A few years back, my grandmother had asked me to help clean out her basement... and being a good grandson I obv agreed to assist. While down there I found a plethora of cool trinkets; vintage lamp made of brass and marble, box of old matchbox cars, a dead bat. But out of the corner of my eye I spotted this mustard yellow tube under a pile of boxes. Assuming it was some sort of old rake or shovel that could assist me with the cleanup, I reached for it... but it didn't budge... so I carefully moved the boxes away.
Rewind 35+ years. My uncle Dan was in law school in Utah and lived quite a distance from the nearest bus stop. Having little money to pay rent, let alone buy a car, Dan had but one option to resolve his transpirational woes.
Fast forward 35+ years. Moving the boxes aside... I uncover a vintage steel bike covered in dirt, dust, cobwebs, and mouse poop. Immediately a
lightbulb appears above my head:
In my quiver at home I have a full carbon S-Works Tarmac, a bright pink limited edition Crux, and a 29er... none of which are great "let me take a ride to the café and leave my bike leaning up against a brick wall" type of bikes... so why not build a SS conversion!?
Once cleaned of all its dirt/dust/webs/poop, it seems that uncle Dan had purchased a 1971 Raleigh Record. The wheels were taco'd, the drivetrain was rusted out, and the rest of the components were junk (according to todays standards)... but the frame seemed perfectly fine. So, I stripped it.
Fast forward again to the present day. After a bit of research, it seems that I've stumbled upon one of the handmade lugged Nottingham frames... IE: NOTHING is a standard shape or size and NOTHING on this bike is still being mass produced in 2012. But this wasn't going to stop me. I bought some new, used, and NOS components... stopped by my
LBS... and here you go:
1971 Raleigh Record SS Conversion
(note: it was raining when pic was taken, hence the bag)
Parts used:
- Weinmann Wheelset
- Origin 8 Crankset and Bottom Bracket
- 3T Mutant Stem
- Soma Urband Pursuit Handlebar
- Shimano SPD Pedals
- Ritchey Logic Headset
- Fizik Bartape
- Tektro Brake
- Cane Creek Brake Lever
- Bontrager 1990's MTB Saddle
