Raleigh SBDU Denton fast tourer

[Chuck moo]

Hi
I just picked this up today. I bought it from a chap who had purchased it new from denton cycles in newcastle in 1985, he told me that it was a Gerrard Donovan bike from raleigh a special build division, but was sprayed and sticker as a Denton. Some years ago he had it back to the shop for a respray, now when I checked and saw the SB Frame number I knew he wasn't expanding on the truth. Also when I checked the forks have the same number as the frame too. I did the the Ping test of tapping my finger nails on the tube s and they sound really thin, and the frame weighs less than my 531 and is about the same as a high end columbus one that I have, I have no scales. So I am happy as the guy said it is 753 too.

It came to me fitted with bolt on low riders, a steel pannier rack and smashed mudguards. The components were Sachs rear mech, deore front mech, RX100 down tube shifters, TA cranks, campag record brakes and hubs on MA40, cinelli bar and stem and a plastic seatpost.

Anyway here are the pictures, everything is solid and straight. I would like to know what the frame and fork value is please as I am thinking of moving it on as it's not quite my thing.

 

[originalshinkicker]

Hi, that is definitely an interesting frame. I like it because a) it is an SBDU and b) I worked at Dentons but started slightly later than 85. It is a strange thing. The SB number does date it to 1985 but it has a mixture of older features such as top of the BB shell cable guides, lack of downtube lever bosses. It also has a stop for band on levers on the top of the downtube but I haven't seen any SBDU frames that use this stop.

It definately doesn't look like a stock frame and must have been some kind of special order but I can't see an 'H' ref under the BB which would normally signify this. If you want a buyer or any other info on Dentons/SBDU just let me know, I'm just down the road in Newcastle. I probably worked on this bike lots, it really does look familiar.

Cheers
Neil

 

[Midlife]

.........just curious, if you didn't want it.............why did you buy it?

Shaun

 

[Hillwalker]

Nice Denton! I have a 531 Denton from around this period (with some of the same features as yours, and the same decals) I can remember peering through the Denton shop window as a teenager in the early 70s (and sometimes being chased out of the shop on Westgate Road for looking but not buying!). Can't blame the staff; there probably would have been half a dozen of us lusting after gear that, as 13 and 14 year olds, it was obvious we couldn't afford!

OriginalShinKicker: is there any truth in the rumour that Mercian made frames for Denton?

Happy Days

HW

 

[originalshinkicker]

Nice Denton! I have a 531 Denton from around this period (with some of the same features as yours, and the same decals) I can remember peering through the Denton shop window as a teenager in the early 70s (and sometimes being chased out of the shop on Westgate Road for looking but not buying!). Can't blame the staff; there probably would have been half a dozen of us lusting after gear that, as 13 and 14 year olds, it was obvious we couldn't afford!

OriginalShinKicker: is there any truth in the rumour that Mercian made frames for Denton?

Happy Days

HW

Haha, you were probably chased out by Ron, Ces or Huey! Dentons had a long history of building frames - Dentons started around the mid fifties on Westgate Road. Mercian built a lot for us. I have a frame from 1972 built by Mercian with the original 227/229 Westgate Road decals. We also had Dave Yates and MSteels build many frames - one of the last steel frames I remember building in the shop was a lovely white 753 with Record C before it went Alu and Carbon. Not many people are aware that Dentons also had a partnership with Paul Donohue in Bishop Auckland in the 80s. As that partnership, Paul and Kevin Winter built lots of Denton Frames.

Cheers
Neil

 

[Hillwalker]

Haha, you were probably chased out by Ron, Ces or Huey! Dentons had a long history of building frames - Dentons started around the mid fifties on Westgate Road. Mercian built a lot for us. I have a frame from 1972 built by Mercian with the original 227/229 Westgate Road decals. We also had Dave Yates and MSteels build many frames - one of the last steel frames I remember building in the shop was a lovely white 753 with Record C before it went Alu and Carbon. Not many people are aware that Dentons also had a partnership with Paul Donohue in Bishop Auckland in the 80s. As that partnership, Paul and Kevin Winter built lots of Denton Frames.

Cheers
Neil

Hi Neil

I seem to recall the guy chasing us out had an iron grey crew cut (not common in 1974!). Ces rings a bell?

How can you differentiate the different makers to determine who made any Denton frame? (how can I tell who made mine?).

Sorry about hijacking the OP's thread

HW

 

[Chuck moo]

Re:

Hi
Shaun I couldn't let the opportunity go by, it's not that often someone offers you a bike like this.

Don't worry about steeling the thread, it's all good interesting stuff

 

[Hillwalker]

Thanks Chuck Moo; it is very interesting as you say. Your bike looks lovely but probably a bit too big for me (58cm ctc? at a glance?). And I'm in the bike doghouse with SWMBO for other recent purchases :shock:



HW

 

[originalshinkicker]

Re: Re:

Hi
Shaun I couldn't let the opportunity go by, it's not that often someone offers you a bike like this.

Don't worry about steeling the thread, it's all good interesting stuff

Thanks for the frame Chuck Moo. I put some details of this frame on the SBDU group and got this reply straight back from Mike Mullett who managed the SBDU workshop in the late 70s early 80s. The 'Colin' he is referring to is Colin Davison who was my boss at Dentons.

"I am casting my mind back some 40 years so some dates are a little hazy. In the mid 70’s I was a senior coach and on the coaching committee of the BCF as it was then, now British Cycling. One of my remits was to watch 1st cat riders for international selection.
Colin was on a coaching course I was running at Lilleshall and I had noticed him in the racing results and was impressed with him on the course. We were looking for riders for an England team for the Milk Race, and I recommended Colin and he was duly selected. Can’t remember the exact year.
Over the next few years I was a team official on international races in which Colin rode. He was the proprietor of Denton’s during this time.
In the late 70’s I became Workshop Manager at SBDU Ilkeston, and suddenly found I had lots of friends in the cycling world!
Colin came to visit me at Ilkeston and asked if I could build a bespoke frame for him even though Dentons were not Raleigh dealers. GOD (Gerald O’Donovan) agreed and left it to me.
A couple more bespoke frames were built to Colins spec which could well be one of the frames you have acquired.
Mike"

This explains why it appears to be completely bespoke but lacking the normal 'H' reference that regular Dealer placed orders would have. I'm still trying to figure out the 753/531 thing though.

Neil

 

[Meejoir]

Hi Neil, sorry to hijack this thread but since you worked at Denton's and you clearly know a bit of history about the the place, you might be able to help.

I managed to acquire a fantastic bike from an old fella who I bumped into at Belsay - here's the story via this link....

viewtopic.php?f=12&t=291971

Any way, it turns out the frame was hand built by a fella called George Barrass who built frames at 227/229 Westgate Road, the shop which eventually became Denton Cycles. I'm writing an article, hopefully to be published, but I'm after a photograph of the shop from the 1950s. I've tried the local history section at the library and online without luck. Would any of your old contacts from Denton's have anything - or even know anything about this George Barrass guy?

Sorry for the long winded tale - the bike is beautiful and has a lot of history, I just want to do it justice.

Cheers,
Dave