Hi All (Warning: this is going to be a long post and I apologise in advance!)
I am completely new to this whole restoration game (and in fact this site!)
My name is Aimee and I'm 23 and have a bike for the first time in about 12 years!
I bought my Wisp in October last year through Gumtree. I wasn't looking for anything in particular when I bought it, but it was cheap at £45. When I collected it it had a perished tyre so I haggled down to £35 which I was very happy with as it is a very smart looking bike. Got it home, got new tyres for it (just cheap ones so that I could give the bike a run for the first time). Took it out the next day on a leisurely 20 mile riverside ride and was very happy with it.
The other thing that was slightly annoying about it when I got it was that the handlebar was a flat bar. I had initially looked into getting a brand new Dutch style step-through bike, but couldn't find one that I was 100% happy with. Anyway, I found the height of the bar itself and the grips etc. (which had also perished) very uncomfortable so I bought a "moustache" handlebar on-line and fitted it with the help of my fiancé and bought some lovely white grips. I now sit in a much more upright position and the ride itself is much more comfortable. I also bought new brake levers as mine were pretty much fused to the old handlebar which was very old and battered!
The paintwork is all original and very scuffed! My fiancé's granddad is a bodywork specialist and has offered to redo the paint job for me and I'm hoping that this will be a navy blue (I don't have the colour codes to hand!)
My lovely bike has been in hibernation since December. I was due to strip it down today ready for being sprayed etc. ... but the weather has been awful.
Anyway, my actual point to this post is..
I have absolutely no clue about anything bike related whatsoever. I want this bike to me my project (save for the paint work .. ) Until perhaps today I didn't even know the parts on a bike and so seeing things like "derailleurs" really put me off in the past!
I hopped onto Google, typed in "Raleigh Wisp bike" (otherwise I get a bunch of sites about some stupid moped) and stumbled across a couple of threads on this site about members having restored their Wisp. Very impressive stuff. Beautiful bikes. I want my bike to be beautiful too.. I just don't know where to start.
I need some help. I'm going to eventually replace everything on the bike (that NEEDS replacing), chainset, derailleurs, callipers etc. I've got on order from SJS a new headset and stem (both of mine are broken.. and when I say broken, I mean that my stem isn't shiny like my new handlebars! vanity I know, but it looks terrible!!)
I've taken lots of notes of the specs of others' mods to their Wisps, what things I need to get but I really feel I need talking through it like an idiot.
I would be very grateful for any help anyone can give me.
Once I've stripped the bike (hopefully next weekend) I will better know what exactly I have and can then come back and ask for help from you knowledgeable people about what things I need to replace the same with. As I said, I really have no idea.
I'm going for blue and white. My grips are white, I will be getting a white saddle and replacing my brake cables with white also (but these are the last finishing touches as far as I'm concerned. I like the stainless steel look and initially wanted to keep my mudguards but they are very bashed and noisy and broken. Had looked for replacements but have ended up having to get chromoplastic which I tried to avoid. I'd like some help in this area also.
So anyway, I just really need some help with what to do, where to get this stuff and the prices I should be paying as everything seems to vary and I really don't know what sites are good. My lbs's are very very small and don't seem used to people coming in that have absolutely no clue about what they need help with.
Sorry for the long post... but I'd really appreciate help from people who know what they are talking about.
Thank you!
Aimee
I am completely new to this whole restoration game (and in fact this site!)
My name is Aimee and I'm 23 and have a bike for the first time in about 12 years!
I bought my Wisp in October last year through Gumtree. I wasn't looking for anything in particular when I bought it, but it was cheap at £45. When I collected it it had a perished tyre so I haggled down to £35 which I was very happy with as it is a very smart looking bike. Got it home, got new tyres for it (just cheap ones so that I could give the bike a run for the first time). Took it out the next day on a leisurely 20 mile riverside ride and was very happy with it.
The other thing that was slightly annoying about it when I got it was that the handlebar was a flat bar. I had initially looked into getting a brand new Dutch style step-through bike, but couldn't find one that I was 100% happy with. Anyway, I found the height of the bar itself and the grips etc. (which had also perished) very uncomfortable so I bought a "moustache" handlebar on-line and fitted it with the help of my fiancé and bought some lovely white grips. I now sit in a much more upright position and the ride itself is much more comfortable. I also bought new brake levers as mine were pretty much fused to the old handlebar which was very old and battered!
The paintwork is all original and very scuffed! My fiancé's granddad is a bodywork specialist and has offered to redo the paint job for me and I'm hoping that this will be a navy blue (I don't have the colour codes to hand!)
My lovely bike has been in hibernation since December. I was due to strip it down today ready for being sprayed etc. ... but the weather has been awful.
Anyway, my actual point to this post is..
I have absolutely no clue about anything bike related whatsoever. I want this bike to me my project (save for the paint work .. ) Until perhaps today I didn't even know the parts on a bike and so seeing things like "derailleurs" really put me off in the past!
I hopped onto Google, typed in "Raleigh Wisp bike" (otherwise I get a bunch of sites about some stupid moped) and stumbled across a couple of threads on this site about members having restored their Wisp. Very impressive stuff. Beautiful bikes. I want my bike to be beautiful too.. I just don't know where to start.
I need some help. I'm going to eventually replace everything on the bike (that NEEDS replacing), chainset, derailleurs, callipers etc. I've got on order from SJS a new headset and stem (both of mine are broken.. and when I say broken, I mean that my stem isn't shiny like my new handlebars! vanity I know, but it looks terrible!!)
I've taken lots of notes of the specs of others' mods to their Wisps, what things I need to get but I really feel I need talking through it like an idiot.
I would be very grateful for any help anyone can give me.
Once I've stripped the bike (hopefully next weekend) I will better know what exactly I have and can then come back and ask for help from you knowledgeable people about what things I need to replace the same with. As I said, I really have no idea.
I'm going for blue and white. My grips are white, I will be getting a white saddle and replacing my brake cables with white also (but these are the last finishing touches as far as I'm concerned. I like the stainless steel look and initially wanted to keep my mudguards but they are very bashed and noisy and broken. Had looked for replacements but have ended up having to get chromoplastic which I tried to avoid. I'd like some help in this area also.
So anyway, I just really need some help with what to do, where to get this stuff and the prices I should be paying as everything seems to vary and I really don't know what sites are good. My lbs's are very very small and don't seem used to people coming in that have absolutely no clue about what they need help with.
Sorry for the long post... but I'd really appreciate help from people who know what they are talking about.
Thank you!
Aimee