The Raleigh Chopper. England's answer to the Schwinn "Krate" bikes. Not as cool as the Krate bikes in my corner of the world when I was a kid, but still pretty awesome now.



http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688438151.jpg

This one?http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688442118.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688442118.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688442118.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688476132.jpg


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688476132.jpg


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688476132.png

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688601529.jpg


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688601529.jpg

Here's a sizzle-reel of a video one of my riding buds is putting together. It shows 5 of us idiots on a gravel grinder through the woods of Washington State a couple of weeks ago. Hopefully the ten-minute or so final result is as good as this little teaser.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/w1QLi7Pzvb4" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Cool Video. Get the whole video up when you can.

Looks like a lot of it was like my weekend- with trails and not so much gravel as mtb trails.
To that end, I just pulled apart my rear wheel, and all good hubs evidently go to heaven. :) !!!
Rear axle snapped and I didn't even know it, and that's a good thing as I was cruising 40-45mph in some parts. :eek::eek::eek:
I pulled the rear rim off to see about a small pinhole in a tire and these are the parts that came loose.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688603563.JPG

Picked up a cheap used ebike before the holiday, Ride1Up 500, with 14 mi. on odometer for under $500.
https://i.imgur.com/NqjPkS2.jpg

Swapped the stock handlebar for something I've been wanting to try out:
https://i.imgur.com/kAXyfPb.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/G4bg2X4.jpg

Put 15 miles on it over the holiday, satisfying.
https://i.imgur.com/Pwr5nhy.jpg

raise you on some EDCO Competition, along with Gipiemme:)

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688837008.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688837008.jpg

I know, there is a hot chick on this bike, but it is an interesting bike http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688841480.jpg

Wow, is that a fender on the front and a tire saver to prevent flats on that race bike? Is that Coppi?

That is Coppi. And I noticed that front fender too. :confused: Early 50s, but I never noticed a fender on other bikes of that era. I didn't notice the tire saver. Also, looks like a threaded boss of some sort on the fork (fender bracket??). Maybe Paris-Roubaix??

Also, didn't really know much about Coppi but he died of malaria at age 40, right after returning from some sort of bike ride in Africa. There is this entire conspiracy theory about how he was actually poisoned as revenge for running an African rider off the road in a race 2 years prior :eek:

He's offsetting the weight penalty of the fender by just taping the rear brake cable housing onto the top tube instead of using those beautiful chrome clamps.

(realistically, that Bianchi must weigh close to 25 or 30 lbs, and those brakes in the wet would be terrifying)

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1688997235.jpg

I miss top tube cable clamps! Even my oldest bike (mid-80s) has brazed on top tube cable holders - not nearly as cool :D


Also: I am currently in possession of a Specialized Tarmac S Pro ... has Mister Steel is Real gone to the dark side? :eek: Probably not. Unfortunately, this bike came my way under very tragic circumstances and I am helping the widow out by getting this bike ready to sell. I'll post my honest riding review soon!

Looking even closer at that Coppi foto ... single chainring and a direct mechanical shifter for the rear derailleur mounted on the seat stay. Now I really wonder what race that was. And, YES, the brakes look frightening!

5 minutes of research later ... 1950 Paris-Roubaix looks like the one. Single chainring so we know it's a flat race. Looks like a front fender in this pic and the seat stay shifter.


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1689007889.jpg

I've been wondering about that front fender all day. With it's limited reach, it didn't really protect the rider- except perhaps his face from spray? The other option was keeping dripping water off the front water bottles off the rims/brake. I dunno?

Also, I was watching a video on the seat stay/chain stay shifters and that riders from that time preferred them due to a positive feel in shifting, basically knowing where they were compared to cable shifters. Perhaps that was posted here. I can't keep up anymore with what :Di watch.

The steel crank arms caught my eye. Cottered. Heavy. When I was a lad, cotterless aluminum were still new enough to be pointed out in ads and magazines on bikes that I could almost but not quite afford. Possibly held on with nuts, not bolts.

(A little later drillium grabbed hold of the collective consciousness and begat the concept of adding lightness by way of the lathe and the mill or the drill press!)

One of the first builds (not my hand)!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1689041134.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1689041227.jpg