Raleigh activator...

[mikee]

thats the point
if you remove most brands from the mix it wont fall down
like jenga , for us the core DNA ,blocks are fisher ,breeze,ritchey they built this nonsense
tho raliegh tried hard and built some nice bikes
the activators were a money spinner , but a BSO , but a good one
if you were there at the time they were significant

any way ,got a full syncros finishing kit allied to cooks cranks and b/b
and manitou ones and m730 groupo for it

 

[dyna-ti]

I remember seeing them when they came out and thinking 'what a pile of sh**e

 

[Jussa]

A guy near me is selling a Raleigh activator... Think it's one before the second one? (ones with rear suspension) guy only wants £20 aswell... Is there a "desire" for these yet...?? I'm tempted big time with it but kinda low on cash and very low on storage space not to mention having to explain to the wife I've bought another "old bike"....!!!
So here it is incase someone else wants it to save me buying it....!!!!

http://m.gumtree.com/male-or-female-mou ... =101652088

Ok, snobbery and jibes aside, can i just point out that most people knocking the Activator have probably never owned one, nor even laid eyes on one.

Therefore like any purchase, you find out for yourself, and make your own opinions.

It may not be 'Boutique' or 'High End' it may have welding that looks like a 2 year olds done it, it may be heavy and no lightweight ride, and it may be kitted out with a monkey metal groupset, but it has played a part in the history and development of MTB's.

A BSO maybe, but it was bikes like this that appeared under Christmas Trees, and Birthday Parties and brought many a smile to the young lads and lassies who wanted to embrace the new Off Road Craze of MTB'ing. In them days many of us could only dream of owning a Prestige Brand, hence why we are all doing it now, snapping up Oranges, and Kleins, Kona's and re-living the childhood we once dreamed of.

Anyway i paid £15 for my Activator, a snip from what the were priced at BITD, and yes i do remember them, very well indeed. But it brought a smile to my face and i enjoyed tinkering with it and seeing if i could breath some respectable life into it. Many may disagree but i believe and it is my personal opinion that i did.

A fellow Retrobiker saw it, and sadly it had to be moved out of the stable (Too many bikes) some bank notes were passed over and it has moved onto a new home to be enjoyed. It may make an appearance once again on these pages.

I'm glad it stirs up a response like it does, shows that it does have something about it, or people wouldn't bother about it.

So buy it......enjoy it.......and break away from convention, and who knows. It may not win BOTM but a few months ago we did have one take a Podium finish with some 'High End Machines' not even getting a vote.

Its the MTB's 'Rage Against The Machine' or maybe it should be 'Rage Against The Activator'



On a closing not let me show you my Activator, would i have another one? Yes i would!

Enjoy

 

[legrandefromage]

These are a mode of transport. They even had 7spd thumbies. They are heavy. The suspension is poor. The quality of the frame is poor. The paint is thick. £69 buys you a brand new bicycle from Halfords which is also in a similar vein as the Activator: bad. As an introduction to cycling they are awful. Snobbery doesn't even come into it. Common sense should prevail. Don't buy it and expect to be impressed expect it to still be there outside the pub or shop like a faithfull smelly old dog. Expect the plastic coated brake levers to be shite. Expect the steering from those awful forks to be terrible. Expect the gears to work because even Raleighj can't **** up basic Shimano SIS components. Expect some parts to be surprisingly bendy if it gets dropped. Expect the tyres to be great at picking up dogshit and mud but offering no grip whatsoever unless its that special smooth tarmac outside the topshops.

Its a mode of transport but that is all.

 

[videojetman]

nice bike jussa, just goes to show, you can polish a turd. but it will still be a turd.
i think this poll will say it all.
http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewto ... sc&start=0

on a serious note though, there will always be a number of members who have a place in their heart for the activator, but its just like marmite, either you love it or hate it.
and no amount of negative comments will stop people loving the activator.

i can see why some kids would have been blown away by the activator,
when i was a kid i was blown away by a klein attitude & the pace rc100.

i think i made good choices.

if any thing, this thread just makes entertaining reading.
now i'm off to ride a proper bike.
have a good day fellow retro bikers.

 

[poweredbypies]

These are a mode of transport. They even had 7spd thumbies. They are heavy. The suspension is poor. The quality of the frame is poor. The paint is thick. £69 buys you a brand new bicycle from Halfords which is also in a similar vein as the Activator: bad. As an introduction to cycling they are awful. Snobbery doesn't even come into it. Common sense should prevail. Don't buy it and expect to be impressed expect it to still be there outside the pub or shop like a faithfull smelly old dog. Expect the plastic coated brake levers to be shite. Expect the steering from those awful forks to be terrible. Expect the gears to work because even Raleighj can't f**k up basic Shimano SIS components. Expect some parts to be surprisingly bendy if it gets dropped. Expect the tyres to be great at picking up dogshit and mud but offering no grip whatsoever unless its that special smooth tarmac outside the topshops.

Its a mode of transport but that is all.

Totally agree with that.

 

[Jussa]

nice bike jussa, just goes to show, you can polish a turd. but it will still be a turd.
i think this poll will say it all.
http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewto ... sc&start=0

on a serious note though, there will always be a number of members who have a place in their heart for the activator, but its just like marmite, either you love it or hate it.
and no amount of negative comments will stop people loving the activator.

i can see why some kids would have been blown away by the activator,
when i was a kid i was blown away by a klein attitude & the pace rc100.

i think i made good choices.

if any thing, this thread just makes entertaining reading.
now i'm off to ride a proper bike.
have a good day fellow retro bikers.

You were a very lucky boy to have Klein & Pace, my childhood was Raleigh, Dawes, Elswick, Viking etc, but all paid for with pocket money, part time work & paper rounds. Only now can I get what I desired for.

 

[videojetman]

i think what i should have said was i didnt actually get the klein and pace til the last few months.
when i was a kid i couldnt actually afford such bikes,
i had to settle for a marin muirwoods.

 

[spike3]

I have a Raleigh Cobra (aperently a rebadged mustang) and It's great, everything works and it shines well with it's chrome rims.

I actually want an activator to complete the Raleigh BSO double act but I need to wait 3 weeks till I've got my garage sorted. Shame as there was one for sale at the Stafford Classic bike show last weekend. :cry:

 

[antogoof]

i had one when they first came out, before this i had and 80`s bmx (skyways, suntour, dx, chrome, mx brakes the lot) but i so wanted a mountain bike and when the first activator came out that was what i begged for, and got.

good at first cause when your a kid cause you think the girls are impressed and all your mates want a go.

id say it actually propelled me into the world of exotic bikes, it was around this time i bought my first mbuk and wondered why there were no activators in it!

got it at christmas and it got stolen that march, luckily i still had my bmx!

out of pity my mum bought me a second hand claud butler in may for my birthday and it had all the bits, mavic, stx, zoom bars and most of all....ali frame!

so maybe ive got a lot to thank the activator for......or not cause it was cack.