Triumph Rodeo and 'Tracker' Bikes

[Drago]

All the parts now present and correct. Should have the finished product within a few days.

 

[fatjel]

We used to call them track bikes .
Mine was an old Raleigh with SA 3 speed ,
stripped of everything not necessary plus cowhorns
I remember someone at school bought a new one from Peasons that looked similar.
I had a lot of bike envy in those days.
Perhaps that’s why I needed 3 van loads for my bikes in the recent move

 

[palinurus]

View attachment 396794

I've got that exact toolkit.

Except that I've broken or lost most of it, none of the tools are in the case and when I want to find something I have to crawl around on the floor of my (totally stuffed full) shed with a torch.

 

[Drago]

Just waiting for temperatures in positive figures before bolting it all together.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

I think you’d have to go some to beat this one.

View attachment 396822

I didn't realise he was still around.

 

[Dirk]

So @Drago
That last one could actually be a Rodeo.

It's certainly a similar colour to the one I built.

 

[Cycleops]

I think part of the reason for these tracker bikes was that at the time Speedway was very popular as someone mentioned. In fact I believe it was the second most popular spectator sport after football. How things change.

 

[mickle]

If you base your build on a 26 x 1 3/8" wheeled frame you can fit decent quality wheels and tyres from Archive Wilkinson Cycle Speedway http://archie-wilkinson.co.uk

 

[Dirk]

If you base your build on a 26 x 1 3/8" wheeled frame you can fit decent quality wheels and tyres from Archive Wilkinson Cycle Speedway http://archie-wilkinson.co.uk

That's sort of missing the point of a 'Tracker' bike.
The whole ethos was based around any old stuff you could find, scrounge or nick.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

That's sort of missing the point of a 'Tracker' bike.
The whole ethos was based around any old stuff you could find, scrounge or nick.

Absolutely. The hack bikes that were built when I was a youngster were largely scrounged. You might pay a token sum for a donor bike/frame, but you didn't build it up using parts bought new from a bike shop!. What you did is asked around, searched derelict lock-up garages, sheds, waste land, rubbish skips etc, and salvaged anything remotely bike-shaped you encountered. The end result was very much a matter of how lucky/cunning/determined you were, not how much money you spent.

 

[Drago]

Still witing for the temperature in the workshop to reach positive figures celsius, then I'll finish my tracker and spa up a pic.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Still witing for the temperature in the workshop to reach positive figures celsius, then I'll finish my tracker and spa up a pic.

Great, I'm looking forward to this. And the cheaper you managed to do it using salvaged bits, the better.

 

[mickle]

That's sort of missing the point of a 'Tracker' bike.
The whole ethos was based around any old stuff you could find, scrounge or nick.

That's a very good point - and exceedingly well made.

 

[Drago]

Apart from buying the bars and brake levers, everything else is from my Box O' ****te.

 

[mickle]

We shoulda made this a 'build off'.