raleigh seatpost help

[coco69]

I have just bought a raleigh phoenix to do up,it need a seatpost and very roughly measured it comes up to approx 25mm, does anyone know the actual size i think its 1980s

 

[tyred]

My guess is that it is a 1" seatpost (25.4mm). These are easily available.




There is such a thing as 25mm seatpost ( I have one in my Batavus) but I would be surprised to find it in a British made bike.

 

[coco69]

hey thanks...just one other thing it states on the frame a 12 speed shimano but only 5 rings on the cassette?

 

[coco69]

...also could i use a newer wheel on it with a 8 speed cassette/

 

[RecordAceFromNew]

I have just bought a raleigh phoenix to do up,it need a seatpost and very roughly measured it comes up to approx 25mm, does anyone know the actual size i think its 1980s

The most reliable way to get the right seatpost is to look at what it says on the existing one. Even basic ones typically have the size engraved usually just below the minimum insertion mark.

Regarding 5 rings while the frame says 12 speed, it is probable because at certain point in time someone put a 5 speed freewheel on the existing wheel to replace a 6 speed freewheel, or used a 5 speed wheel to replace a 6 speed wheel. Assuming your shifter can handle it you can simply replace the 5 speed freewheel with a 6 for the former. If on the other hand the wheel has been swapped then you might find that it has a 120mm distance between the dropouts, and putting a 6 speed freewheel on that will likely require spacing and redishing the wheel.

On the other hand if you want to upgrade to 8 speed then assuming the frame is steel you can by replacing the wheel with a modern one with freehub for cassettes and probably cold setting the frame (because such hubs have rear dropout distance of 130mm or 135mm). Also if you have indexed shifters they will also need to be replaced.

 

[PpPete]

This ebay seller often has a wide variety of seatposts at cheap prices
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/bankruptsurplusbikesbits
but check the size first - you have to be spot on, even 0.2 mm out can cause problems