Couldn’t resist building the Raleigh frame up (after its restoration) into a nifty singlespeed hot-rod… and taking her out for a test ride into Cheshire on a beautiful Bank Holiday Monday morning!
With a mixture of restored vintage and new parts it’s not one for the purists – but they’d be forgiven for turning their noses up at the humble 18-23 tubing anyway ;) For me this is a lovely looking steel bike for a spot of road training, with a gear ratio of 70″ to make most local climbs possible and 28mm tyres to cushion the ride on towpaths and country lanes. As ever, the first test revealed the need for a couple of minor adjustments but overall I’m very happy with the finished bike. The front brake caliper, levers, rims and hubs have been de-logo’d for a stealthier look. The fork has been drilled for a dual pivot brake, but other than that (and the colour) the frame hasn’t been modified further, so it could still be converted back to 10/12 speed.
SPEC:
Frame & Fork: late 1980s 59cm Raleigh 18-23 tubing (powdercoated RAL 5015)
Headset: vintage chromed YST 1″ threaded
Stem: vintage SR Custom (powdercoated black)
Handlebar: unknown vintage steel drops (powdercoated to match frame)
Bar Tape: Cinelli LTD edition
Brake Levers: Tektro RL 340 (new)
Front Brake: Promax dual pivot (new)
Rear Brake: vintage Weinmann 500
Brake Pads: Promax cartridges with Superstar pads (new)
Brake Cables: Shimano M:System (new)
Freewheel: DNP 16 tooth
Chain: KMC gold 1/8″ (new)
Cranks: Truvativ Elita 175mm (new)
Chainring: Stronglight 42 tooth (new)
Bottom Bracket: Truvativ GXP (new)
Pedals: Wellgo with toe clips & straps
Front Rim: Alex Rims DA22
Rear Rim: Weinmann (new)
Front Hub: Formula QR with vintage Sachs skewer
Rear Hub: Quando solid flip-flop with track nuts and 16t fixed cog (new)
Spokes: Stainless steel (new on rear)
Tyres: IRC Road Tour 700 x 28c (NOS)
Saddle: Charge Spoon (new)
Seatpost: Kalloy (new)
Seatpost Binder: chromed bolt-up (new)
Bottle Cage: unknown
Weight: 23.5lb