slack frame angles and the ride gets unbelievably smooth.

Nashbar mustache bars.

I oughta try one again. It's been about 30 years since I have.

Do you know what angles the Sports and the Bobby Bike have? While you're at it, do you know what angles my 1971 Super Course has? I think they're lax, and I guess as I age, I find I appreciate lax angles. I once tried a criterium bike of my friend's, and I thought it was awful. Its maneuverability was impressive, but I had to be 110% awake to avoid crashing.

I might like to try those.

I also ought to post a current picture of my face. I have a giant imperial moustache right now, and it looks very handlebar-ish. This picture of me is from 1999.

I love them, I have them on one of my fixed gear bikes as well.

Is there a difference between using one of these as opposed to using some headset spacers???