1974 Raleigh Caprice restoration

Dead Rats

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Here's a nice project I've been working on recently, it's a 1974 Raleigh Caprice that my friend Alex asked me to restore for his girlfriend's imminent birthday. He wanted it powder-coated for durability and rebuilt as original as possible, but a bit more usable and comfier than before.

As it looked the day he brought it round... pretty beaten up!
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Parts stripped, media-blasted and ready to be powdercoated:
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Meanwhile, I cleaned up the rest:
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new wheels nuts and brake lever ferrules nestling amongst original parts:
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Bar/stem and post polished up pretty nicely:
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Not too shabby crankset:
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The brakes took a lot of work:
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As did the wheels (shown with new tyres & tubes fitted):
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Then the powdercoaters rang to say all the bits are ready:
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Frame & forks all ready to spanner up!
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A few close ups... the BB shell:
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Fork thread:
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And the drop-outs:
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Crown race goes on:
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Headset cups going in:
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Lower headset assembly getting greased up:
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BB going in:
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Cranks going on:
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Wheels went on and mudguard fitting next:
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Rear light re-fitting, it's just a reflector these days
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Rear brake and rack being fitted:
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Nice new Silca pump from SJS Cycles:
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Time to fit the chainguard... with stealth branding!
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Had to make the fittings for the chainguard, I modified a jubilee clip at the front and the cable tie is holding the gear cable in place to the jubilee clip!
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NOS decal from eBay:
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An old horn mounting works well for the rear chainguard mounting:
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Custom basket mounting using a spare Blackburn rack mounting and a 6"x 8" piece of laminate wood flooring!
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Tested the rack with these two:
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x

x

x

x

And she's done!
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Unlike before, the gears & brakes now work...
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The colour, tyres, saddle and grips were my friend's choice:
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Frame: 1974 Raleigh Caprice with NOS decals
Fork: original

Headset: original with added washer
Bar/Stem: original
Grips: unknown ergo cork (new)

Brake Levers: original with new ferrules
Brake Calipers: original
Brake Pads: new
Brake Cables: new

Shifters: original Sturmey Archer
Rear cog: original Sturmey Archer
Chain: new 1/8" Taya
Cranks: original Raleigh
Chainrings: original Raleigh 1/8"
Bottom Bracket: original
Pedals: original Union

Rims: original Sturmey-Archer
Hubs: original Sturmey-Archer
Hub Skewers: original front nuts with added washers, NOS rear axle nuts
Nipples: original
Spokes: original
Tyres: Schwalbe Delta Cruiser 26 x 1 3/8" (new)
Tubes: Raleigh Record (NOS) with new gold valve caps

Saddle: Sprint (new)... yes it would look better with a Brooks but new owner is vegan
Seatpost: original
Seatpost Binder: original

Extras: along with the frame & forks I had the following parts powdercoated... original mudguards, rack, kickstand and chainguard... the bike also features it's original rear light fitting, a new Silca pump, a new wicker basket with custom fittings, a new bell and custom chainguard fittings.

Weight: we don't ask a lady

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thanks! it's had a few miles under it's belt now and works a treat, brakes are surprisingly sharp, gears perfect and super comfy :D
 
Nice work fella - wouldn't leave it unattended around the Bowling Green meself... ;-)

When are we going for a trundle??
 
mrkawasaki":omjuidjo said:
Nice work fella - wouldn't leave it unattended around the Bowling Green meself... ;-)

When are we going for a trundle??

:LOL: :LOL: :LOL: it's been a while Mr! Hope you're well, I'll be in touch :cool:
 
How good does that look! Are the outside photos in Chorlton? It'll look well rolling round there. Just keep working on her re: the Brooks. If I was a cow, it's definitely how I'd want to end up :D
 
Looks wonderful, very 70s! My girlfriend also has a Caprice, a late 80s one, she's been giving it daily abuse since I bought it for her three years ago - they might be heavy and scarily flexible, but they're tough!

Here it is:
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Over the last three years it's had a 'rolling restoration', slowly upgraded with plastic mudguards, aluminium wheelset with singlespeed conversion, dual-pivot brakes with BMX levers, Reelights and finally powdercoated in RAL6019 with the rack and chainguard being powdercoated white. I did the headtube, lining and repainted the badge myself.
 
@ frinkmakesyouthink, that's nice mate - love the colour, and the bars :cool: what's with the lights are they magnetic, kinetic??
 
Magnetic induction yes. Like a dynamo, but the magnets bolt on to the wheel and the coil attaches to the frame. When the magnet passes the coil it induces a current which makes the light flash (rather brightly too). They have capacitors in them so that the lights stay flashing for a few minutes after the bike has stopped - which is useful for waiting at traffic lights etc, but annoying because every time you lock the bike up somebody chirps 'You've left your lights on mate', and you have to explain the above!

I paid £20 for the set - got them half price in a sale. I love the concept and they do work well, but the quality of the materials is quite poor - I wouldn't pay full price for them (unless they were aluminium rather than plastic).
 
That's come out quite nice. My other half has a mid 80's Caprice like the one Frink posted, in maroon. He's right, it weighs a ton and it's quite flexy but it's screwed together well and just goes on and on and on.
 
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