1939 Raleigh Sports

This is my 1939 Raleigh Sports. I have many more sports but this is oldest one. it's got wingnuts allaround. Rear 3 speed drum brake. big dyno front hub, head and tail light. it's unrestored and rides very nice.




That one and two others in group picture.

1972 Eaton's Glider

This is my 1972 Eaton's Glider, made by Raleigh for the department store Eaton's of Canada. Eaton's is no more, sadly, but the bikes live on! Sturmey Archer 3 speed, Brooks mattress saddle, Rigida rims. I had one of these as a kid and sold it years ago... and then 3 years ago, found this one, almost exactly the same as my original. Since this photo was taken, I have put on a very old Brooks B73, soaked in Proofide. Comfy! Regards, Tom in Toronto

Pair o' Huffeighs

A Completed Pair:



I've recently finished restoration on a matched pair of 60s-era Huffy Sportsman 3-speed bikes. The womens bike was located in Dayton, OH and the mens bike was purchased in Lancaster, OH. The date codes on the Sturmey Archer hubs show the mens bike as 1963 and the womens bike as 1964. I originally planned to restore the womans bike and keep it, but once the mens bike became available, I saw a chance to give a unique wedding gift to my nephew and his fiance--- they'll be married in early October. If you spot the newlyweds pedaling the streets of Cincinnati, say, Hi!".

Readers can find a full set of photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/39389118@N07/sets/72157622039511072/

John in Ohio

Twin Raleighs

Good morning from Atlanta. Below is a pic of my 74 Raleigh Sports. Next to it is the same exact bike. I just happened to park next to this bike while visiting this downtown office building for a sales call. 3-speeds are becoming more and more popular in Atlanta. Four or five years ago, bicycle racks would be flooded with fixies. Not true anymore. People are steady trading in their fixed cogs for bicycles with more character and comfort.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mickb/3950945453/

best,
mick

1984 Dawes Atlantis

A friend directed me you your site to see his 3 Spires. Seeing people still ride old 3 speeds always puts a smile on my face and I am always amazed how many are still on campuses in Boston every Spring. About my bike, 3 speed enthusiasts love or hate my bike. Here is its story:

I bought a Raleigh Team USA frame for $15 back in the good old days before prices went crazy. I think it was two years ago. The seller gave me another frame from a discarded former single speed with a broken dropout and a bad brushed on paint job. This turned out to be the Dawes.

The cast rear dropout said Dawes and scraping off the paint the Reynolds 531 Butted frame tubes, stays and fork sticker was still clear and so was the blue faded paint job. The badly corroded brakes and cranks that were dated to 1984 and matched only one Dawes bike, an Atlantis.

Restoring it was impractical but it was too good not to fix so I decided to make it the cleanest 3 speed I could. I brought the frame to Circle A Cycles in Providence to have the dropout welded but they had a Campagnolo dropout without a derailleur hanger that matched the Dawes perfectly so it was meant to be. Since the bike would have no derailleur hanger and I was screwing it up I might as well add cable stops for the rear brake and the shift cable to eliminate the chrome cable clips.

Nitto supplied the stem via Harris Cyclery, the handlebars and brakes were from a mixte with a questionable past. The brakes and crank are Shimano 600 arabesque and when I find a chainguard I like I can get rid of the outside ring and chainguard. The rear rim is a Araya700c mounted to a Sturmey Archer AW and the front was a handy 700c Mavik that wasn’t attached to a bike. The seat is a Brooks B72 from the Raleigh Sport that donated the AW and just belongs on a 3 speed.

Some think it is a waste of a good Dawes frame to make a 3 speed and some think it is a waste of a good AW to put it in a race bike. To me the key is to keep the 3 speeds on the road and at about 24 pounds I sure like it better than a Tourist on the hills!

Now what to do with that 1948 Raleigh Rod Brake Dawn Tourist …….

If you like I can send a picture with the chainguard and a couple of other changes I plan.

Ron
Newton, MA

Gary's German 3-speed

I thought I'd share the newest addition to my 3 speed bicycle collection, a 1971 dated 3 speed made in Germany
with a Sturmey Archer 3 speed rear hub and shifter. I brought the bike home as shown in the pictures, having done nothing to it at this point. The paint is almost flawless, no noticeable rust and the chrome shines brightly. The only
issue that is apparent is a brocken plastic fulcrum for the shift cable, an easy repair.


The brand of brakes are unknown to me; Altenberger Brillant. The tires, Continental white walls in size 26" x 1-3/8", state they were made in Germany and appear to be original to the bike. The crank set, stem and handle bars and aluminum fenders have no markings that I have found. The SA hub is dated 71 as the year and 7 as the month; July of 1971.

The decals on the bike have not provided me with a definate answer as to its brand or model. Is it a Sport 70 Super Deluxe or a Super Deluxe Sport 70? Perhaps someone seeing these pictures can shed some light on this bike for me.

My current plans are to dismantle the bike to the frame, clean and polish, replace if necessary and relube all bearings,
replace all cables and housings, replace tubes, replace the tires with suitable white wall tires, [keeping the originals] and to adjust the SA hub if needed and lube, and reassemble. Oh yeah, clean and polish. Ride like it was meant to be!!

More photos here.

Gary
O'Fallon, MO

John's Schwinns

There seems to be a shortage of Schwinns on the site. By reading I've learned a lot about Raleighs and their ilk, but to me the Schwinns are just plain prettier. I think the site needs some color; hope my lightweight three speed Schwinns add some.

The blue Speedster is from 1977 and Lincoln, Nebraska. It was very clean; it seemed to have hung in a garage for most of its life but one year. The head and bottom bracket were completely frozen and just needed a good cleaning and greasing - easy on a Schwinn.


The red Racer is a 1968 and from suburban Denver. It had been used and had more modern brake pads. Well taken care of and ready to ride, I got it last November.



Of course these have Sturmey-Archers three speeds and 26 inch Schwinn steel rims.

Maybe the Raleighs have something going for them; they're classic British and certainly designed for serious adult usage. But Schwinns have wonderful, bright colors; are pretty durable themselves with unique electro-forged frames; are examples of proud Chicago manufacturing and German heritage so I like them best.

- John / Cheyenne -

1961 JC Higgins

I've really enjoyed your blog, so I thought I'd share my project.

This is a 1961 JC Higgins...actually my first bike that I remember picking out of the Sears catalog as an eight year old. It had been hanging in my folks' garage for over 40 years.

It's made in Austria by Steyr/Puch, with a JC HIggins branded Austrian 3 spd. hub. The frame is fully lugged with 3 piece cottered cranks.

This is the bike that I first cut my cycling teeth on; it took me to school, delivered papers, and eventually took me on several century rides. The last time I rode it, I had obviously outgrown it, as shown by my attempts to turn it into a racing bike. It eventually gave way to sexier thoroughbreds, but you never forget your first.

Plans are to return it to it's former glory with the original upright touring bars and chrome fenders it came with, along with the distinctive JC Higgins crank. I'm still missing the chainguard, head tube badge and front "ratrap" carrier. If anyone has a lead on those items, let me know! I'll send more photos as work progresses.

John from Bellingham, WA

1964 Huffy Sportsman restoration-in-progress

Well, when it rains, it pours. I enjoyed reading the posting regarding Charlie's mom's Raleigh Sport. While seeking out my next project bike, this one became available:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2627/3805214083_cd2507aa6c.jpg
1964 Nottingham Huffy Sportsman. 100% original (except tires?) and 99.9% complete (missing one spoke and 2 cable clips). Paint is pretty tired, but I strongly suspect it will rub out and come back fine. Fenders are nearly 'dingless'! Very light rust and pitting. A real 'survivor' and a real sweetie. I post project images at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/39389118@N07/

John in Central Ohio

1968 Schwinn Racer from Chris S.

This started life as a 1968 Schwinn Racer. After Intermittent stops and starts on the build, she is done. She consists of: white Velocity Aerohead rim laced to Sturmey-Archer 3 speed hub with red spokes, 105 hub/ Velocity rim in the front, custom hand cut brake lever, hand cut and laced grips, lots of the frame was replaced with stainless steel and finished in high polish, Carbon Forte fork, stainless steel basket frame over the back wheel, and lots of other little hand finished bits.

Charlie's Mom's 1959 or 1960 Raleigh Sports

I was viewing your bike pictures on your site. I live by Lake Nokomis, and just ran across these pictures on my Mom's 59/60 Raleigh (I'm on the back), in 1961. I loved these bikes, but they got sold at a garage sale when I was in college.

Charlie

1966 Hercules

1966 Hercules, made by Raleigh as I understand. I paid $60 for it, and have put a few hundred into getting the look right. I really enjoy the odd chainguard and the little baby rear fender. It also has a grip shift as apposed to the standard issue Sturmey-Archer thumb shift. Hope you enjoy.

Chris

1970 Hercules

(more here)
This is my 1970 Hercules 3 Speed. I paid $37 dollars for it...sort of. I found a clean Schwinn ladies 10 speed and swapped it with a neigbor for the Herc. I cleaned and oiled the bike, adjusted the brakes, shifter, chain tension and read Sheldon Browns page on English 3 Speeds. I added the Wald Basket and Pletscher Rack for getting groceries. The paint and chrome are very clean and yes those are the original Dunlop tires and tubes.
Paul in Ohio

1955 Huffy Sportsman

John, in Central Ohio, has completed a preservation on a 1955 Huffy Sportsman manufactured in the Raleigh Nottinghan plant in England. John was lucky in finding this example as it was virtually rust-free. The bike was disassembled, surface cleaned/polished and clear acrylic was lightly applied to fenders, chainguard and frame in order to protect decals/transfers and to guard against further UV light damage.
Parts/components of 'dubious' origin were; 3rd party front fork (branded 'Yama' or 'Yoma'), aluminum seat post and a Taiwanese mattress saddle. More here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/39389118@N07

1978(?) Raleigh

Bought this lovely Raleigh in 1978 for getting me to work,a year later I fitted a saddle on the bar for my child,the year after I fitted a seat at the back for my second child. We have great memories of our journeys together around holiday spots in Ireland and I now carry my grandchildren on the very same bike. Wonderful bike...Pat

1971 Triumph

This is my 1971 Triumph. When I bought this bike she was in pretty rough shape. The original rubber block pedals fell apart within a couple of days, the original Brooks Mattress saddle was nearly broken in half, and the front wheel had a nasty bend in the rim. I have put on a Brooks B-17, MKS touring pedals with MKS clips and leather straps, and elk hide leather grips from Velo Orange. I also flipped the original northroad bars since I'm used to riding in dropbars and this gives me a slightly more aggressive riding position. With the rear rack and basket, this has become my day trip and camping bike. I routinely ride her to a blufftop winery off the Missouri River that is located on the Katy Trail.

1957 Three Spires

Hi Jim!

I really liked looking over your Old Three Speed Gallery. A friend tipped me off when he saw the pix of the Huffy Sportsman by Raleigh.

I wish I were better at photography, but I sent you a link to some pix of my Three Spires 3-Speed anyway. Bought it for $40 last week.
http://gallery.me.com/rowingmurphy#100137

My bike was in grubby and greasy original condition and I think very lightly used. The rubber on the pedals is pristine. Each one clearly bears the Raleigh Industries logo, which is repeated all over the bike. The Dunlop tires were in fair shape, but the rear tended to lift its bead off the rim, so I've upgraded to a used gumwall on hand. The original gray rubber grips had congealed into a real mess. Other than the grips and the rear tire, it's all original. After a good cleaning and lubrication it works great.

The 26 X 1 3/8 Dunlops bear the precise inflation instruction: "Inflate Hard."

Of interest is the SA type SW 3 speed hub, with wider range than the AW. This one works perfectly. It's a delight to have the wider range.

Stock rear is 18T. I plan to try out a 20T and 22T rear to see how that feels. I have a 20T on my 1960s Huffy Sportsman, also by Raleigh. That's my in-town stealth bike for use in downtown Boston. DK the Huffy's true year, since I upgraded the very rusty rear wheel before I knew about date coding on SA hubs. It's always there when I return! I've had that one for about 20 years, since rescuing it from the curb on trash day.

Winston's Tweed Ride in The Windy City!

A chap named Garth asked me to advertise this event:

Inspired by The London Fixed-Gear and Single-Speed Forum's Tweed Run and challenged by San Francisco's Thursday Tweed Ride, I would like to announce the 1st Annual Winston's Tweed Ride! This celebration of herringbone, hip flasks, and our noble steeds will be hosted by British Bicycles of Chicago, or the BBC.

Everyone is invited! If you have a Brit bike, do ride. If you don't,
but enjoy tweedy elegance, do ride. If you do both, CERTAINLY DO RIDE!!!


2 May 2009 marks the 80th anniversary of Winston Churchill’s invention of his exquisitely dry martini: gin poured over crushed ice while he observed the vermouth from across the room. The route, designed by the Right Honorable Lee Diamond, is 10 civilized miles meandering past (and into) some of The Windy City's
most infamous (and still open) speakeasies. Where else but in these
lively establishments would the ladies & gents find more bracing
refreshments and hearty victuals?


As with our fellow tweed runs, we hope to offer small, but significant, prizes for

Most Dapper Chap

Most Snappy Lass

Most Stylish Noble Steed

Most Inspired Interpretation of Tweediness

Best Mustache
(open to both lads and inventive lasses)

1963 Huffy Sportsman

I loved looking at your 3-speed gallery and thought I'd send along some pics of my 1963 Huffy Sportsman made by Raleigh. It was given to me and only needed to have some steel wool taken to the chrome, a wax job, new shifter, cotters, tires, tubes and cables and fresh oil in the hubs and bottom bracket. My son helped me and learned about the history of these all steel bikes as we disassembled and reassembled it. The old fellow rides like a dream and is really comfortable!



More here.

updated photos

You posted my bike on December 1. Here are some fresh pictures from March 20 to put up on Old Three Speed Gallery if you would like. Note the new Schwalbe Delta Cruiser tires.




A pic showing my view from the saddle.


Parked outside the pub.


They let me bring it inside.


And one of me riding it.


Cheers!

Paul H.

1973 Fuji 3sp conversion

My name's Matt and I live in Worcester, Massachusetts. I have a couple three speed bikes, including an old Raleigh I restored and then loaned to my father. This bike is something I had been thinking about for a while, after I saw some pictures of British club racers from the 1940s and 50s.



The frame is a 1973 Fuji S10S, the first successful Japanese road bike sold in the US. I stripped it completely, installed a sealed bottom bracket and headset, picked up a micro-adjust seatpost, and used parts out of my bin for the rest. The rear wheel is built up around a 1969 Sturmey Archer AW three speed. I put an additional spacer on both sides of the axle to fill out the 120mm spacing and laced it to a Sun rim. I used a high flange track hub up front. At first I used a Suntour barcon to shift, but the shifting wasn't great. I switched to flat bars for a while with a SA trigger shifter, but found the ride uncomfortable.

Finally, I removed the plastic face plate from the shifter and was able to mount it on the drop bar below the brake lever. It's not perfect, but it's the best solution I've tried. I spent a lot of time cleaning up this set up Dia Comp center pull brakes, but after putting the bike together, I realized the fork was bent (and the rear triange, but not as bad). I tried to straighten the fork but was unhappy with the results. Instead, I now have a Tange chro-mo fork with a modern Dia Comp side pull. The fork doesn't look as nice, and I can't run my original brake, but it feels a lot more like a modern road bike. So far, it's the lightest, fastest, best handling three speed I've ever ridden. I might upgrade to a lighter frame some day.

1981 Raleigh Popular

I was looking around for a bike to restore when one of my employees, who couldn't have know about my search, asked me if i was interested in 'an old bike' she had in her shed. Did I want it? If not, it was going to the tip. I asked what it was and she told me it was an 'old-man's bike'.
I said I would come for a look but wasn't too optimistic from her description. A couple of weeks passed and I thought I had better go and see, just to be polite, and if it was something I wasn't interested in, I'd take it to the Re-Cycle charity in the city.
When I arrived at her house, the bike was leaning against a wall probably 50 feet away and I was excited already. It had been stood next to a wood saw for the last ten years and was covered in sawdust, but even so, I could see it was just what I had been after and appeared complete.
I asked what she wanted for it and she said that it was mine and that I was doing her a favour by getting out of the way.

It was in the back of my car in seconds and my wheels probably spun as I pulled away - just in case she changed her mind or there was a catch! When I got it home I wheeled it around my house and went to work on it. Within 20 minutes I was riding it and since then, I have spent only another hour or two on titivation.
It is a 1981 (from the hub stamp) Raleigh Popular, the last year they were made after a run of more than 60 years. I'm not sure if they always had rod brakes or whether they were made like this in the final year to commemorate the past. It has the original tyres, pedals etc. The only thing I have had to replace, rather than just cleaning up/oiling/polishing/painting, is the bell. The only thing that is missing is the printed plate on the gear select.

I would love to restore it at some point but the paintwork, with its gold and red pinstripes would cost a lot to renew.
For now, it's fine as it is and still turns heads whenever I ride it.

By the way, I gave the lady a larged, framed photograph I'd taken (not of the bike) and knew she liked. We were both happy.

Chapeau,
Ian.

Lots more here.

1969 Raleigh Sports

Just got it this past month on craigslist for my first bike since childhood. I had no idea on the heritage of Raleigh's til I started reading more about them. So to pay homage to the bike, I added some components that would really showcase it's classic features and history. Hope you like!

More here.

Raleigh with nice chaincase and top-tube shifter

From this bike's owner:

Trash rescue, had to replace saddle, tubes, tires, one brake cable, pedals and grips.

Added non-standard (transparent) pie-plate, non-standard (rectifier+regulator+LED) head and taillight.

Replaced spoke, trued wheels, rebuilt front hub.

Later had rear hub partially rebuilt, upsized the cog, and replaced the chain.
Also added a frame lock, and it no longer has toe clips.

It's "ALL STEEL".

1966 Raleigh DL-1

From PH in Fort Worth:

When I got back from my trip, I made good (so far, anyway) on commuting more often. I also got another look at that Raleigh. It had two flat tires, rusty chrome everywhere, an old, cracked, leather seat (oh... um... on bicycles I understand they are referred to as saddles by those who are knowledgeable about such things), some wires hanging limply that went from a generator to a headlight, a 3-speed hub and some weird looking, funky brakes.

I decided to buy The Old Gentleman, as I've begun to call him, and took him home. I took some pictures that first night. Not much to look at- an old, worn-out saddle, a saddle bag with broken straps, the wires hanging around...

The final result:


Lots more background and pictures here.

1973 Raleigh DL-1

Jim,

Here's a photo taken a couple of years ago of me and my Raleigh DL-1. I think I bought this one around 1973 (new). It came from Charlie the Bicycle Man, in Lima, Ohio. With 24-inch frame, low angles, and 28 x 1 1/2 tires it's perfect for the brick streets in the neighborhood where I used to work. It looks rough but still is in good mechanical condition.

I had an earlier one, bought new in 1969, that got stolen. I had retrofitted it with an AW-4 hub. For a while I had it set up with a 3-step sprocket assembly and derailleur by Cyclo, that gave me 12 speeds. I had already removed the derailleur setup before the bike was stolen. Someplace I have a photo of that rig; I'll scan it if it turns up.

1951 Robin Hood

More here.

1962 Robin Hood

More images here.

Garth K.

1963 or 1968 Raleigh Sports

It sat out in the elements for several years with an antique store’s sign attached to it. Luckily the store owner seems to have brought it inside on occasion.

Since the photos I have completed my work and put a solid 30mi ride in on it and I must say it looks and rides fantastic! New photos and details of the clean up to follow.

Eric D.






More images here.

1971 Columbia Sports III

More here and here and here.

Thanks to Thom in San Diego for this submission.

1961 Ranger

The date code on the S-A hub is 61. I put it on the C&V forum on Bike Forums and responders have suggested that it is a rebranded Hercules or Phillips. The guy at the fleamarket said it was a very good bike and was "made in France," as clearly indicated on the top tube where it reads "Made in England." Elsewhere on the bike are the words "Genuine English Light Weight." There's a cowboy on the badge.

I'm planning on cleaning it up next weekend and maybe even driving it to work.

John
Savannah, Georgia

1963 ladies Dunelt

From the owner of this bike:

I've just finished fixing up a 1963 Dunelt 3 speed womens' bike (black). Works well, except for the twist shifter, which is a little rough. I suppose I could change it over to a trigger type. If my wife rides it much at all I'll probably put new tires/tubes on it.
Found the bike behind the dumpster at 8100 Knox in Bloomington. They redid their parking lot and got rid of all the bikes left unclaimed and chained to signposts in the lot. There was a nice Free Spirit mens 3 speed also but it was still chained to two other and in a pile of about a dozen bikes, you know how they can get tangled up when piled that way. The Dunelt was on the outside of the pile and when I was looking at it the maintenence man came along and said I could take anything I wanted. I quietly pushed that baby away, got it in the car and after about 4 hours of work it's ready to go, my wife will love it.

Pat
Minneapolis, Minnesota

1971 Raleigh Superbe

More info here.

1937 Phillips City

Esteban sent these photos along:

1967 Robin Hood

The bike I fixed up for my mom to ride on the 2008 Lake Pepin 3 Speed Tour. New alloy rims and seatpost, new saddle, new grips, new brake pads.

Raleigh Tourist

This Raleigh roadster belongs to Rob, who resides in Minneapolis.

a sample of the weekend

A couple of 3-speeds that came through the shop during the past few days.

1973 Raleigh Sports




Late 1960s Dunelt ladies coaster brake:


Ride awheel on Sheffield Steel!


More to come.

Early 1950s Merlin 4-speed

Early 50's build. Bob Jackson owned Merlin at the time. 531 DB tubing throughout. Prugnat lugs. Original paint and hand striping of lugs, decals. Built specifically for a 4 speed FM SA Hub. Stronglight cranks; Campy Tipo front hubs. Bleumels fenders. Original rack. Rides like a dream.
Cheers,
KM
St Paul, MN

1963 Montgomery Ward Hawthorne

Here's my 1963 Montgomery Ward Hawthorne, which was built by Hercules. By 1963, Hercules was owned by Raleigh, which means my bicycle probably rolled off the Raleigh assembly line in Nottingham, England.

I bought it for $40. I spent about $7 on spray paint and a couple bucks for the pinstripe stickers. Cheers .

Jack D.
McKinleyville
Humboldt County
California

1960 Raleigh Sports with modern refinements

This is my main 3-speed.




I added a new saddle, alloy seatpost, alloy rims, sealed cartridge bottom bracket, alloy crank, and new Continental tires.

Jim Thill
Minneapolis, MN