One of the first mountain bikes to be made in the U.K., restored with a sunset flourish.
How could you not be drawn to that crankset? It's like the chromed hub caps of a classic Chevvy.
I wanted to keep the bike as original as I could. It's still got 5sp friction shifting with lovely smooth thumbies. The only major changes besides the paintwork are new wider bars and with lock on grips, new anodised Onza pedals and modern 1.9" Continental doublefighter tyres. It's a large (59cm) frame and the narrow bars it came with, while period correct, were just not going to be as comfortable for the taller rider as some wider flat bars.
It's been painted with Chicago Yellow fading into Meise Orange, with custom painted brake levers and a stem with contrast bolt to match.
The decals were from the year before this, because that Raleigh logo was impossible to resist.
Once it was all painted and rebuilt the test ride revealed a few gremlins in the headset that have been exorcised, and slipping gears were traced back to a bent compression plate on the rear derailleur.
It's not going to fly down Fort William at Mach 3, but it'll get you to the pub in style and take a detour on the way home.