Secondhand Raleigh Junior Rigid MTB: lemon or worth a punt?

[Reynard]

Looking great now the stickers are off. Are you going with plain Raleigh stickers at any point ?

Actually, I'm rather tempted to leave it the way it is. I just really like the colour.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

I prefer ordinary long allen keys to the handle types. I got some very decent ones recently from Lidl in one of their cycling accessories promotions, I think the set was £6. That doesn't help you right now, but the next time they have a promo on, it's worth grabbing some. I haven't managed to permanently bend any so far, which suggests they are good quality vanadium steel.

 

[Reynard]

Heh, well I do have a set somewhere, but for the life of me, I just can't find them! Now the magic trick is this - if I buy another complete set, then the other ones will suddenly appear right in front of my nose.

I've been relying on my multitool. Fine for most things, but no good for anything that's royally stuck.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Heh, well I do have a set somewhere, but for the life of me, I just can't find them! Now the magic trick is this - if I buy another complete set, then the other ones will suddenly appear right in front of my nose.

That's the reason I've got half a dozen stanley knives and steel tape measures!

 

[12boy]

I think that frame looks great......good job on that. Cork grips and a blond Brooks would go very well with gumwalls tires, too. For someone who says they aren't very skilled you are doing very well. Those minitools are ok for adjustments but nothing beats a proper tool. Using a bit of pipe or a spanner is like having a breaker bar. After loosening the bolt I'll bet the wedge will require a little force as well. Still, the results will be worth it.

 

[Reynard]

Slight spanner in the works this morning...

I'd hoped to scrounge the 5-speed freewheel off the Emmelle and use it temporarily while I decided where to go with the drivetrain upgrades, as it's got the same sprockets as the one I'd taken off the Raleigh. That was a fine theory until I tried to remove it - the standard freewheel removal tool is too wide by several mm, so there's no way I'm getting that off with what I've got to hand.

I can't just simply swap the wheel over as the rear axle on the Emmelle is 10mm narrower.

Some thinking / research time required.

 

[Reynard]

I think that frame looks great......good job on that. Cork grips and a blond Brooks would go very well with gumwalls tires, too. For someone who says they aren't very skilled you are doing very well. Those minitools are ok for adjustments but nothing beats a proper tool. Using a bit of pipe or a spanner is like having a breaker bar. After loosening the bolt I'll bet the wedge will require a little force as well. Still, the results will be worth it.

I don't have a Brooks bum! I'm a Charge Ladle girl.

Thanks for the vote of confidence though.

 

[12boy]

I guess I don't have a Brooks bum, although I am a bum and use narrow leather saddles from Velo Orange those were sold under various names, maybe actually made by Gyre. Have 5 identical saddles for my five favorite bikes. Do like to match grips/bar tape with saddle although there is not a gumwall in sight. Do you have a bike coop in your 'hood wherein used cheap bike parts can be scored? When I drive the 300 miles to Denver Co to see my sons I have a favorite I will visit if I am allowed.

 

[Reynard]

There is a bike co-op type place in the next village along, but whenever I've been in there, they've not been terribly... cooperative... And for similar prices on consumables and tools, I prefer to take my trade to the LBS in town instead.

Keeping things "period" isn't something I'm after, not on a bike that was never anything fancy in its day. I've dated it to 1998 btw if I've got the frame number correct. So no gumwall tyres (I don't actually like them), and just keeping everything plain black / alloy. I have a black Selle SMP in my box of bits which I plan on using.

My road bike has a matching saddle and bar tape (white, I know, I know...) and my hybrid has everything in black. So guilty as charged there, m'lud...

 

[Reynard]

A bunch of fails today. Was bound to happen at some stage, I thought this was going far too well...

The enamel paint I bought last week is the wrong colour (it's closer to alizarin crimson than to light cadmium red regardless of what it says on the label), and the freewheel remover tool I have isn't the right one to take the freewheel off the donor bike. Irritating, as it's apparently a straight swap otherwise.

The right tool costs as much as a new freewheel, near enough.

Is it even worth bothering? It's not a tool I'm ever likely to need again. And is it worth getting a replacement freewheel if I was going to upgrade the wheelset and drivetrain anyway? Aaaargh!!!

Might slope off to the "Wanted" section to see if anyone has a spare 14-28 5-speed Shimano freewheel knocking around...

 

[DCBassman]

Is it even worth bothering? It's not a tool I'm ever likely to need again. And is it worth getting a replacement freewheel if I was going to upgrade the wheelset and drivetrain anyway? Aaaargh!!!

No. Just bite the bullet and get a new freehub wheel and cassette and be done with it. In doing two rigid 26" MTBs, this saved hours of faffing. More choice with gearing, too.
Edit: as well as future-proofing as far as spares go.

 

[12boy]

Freehubs are nice because it's so easy to change gearing. The tools to crack the cluster aren' t expensive. Having said that, if there was a way to replace the axle and sprockets on the hub you already have it would be nice to have an extra wheel.

 

[Reynard]

No. Just bite the bullet and get a new freehub wheel and cassette and be done with it. In doing two rigid 26" MTBs, this saved hours of faffing. More choice with gearing, too.
Edit: as well as future-proofing as far as spares go.

The more I think about it, the more this sounds like the way forward. Especially when I make a list of what's not up to scratch and needs to be changed: freewheel is knackered, rear axle is bent, chainrings too small, shifters are unitary construction and can't be serviced, those ghastly plastic brake levers...

The things that are bugging me are this:

1) Will those front forks take a QR? The wheelset I've got my eye on is fitted for QR. Which I like the idea of anyway.

2) What size cassette can I fit without running into space issues?

3) How many sprockets can the current RD cope with? It's in good working order so would be a shame to bin it.

4) I'm hoping the FD should be ok, as I'd be staying with a triple, just one with a couple more teeth on the big ring.

 

[Reynard]

Oh yeah, and the stem bolt still isn't playing ball, but should get my mitts on a 6mm allen key tomorrow.

 

[DCBassman]

What size cassette can I fit without running into space issues?

This depends on what space you're referring to. You are quite likely to have to bend it to 135mm, but if that's no biggie, then the wheel is likely to be capable of 7/8/9 speed, so the world is your tasty mollusc. But 7-speed is likely to be the least number. I still have those 8-spd shifters which will do V and other brake types...

Careful choice of 8-speed cassette would give you a really nicely spaced 12-30 or up to 34 if the RD can handle it, but 30 should be fine, I would have thought...