A vintage Raleigh retrofit for long distance cycling
December 31st, 2006Posted by David in Bikes & Equipment
There are many reasons one would consider retrofitting a 1970s era Raleigh road frame with modern components. Getting a lightweight, hand-built, lugged-steel frame for a few hundred dollars is one of them. Keeping a brand rich in cycling history on the road is another.
The good news is Nottingham Raleighs were distributed in great numbers in America and plenty are still available. The first piece in this series touches on the places where you might begin your search.
Getting new parts onto these old frames is the more difficult challenge, one that will require the help of your local bike shop. In a world of mass produced bikes, most professional cycle mechanics welcome the opportunity to contribute to a project like this. The second piece in this series provides resources on the Web and in your community where you can find help.
This article provides a detailed list of the parts used in retrofitting a 1973 Super Course for winter season training and long distance rides. These components are not inexpensive, nor are they easy to find, so the sources of each part are included to expedite your search, should you actually decide to follow a similar road.
Tom Forhan’s “Periodic Table of the Raleigh Super Course” documents the evolution of this model from 1971 to 1978. The format of the table below is Tom’s, including the specs from the 1973 catalog as he listed them. The parts used to retrofit my Super Course are noted directly to the right of the original equipment. With the exception of the seat, the bike was exactly as noted here, including the original tires.
| 1973 Original Equipment |
2007 Retrofittings | Sources | |
| Model | Super Course | Craig’s List | |
| Color | Bronze Green | ||
| Model # | DL 100 | ||
| Frame | Reynolds 531 Main Tubes | ||
| Lugs | Exclusive Capella | ||
| Fork | Wagner Forged Box Crown | ||
| Handlebars | Raleigh Maes Alloy | Nitto Grand Raundoneur | Harris Cyclery |
| Stem | GB Forged | Nitto Technomic | Harris Cyclery |
| Brakes | Weinmann 999 Center Pull | DiaCompe Center Pull Long Reach | Rivendell Bicycle Works |
| Crankset | Stronglight 40/52T Steel | Sugino RD 46T | Harris Cyclery |
| Rear Cluster | 14/28T | 19T | Harris Cyclery |
| Pedals | Raleigh 501 | MKS Touring Pedals MKS Half-Clips |
Pedals: RBW Clips: Velo Orange |
| Rims | Alloy 27×1.25″ | Mavic Open Sport 700c | Bike Gallery |
| Hubs | Normandy Wide Flange Alloy Q/R | Front: Shimano Nexus Dynamo Sport SH-3N71 Rear: Shimano Nexus Inter 8 Internal Geared Hub SG-8R25-VS |
Front: Bike Gallery Rear: Harris Cyclery |
| Tires | Hutchinson Gum Wall | Schwalbe Marathon 32mm | Harris Cyclery |
| Saddle | Brooks B17N | Brooks Professional | Harris Cyclery |
| Derailleurs | Simplex Prestige, downtube shifters | None. SL-8S20 Revo-Shift Lever w/ Hub-bub Bar-end Adapter |
Harris Cyclery |
| Cable & Tape | White cable housing/green plastic tape | Black cable housing/green cloth tape | Harris Cyclery |
| Extras/Comments | |||
| Brake Levers | Carlton | Cane Creek SCR-5C | Harris Cyclery |
| Fenders | Honjo Smooth Aluminum Fenders | Velo Orange | |
| Bottle Cages | Delta Inox Stainless Steel | Velo Orange | |
| Weight | 28-29 Pounds | ~29 pounds |
A photo album featuring before and after close-up photos of the bike are available at my flickr site.
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20 Responses to
“A vintage Raleigh retrofit for long distance cycling”
Phil
January 1st, 2007 at 12:16 pmAbsolutely gorgeous! It reminds me a lot of Chris Kulczycki’s Ebisu, where you see it and think, “wow, what a beautiful classic bike… wait, are those integrated shifters?” Nice job on it.
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Thanks so much, Phil.
I have spent a lot of time pouring through Jan Heine’s The Golden Age of Handbuilt Bicycles, and I suppose you could say it had an affect on me! As for a comparison to Chris’ work, you have paid me a huge compliment. Chris’ passion for beautiful bicycles, like Jan’s, is spreading virally through the market. As you can see, some of the cooler, hard to find components came from Chris’s shop. One of the first things Steve over at the Bike Gallery zeroed-in on were the Delta Inox cages from Velo Orange. I will be first in line for his new constructeur front rack.
dr
Andrew
January 4th, 2007 at 8:19 amIt looks like a fine ride. I’m considering using an internally geared hub on an 80s Nishiki touring frame for bad weather and perhaps commuting. I’d love to hear about how it works for you. Also, I’d like to hear what you think of the SON versus the Nexus dynohub.
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Andrew -
I’ve ridden the bike about 60 miles total so far, and I am still trying to get a handle on what is normal, versus what could be an indicator of suboptimal adjustments. I have noticed a fast-paced clicking (perhaps two beats per second) in third gear, and a click at half that rate in fourth gear. It is dead silent on the other six gears. I asked Sheldon about it, and he says that some clicking is normal.
I can say this – I am getting very spoiled by the ease of shifting. The bike does not need to be rolling to shift, so you can roll up to a stop sign at the bottom of the hill in 7th gear, stop, and down-shift into 1st while you’re standing still. Shifting is quiet and smooth and always accurate. I love it.
With respect to the Shimano Dynamo front hub, I have not yet had it out at night away from the street lights, so you will have to give me a few weeks to give you a review of it. I will say this: the wire attachment is cleaner, and the hub is lighter, than the SON.
We are running the “Screech Owl 100″ night ride for the Oregon Randonneurs in a couple of months, so if you want to come up and see both hubs side by side we can bring out the Atlantis with the SON 28 and the Super Course with the Shimano. Consider that an open invitation.
Keep the pedals turnin’
dr
Adam
April 1st, 2007 at 10:58 amThis hurts. I gave away this bike some 12 years ago. It was a great bike, even going up hills in one gear. And I am trying to remember if I retrofitted it with a Brooks Professional.
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The good news, Adam, is that in this case, you can “go back …” The Super Courses aren’t quite as prevalent as, say, the Grand Prix, but with a little patience you can have that bike back again, and with today’s drive trains and wheels, it will be the best of both worlds.
dr
Lee
April 21st, 2007 at 12:26 amAs nice as the “after” pics are (very), I’m even more impressed by the “before” images. What a time capsule. No doubt you’ve carefully packed away all the bike’s original equipment, should the restoration bug bite you in the future.
I’m happy to report that I recently rescued a ’69(?) Super Course, which had been abandoned by parties unknown. It’s quite complete, ori
ginal, and in very good shape considering it’s age, although nothing to compare with yours. A web search for Raleigh Super Course turned up your site, as well as Sheldon Brown’s. Very motivating to see these bikes have a following; looks like I made the right choice bringing home this stray.
BTW, I’m in the Northwest as well – will I see you aboard your “Super” Super Course at the STP?
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Yes – I have packed away all the parts in a box. I have a keen eye out for a Raleigh International or a Team Professional in great condition, and that would be a bike that I would attempt to maintain or upgrade with “new old stock” parts.
I purchased the Super Course because I wanted a winter training bike – one that would be tough enough for hard riding in the back roads of the Willamette Valley. I still cannot believe how elegant and yet strong its Reynolds 531 tubing is. I met with the folks from Reynolds a NAHBS in March and we discussed the successor tubing, Reynolds 631. I would very likely build a custom frame from this.
I generally ride my Rivendell Atlantis in the longer event rides, because it is set-up to carry front and rear (lightweight) loads. I ride the Super Course a lot – probably close to 1500 miles since I finished in December, but I haven’t done anything longer than 90 on it yet. I do expect to ride in Washington in June, but no current plans for STP. Are you planning for it?
dr
dr
Jim Gustafson
April 21st, 2007 at 9:18 pmHi David,
Been looking at your Raleigh upstairs and like it a lot. My brother just brought me his old 60 cm Raleigh Super Course to restore today – same color as yours. I owned it back in the early 70′s and we traded for some skiis. Now, with my enjoyment with bikes, I’ve told him I’ll restore it for him. The wheels look okay, however they are somewhat corroded but smooth out nice with some steel wool. The frame has some rust, so it will need to be sandblasted off and repainted. The chrome is pealing. I’m trying to decide what to keep and what to replace. Got any suggestions?
Thanks,
Jim
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Jim,
Repainting versus cleaning-up is one of the key decisions you will make. You could easily spend more on the process than the bike is worth. Then, of course, you won’t have access to reproduction decals, unless you take the bike to a reputable paint shop that has access to the reproduction decals (and there are a few in most major cities that can do that). To help make those decisions I recommend you get this book on restoring classic bicycles: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/158068002X/102-5085507-5578500. It has great instructions for cleaning up an old bicycle, and also discusses the trade-offs among various restoration options.
dr
david ware
May 3rd, 2007 at 11:42 amBeautiful bike–reminds me that it’s time to dig my own Super Course out of the garage and get it road ready.
Back in 1973 I lusted after one of these; didn’t have the money, so went instead for a Viscount (sans “suicide fork”). Rode the heck out of it for twenty-nine years (finally gave it away to a friend) but in ’94, I ran across a ’74 Super Course that had been intelligently upgraded–better brakes, mountain cogs, lightened crank, etc–for the same price I remembered being asked for the Raleigh of my dreams back in ’73. So of course I bought it–most of the decals are chipped and worn now, but it remains a great ride. Hope that your is, too!
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Thanks, David. It is a fantastic frame, very fast and very stable at high speed descents. The more I ride it the more I trust it.
dr
Richard McCaughey
May 21st, 2007 at 1:14 pmBeautiful job. I recently “rescued” a like vintage Supercourse frame and fork with the same Capella lugs as yours (seems they were more common on the International.) The paint and decals were shot but it had no rust. I converted it to a fixed gear commuter spending hours dremelling, filing and sanding to remove the braze-ons and cleaning up the lugs. I had it powdercoated a deep gold/pearl red. The build included the same Sugino RD crank, Nitto bar and stem, a DiaCompe long reach center-pull on the front (no rear), old school non-aero DiaCompe brake lever, and 700c Sun M13II polished rims on Formula sealed bearing track/freewheel hubs. A honey Brooks B-17 tops it off. Just love the way it rides for my short commute. I posted some pictures in the Fixed Gear forum at Roadbikereview in the “First ride on the fixed Raleigh.
May be “heresy” to do what I did, but the bike gets ridden nearly every day.
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Unless the complete bike were a 9 on a scale of 1-10, I would say you did the right thing.If bikes were a living things, I think yours would be smiling.
dr
Merrill
September 6th, 2007 at 9:41 amI have a 1973 stock super course, same color, same size, slightly damaged chrome. it is all original except i have new cable housing, cables, and tires. even the bar tape is original. The problem is that i need a slightly larger frame. this frame seems like a 56 to me. i think i need a 58 or 60. anyone willing to trade thier frame with me? i would appreciate it. i know its a long shot. but let me know. mcb22 at cornell dot edu.
Tony
February 21st, 2008 at 10:35 amHey,
Beautiful job. I recently came into possesion of a metallic-coffee-colored Raleigh Super Course that I believe is early 70s. I had the tires replaced and was unable to find a replacement for the small sprockets on the derailer. Can you recommend anyone in Chicago?
I also had a spill too, which will mean some repairs to the crank…
I’m not wise in the ways of the restorer (or bikes for that matter), but this is the most beautiful bike I have ever seen and I want to make it right.
Two more items of interest: 1. I purchased it for $60. 2. Under the frame, directly under the part that houses the crank mechanism, is the number 11… what could this mean?
Thanks,
Tony
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Thanks, Tony.
Your best bet is to get on eBay and look for your replacement parts. The good news about 1970s era Raleighs is the spare parts are in good supply and relatively cheap when compared to other collectors’ bicycles. For a good resource on restoration I point you to a good book, How to restore your collector bicycle, by William Love. Of course, the late Sheldon Brown was (and remains through his web site) a fountain of information about compatibility between parts, frames, and era. Sorry, I am not sure what the number means.
Best,
dr
Nathan
March 28th, 2009 at 9:19 pmvery nice! I’m just starting on my super course build. What kind of bottom bracket did you use with the Sugino RD crankset? And what was the width?
I’m hoping a 110mm shimano bb will work.
David
March 29th, 2009 at 4:40 pmFunny you should ask. I just pulled the cranks today … bottom bracket is toast. Got about 4000 miles out of it, not bad for 30 bucks. I’m re-ordering it.
I used the matching Sugino part (#BB105), measuring 68 x 103mm. I don’t think you’re 110mm will do it; seems too wide if you’re using the Sugino crank arms.
BTW: the Sugion cranks come standard at 48t. I found that the combination of the 19t cog and 48t chainring were a bit too much of a grind on the hills around my house. I installed a 21t cog. I’m considering using a 42t chainring, as well.
Tom Forhan
May 4th, 2009 at 1:52 pmNice ride.
Besides my bought new 1971, restored and now semi-retired , I’ve got a 1974 MK II that I used for a rough urban commute for about ten years. I’ve been thinking of bringing it back to modern life, and yours is a great example of how to do it. Thanks.
Gustavo
June 19th, 2009 at 8:59 pmBeautiful bike! I bought one in 1973 for $165 (which I thought was very pricey) and rode it while going to college. I lived in Guadalajara for 2 years, and when I left in 1981, I sold it for $180! Great memories.
Ken
August 3rd, 2009 at 4:23 pmBought my Coffee Brown Super Course from Hans Ohrt Cycles,Beverly Hills in 1973 after getting a broken heart. Used it to ride away from my pain. Rode same bike today with my son to celebrate that I still could. All original, except tires. Love this bike. Thanks
The Dude
October 9th, 2009 at 1:40 pmWonderful. I’m about to undertake similar on a ’74 Coffee Brown. Planning to spread the rear triangle 5mm and go all modern Campagnolo Centaur alloy.
Liz
January 5th, 2010 at 2:43 pmLovely bike!
I’m very interested in the use of the dynohub. Did you have any problems with the front spacing? I have a 70s Raleigh and want to upgrade to a Shimano dynohub but the front spacing is only 90mm and I don’t know if it’s possible. Would be great to know if someone else has done it.
Thank you, Liz
David
January 8th, 2010 at 11:13 pmNo problems with the spacing on the forks that we weren’t able to overcome with a little pressure, Liz. It has worked out great.
James
January 28th, 2010 at 5:23 pmI found my Super Course in a pile of bikes covered with weeds and paid $5 for it. The lugs on the head tube caught my eye. Spread the rear triangle and converted to 700C. It was always a steady ride and seamed to take care of me in those dark hours of a brevet. Road it for 4 rando seasons, PBP and Cascade. Last few years it has been hanging in garage though but I have be thinking about putting it back to work this season.
A nice side story, the old guy I bought it from literally had piles of bikes surrounding his house, bikes in sheds, everywhere. He talked about fixing them up and selling them but I don’t think that had happened in a long time. A year later I rode over to his place with the bike and showed it to him painted and fixed up and then gave him a picture of his bike in front of the Eiffel Tower. I really think it made him happy to see that one of his bikes had made it so far.
Jan Wimmer
May 18th, 2010 at 11:45 amDavid, What a fantastic retrofit – inspiration to get busy on restoring my 1975 Super Course. It was my commuter for several years and took a beating to the paint and rims but is still a solid ride.
I hope you can help with a small problem. I just purchased a pair of MKS GR9 platform pedals to fit the original Stronglight crank (marked 9/16×20) on the bike. The pedals will just start to thread into the crank but then stop and I am afraid to apply too much force and destroy the crank threads. I have checked out Sheldon’s site but am somewhat confused as to whether standard pedals should fit. I would appreciate any advice you may have. Cheers, Jan
David
May 18th, 2010 at 8:50 pmThose pedals should turn like butter into those cranks. If they’re binding, the TPI is too dense. If you’re in love with the pedals, you’ll need to retrofit the cranks. You can pick up a current set of Stronglights that will fit, I would think. Or you can look for some vintage pedals. As you can see from my Raleigh, I focused on preserving the frame, but retrofitted the components. That required that all the threads be re-tapped. It was worth it. If you were restoring a Professional or a International, I’d probably suggest that you don’t use any components that aren’t vintage. The components on the Super Course were spec’d with a budget-conscious rider in mind. The frame (with the exception of the lugs), is first class, even by today’s standards. But the cool thing about the Super Course is, that it was an affordable mass distribution bicycle, so you shouldn’t feel badly about bringing it current.