Your old bikes.

[ferrisbueller]

Inspired by someone refurbing a bike they had in their childhood, I was looking at the bikes I've had and reminiscing about the joy and freedom they gave pre-driving licence.

I present my bike history:

Raleigh Rascal



Raleigh Boxer



Sun Solo (5 gears!)



Raleigh Banana (12 gears)

[Evilex]

(Can't do pics as I don't have any / enough of the relevant bikes, however...)
Raleigh Jumbo trike
Raleigh Budgie
Puch mini Sprint
Raleigh Grifter XL
Raleigh Arena
Swallow Stannett
Cannondale T600 (1989)
Cannondale SM 500 (1991)
Raleigh Aero Burner
Charge Plug (2010)
Calibre Dune (2016)

Still have the last 5.

[Craikeybaby]

I'm sure we had a thread like this fairly recently which had a lot of replies.

[bakerstreet]

Apollo MTB
Raleigh Lizard
Raliegh Gritstone 21
Carrerea Integer (V-Brakes!)

Many years pass

2010 Giant Defy 2 (Not much of it is original)
Planet X SLX
Link Tern D8
Brompton
Fuji Transonic

Still got the Tern, Carrera, Planet X, Brompton and the Fuji _

[hman]

Raleigh Super Burner BMX (In GOOOOOOOLD)

Peugeot Lautaret in blue - 12 speed!

Orbit Illusion 653 tubing frame built up using Shimano Ultegra, campag, mavic, cinelli stuff (wrote the frame off riding into a parked car!)

2nd version of Orbit Illusion 653 tubing frame built up using Shimano Ultegra, campag, mavic, cinelli stuff (still have this bike)

Specialized Hardrock Sport (still have this bike)

[idiotgap]

Images mostly from google, last three are my actual bikes.


Raleigh Small Rider


Raleigh Strika


Falcon Pro Street Flyer


Raleigh Sensor


1990 Raleigh Volant (531) - got nicked


1990 Orbit America (531c tubing, full 105 groupset)
Sadly no photos of the actual one... only had it a few weeks before it got stolen, amazing paint job.


1991 Orange Clockwork - nicked after 6 months


1991 Dawes "The Edge XT" (still have this)


20 year gap

2009 Specialized Allez Sport, aluminum frame, full tiagra (bought in 2014 for £200, undergoing refurb/transformation now)


2008 Kona Dew - bought for £56, commuter - see https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=16...


2013 Colnago CLX 105 - bought ebay april 2016, crashed sept 2016, carbon repair, still rides nicely so converted to Sram Red/Force/Rival mashup last week
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=16...

[ferrisbueller]

idiotgap said:

Images mostly from google, last three are my actual bikes.

1990 Raleigh Volant (531) - got nicked

Love that!

[idiotgap]

ferrisbueller said:

idiotgap said:

Images mostly from google, last three are my actual bikes.

1990 Raleigh Volant (531) - got nicked

Love that!

It was a gorgeous bike and I felt very lucky at 16 or so getting it. When I went to pick it up, one of the shop keepers who didn't know I'd ordered it was saying how nice it was and got a shock when his colleague handed it to me.

[anonymous-user]

I still have my mk1 raleigh chopper from around 1971
I do miss my Peugeot Pure Gold racer which served me well during late 80s. Will look out for a decent one I think..

[Spydaman]

Kona Explosif from the tip for £5 just added wheels, chain and cables.

[ollie plymsoles]

One of my current bikes. Owned it around 30 yrs.

[ferrisbueller]

idiotgap said:

ferrisbueller said:

idiotgap said:

Images mostly from google, last three are my actual bikes.

1990 Raleigh Volant (531) - got nicked

Love that!

It was a gorgeous bike and I felt very lucky at 16 or so getting it. When I went to pick it up, one of the shop keepers who didn't know I'd ordered it was saying how nice it was and got a shock when his colleague handed it to me.

Oooooh, the hallowed back pages of the Raleigh catalogue. A veritable dreamland!

[andySC]

ferrisbueller said:

Oooooh, the hallowed back pages of the Raleigh catalogue. A veritable dreamland!

This from the 1989 Raleigh Lightweights catalogue, I had the Elix. £329 back then.

[Matt_N]

My Colnago Master:



My Colnago Dream:

[Captain Smerc]

I had the usual Rayleigh Chopper and Arena in the 70's , followed by a Kalkhoff Coupe Du Monde . Got back into bikes with the Muddy Fox in 87 , then worked my way through the rest as the years rolled by . Current rides are the Charge Cooker and Canondale Hooligan . Christ , where has the time gone ?








[url]

|https://thumbsnap.com/lYHEQVoI[/url]

Edited by Captain Smerc on Saturday 30th September 20:29

Edited by Captain Smerc on Saturday 30th September 20:31

[LeadFarmer]

My first bike as a kid...

(the downside to having an older sister is being given her 'hand me down' bikes!!!)






I then had a 2nd hand fake Raleigh Chopper, which was actually called a Scambler.
Followed by a 2nd hand crappy Stratton BMX

Having always had 2nd hand crap bikes, I make sure my son always has brand new cool bikes. But I just know he doesn't appreciate it as much as I would have!

Edited by LeadFarmer on Sunday 1st October 23:01

[Captain Smerc]

Did your school mates beat you often ?

[Watchman]

As a child of the 60's, I don't have pictures of my first bikes but there was a chain-driven trike, a hand-me-down 20"-wheeler (old fashioned steel frame that my Dad made good), then a brand new 24" Raleigh racing bike which, after a few years, I converted to a tracker with spuddy tyres and cowhorn handlebars.

Then this, bought second hand for a fiver - the best wheelie bike ever (it's not a Chopper - it's better):




Then this - I don't think I have ever wanted anything as much (or been so disappointed in anything):




Then I built this:




And then I had 2 decades off cycling, during which time I got fat.


Then, in my early 40s, I bought this:




Got fitter again and decided it was time to try BMX again, so I built this:




Discovered that I hadn't got *that* fit after all, and BMXing wasn't for fat 40-somethings, so I sold it (for a massive profit) and bought this:




... and I still have the 901 - slightly modified now with On One Og bars (what a revelation):




I also fancied a single speed "pub bike", so at stupidly disproportionate cost, I converted an old (free) Halfords MTB into this - which is about the lightest bike I've ever owned:

[Cheburator mk2]

Hmm,

Growing up on the other side of the Iron Curtain - difficult to get pictures...

Balbynka - a Polish 3 wheeler
Zabka - beautifully built Polish 16" bike
Mars BMX - I guess made in Taiwan
10-speed Start-Shosse made by the Harkov Bike Factory in the USSR (Ukraine)
10-speed Sprint - made by Zastava in Kraguevac, Yugoslavia
12-speed De Rosa with Campag, Ambrosio, Cinelli and Gipiemme bits
12- speed Tommasini with Campag, Ambrosio and Cinelli bits

27-spd Specialized Rockhopper Pro
11-spd Specialized Fuse Pro

[LewisR]

andySC said:

ferrisbueller said:

Oooooh, the hallowed back pages of the Raleigh catalogue. A veritable dreamland!

This from the 1989 Raleigh Lightweights catalogue, I had the Elix. £329 back then.

I had, from the same 1989 catalogue, the Record Ace.
[I can only fine the '88 catalogue online for now]


I still have it.