Raleigh royal tourer rebuild

[avecReynolds531]

This afternoon I concentrated on the frame and forks, using a mixture of WD40, fine wire wool, cutting polish and Autosol, it’s come up rather well considering how bad it was.

View attachment 526211

View attachment 526210

Next job was to build up the BB and headset, no dramas as I’d already cleaned and prepped everything, I used loose ball bearings and I’m really pleased both run super-smooth, the headset has a nice serrated washer which locks the adjustment ring which means you don’t over tighten the headset when you tighten the lock nut. I’ll see if I can get hold of a set of these for the next project as they make adjustment so much easier.

View attachment 526215

Looks really good and a nice frame.

 

[Gunk]

As I’m waiting for a few parts to arrive, not much progress today, I’ve resisted putting it back together as my son and I want to build it in one go.

So today I’ve cleaned up the mudguards and stays, plus cleaned and polished the old rusty rear pannier rack which has come up well. I’ve also put the seat on the stem and built up the handle bars with the levers just to make assembly a bit quicker.

 

[Gunk]

 

[raleighnut]

I


I’ve never seen the serrated locking washer before

I've got one on my Equipe.

 

[Gunk]

My son and I started to build it back up this afternoon. We’ve fitted the crankset, both mechs and all the cables.

I’m waiting for new cable hanger for the front brake, but tomorrow I’ll put the wheels and chain on and set everything up.

 

[simongt]

Ahh, proper bike bits - !

 

[Gunk]

Nearly done

 

[Gunk]

Chain now on and all the gears adjusted and set up

 

[Gunk]

Considering it was a bare frame this morning, it’s looking good!

 

[ruffers]

Considering it was a bare frame this morning, it’s looking good!

looks brilliant, well done you, but I think your son did all the hard work 👍🏻

 

[Gunk]

looks brilliant, well done you, but I think your son did all the hard work 👍🏻

Let’s just say he made a contribution

 

[Gunk]

So after a late finish last night, I got the bike out in the garden on the stand, trued both wheels and cleaned everything again as it was all covered in greasy finger prints! I had a couple of rides around the block and got the headset and front and rear mechs adjusted, the budget friction thumb shifters are surprisingly good for a tenner. First impressions from a very limited test ride are very positive, everything is super smooth, it rides really nicely.

As with many projects I’m waiting for a five pound part to finish it, the front cable hanger for the centre pull brakes was too rusty to save and as it’s on show I decided to replace it, I found a new one on eBay and guess what, a week later it’s still not bloody arrived. 🤬

So I’ve done as much as I can really, but considering this was a project I wasn’t that enthusiastic about (I wasn’t really that keen on the bike) I’m really pleased with it. Looking on eBay at similar Royals currently for sale, the frame was in pretty good condition, most others seem very tatty.

It’ll be for sale shortly so if anyone is interested please send me a private message and I’ll send over the full spec and price. With regard to sizing, the photographs show it set up for me and I’m 5’7”

 

[Gunk]

Finally the cable hanger arrived this morning, you see it’s a big improvement over the rusty original, I’ll fit it later and it’ll all be finished

 

[Gunk]

So finally finished, cable hanger fitted, front brake adjusted, headset nipped up a bit more. The before photo really shows the difference.

when rain stops I’ll whizz around the block and take some proper photos.

 

[AndyRM]

Very smart, as ever. All these rebuild threads have reminded me (not that I've forgotten) that I really have no excuse to not build up my rather lovely Bianchi, which has been gathering dust for far too long. I'm pretty sure I have all the parts in a box ready to go.