CDoherty95 Posted June 19, 2012 Report Share Posted June 19, 2012 Hey y'all I've decided to strip down and rebuild my daily rider to it's former glory. I got it in 2007 for my birthday, and it's the last bike that my parents bought me. However despite it being the youngest bike I have, it's in the worst condition by far. It barely ran (only in the gear ratio 1-5), the front wheel was buckled from a collision with a car last year,the gears were gone, the back brake jammed whenever I used it, someone stole the badge from the front if the bike, the front brake barely worked and the rubber on the brake was torn off in the car collision and I never got round to fixing it, the rear tire was ready to burst (it had a duct tape patch holding it together) and the handlebars were rusted through in places and one of the grips had caught fire when someone stubbed a cigarette out on it ( don't ask because I still haven't figured out why they did it)Anyway here's a couple pictures of the bike as it was and the condition it's in know. There's also a picture of the donar bike that I bought to supply most of the parts for this project. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDoherty95 Posted July 5, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 5, 2012 Well I've been busy stripping paint and now I'm finally ready to paint it. I'm buying the paint tomorrow, and I'm going to paint it midnight blue.Here's a few pictures of the stripping process and paint set up.The bike stripped down to a bare shellThe original forks are on the right, and I've got newer, better ones from another donor bike on the left.The painting set up. I mount a piece of steel pipe to the bike stand I have, and raise it up to whatever level I need. I then slide the bike onto the pipe using the steering headset or seat post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CARLOS-ARGENTINO Posted July 6, 2012 Report Share Posted July 6, 2012 good work friend. is very important to have tools for working comfort.I manufactured a bank to build my v8 318 and now I have to make a spit to hang my dodge gxt and work in peace.I am his fan, I like working for her young age, I fabricate bigger things because I have 38 years of age.when you are older will make sure spacecraft.hug from Argentina. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CARLOS-ARGENTINO Posted July 6, 2012 Report Share Posted July 6, 2012 when I was your age manufactured aircraft, it was just my imagination, I never flew, ajajajajaajajajjaaj Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDoherty95 Posted July 13, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2012 (edited) I painted a gold strip on each part of the bike, and painted the front and back of the bike gold as well.Then I masked off the gold and painted gloss black over the entire frame. I masked off the chrome and rubber on the forks, and painted them gloss black as well.After the black dried I took off the tape on the gold, I applied 3 coats of clear gloss. This gives it an extra shine, and also protects the paint from scratches and scrapes and chips.Apologies for the poor quality of this pic, but it was taken in the rain with the sun shining at the camera.I used the forks, wheels, gears, brakes, and I'm going to use the pedals and cranks off this bike as well.I stripped the forks of the original black paint and applied the new black gloss and clear gloss. Edited July 13, 2012 by CDoherty95 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDoherty95 Posted July 13, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2012 The original Raleigh badge was stuck on using some sort of an adhesive. The new one I got had two small pins sticking out of the back of the badge. I had to drill two small holes in the frame to accommodate the badge.I got this off a scrap bike I had, so naturally it was a little scuffed.I had to use a little superglue to hold the badge in place.These two parts go on both ends of the headset. The paint had been worn away so I repainted them silver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDoherty95 Posted July 13, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2012 I repainted the seat post silver, and also repainted the seat post clamp black.I cleaned the wheels with WD-40. Now they have a nice shine.This seems to be a standard angle for most of the bike pictures I take. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDoherty95 Posted July 13, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2012 I was looking through pictures I took at Christmas earlier, and came across these pictures of the bike in it's pre restoration condition.Looking at these pictures and comparing them to the current pictures it's hard to believe that it's the same bike. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDoherty95 Posted July 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 14, 2012 Unfortunately I've run out of time on this build. I'm going away on holidays tomorrow for a month, and I don't think I can bring this bike with me. It's pretty annoying, since I only need to put a new set of cranks and pedals on it, and a slight gear tune up. My dad isn't going away with the rest of my family tomorrow. He's coming up next weekend. This means I might drop it down to the local bike shop and have the pedals and cranks professionally rebuilt. The owner and I have a good relationship. My dad and brother bought their bikes from him, and I've sold him and helped him source some hard to get parts that he needed for his own bikes. Anyway here are a few pictures of the bike in it's current state.I added the pedal and crank and cogs on the right hand side to give y'all an idea of what the finished bike will look like.The whole front end (wheel, handlebars, suspension,grips,brake and gear shifters) is from the black bike from a few posts ago. The back wheel is also from that bike as is the gears, brakes, pedals and cranks. The saddle and seat post are the only original parts from the old bike. It's essentially a brand new bike that cost less than $50. It's weird to think that my brother paid eight times as much for his new mountain bike two weeks ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CARLOS-ARGENTINO Posted July 15, 2012 Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 Congratulations, your bike looks really new. Wish you enjoy it a lot in the mountains.Very happy holidays!!Until the turn.Embrace. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDoherty95 Posted August 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 18, 2012 It's been a while but I've been slowly tidying up all the loose ends on this bike. Hoss kindly designed reproduction graphics for the bike, and they're due to arrive around Wednesday of next week. I added another Raleigh badge on the top bar of the frame near the handlebars.And on a different note. While I was away I cycled home at sunset a few times, and just happened to snap this picture which I'm sure some of y'all will appreciate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDoherty95 Posted August 20, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 20, 2012 I got the graphics in the mail earlier today. They turned out better than I expected. I didn't get a chance to put them on yet, because I was busy selling and scrapping bikes. Hopefully I'll get a chance to put them on tomorrow.I also managed to find some rare Raleigh tires that came with the bike when I first bought it.The guy I got them from didn't realize their value, and gave them to me in exchange for two sets of handlebars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDoherty95 Posted August 24, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 24, 2012 I finally got everything assembled. The majority of the decals worked out perfectly. One of the raleigh decals didn't stick, so I'll just order another sticker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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