While we await the re-finished frame we’ve had to make a few tough choices with exactly which cycle parts to use for this restoration, balancing our choices between the three factors of condition, originality and cost. In other words, we want the bike to be as shiny and original as possible within our agreed budget.
For example, the original wheels had poor chrome on the rims and very battered spokes, and our budget did not allow for rechroming then rebuilding the wheels with new spokes… so we found then restored this lovely odd-yet matching pair instead from a Raleigh ‘donor bike’ we picked up (for it’s wheels, chainguard, grips, saddle clamp and possibly more). The rear wheel features a stunning 1975 Sturmey-Archer AG Dynohub laced to a beautiful Raleigh rim and it’s hub was supplied incomplete so we used a few parts from the original, older SW hub to finish it off – namely cog spacers and dustcap – and we’re using the older style axle lock washers and RH axle nut from the SW as well. The hub makes it look older than the original wheel in our opinion, and it was an experience working on a Dynohub after years of only playing around with the much more common AW hub… big thank-you to Derek from oldbiketrader for supplying the original manual. The front is a 1991 Raleigh hub (which we’ve overhauled and found nicer wheels nuts for) and it’s laced to a Rigida Chromage Superieur rim. We think they look stunning polished up and fitted with new Michelin World Tour whitewall tyres, and we’ve re-used the original inner tubes which are Continentals c/w Woods valves for the period look.