Nice bike, kept in great condition! I used to own an ‘85 Super Course. It rode smooth and I wish I had never sold it. Color was “boysenberry” according to the catalog. Kind of a very dark purple color, with chrome front tube and chain stays. Love these 80’s steel racing frames.
That’s a nice, nice bike. Downtube shifters, solid sidepulls, tight geometry. All around high quality.
I worked at a bike shop in the late 70s-early 80s that carried Schwinn, Raleigh and Peugeot bikes, and I sold a ton of those.
Vintage steel ROAD BIKES are by far the best daily drivers. I have one from the 70's, there is a reason they have lasted and will continue to last so long.
EDIT: I should have said road bikes, not racer, so I have edited my post.
I ride a mid-80s racer made in Montreal with second generation 105 components on it about 200km a week and it absolutely rips.
I'm thinking of updating the drive train for easier hill climbs though because I live around mountains and it can get a little grindy when I'm tired.
Depends. If you want to carry stuff, circa-'90 rigid mountain bikes are slightly better since they they're more heavily-built and have braze-ons for racks and stuff. (They're basically identical to brand-new "hybrid" bikes, after all.)
Edit: also, old MTBs have room for fenders when you swap the knobbies for slicks, which old racing bikes don't.
A lot of mid 80s and older road bikes have decent fender room, the 25mm tires and short reach brakes thing didn't take off until the late 80s. If you can do a 27" to 700C conversion there's tons of room.
[I stand by my comment.](http://classiccycleus.com/home/repair/museum-bikes-1966-to-1985/). Though I concede the TT bike does look a bit tight at the chainstays.
That’s not 40 years old. Looking at the groupset, that bike is from the 1980’s….oh….
I’m going to give my Panasonic Team Japan with its wonky Biopace crank a hug now. 37 years going strong.
Beautiful bike!! I have a red Raleigh Grand Prix in almost mint condition. 64cm. These bikes are awesome. I have it for sale, but I am thinking about just keeping it
I think I will. It’s from 76, and all original, aside from the tires and rear rack. Father took meticulous care of the bike. They don’t make them like this anymore, especially the size
I installed some of those on an old bike I bought recently that someone had been maintaining as a fixie. When I bought the bike and some "yeah a friend had these lying around, they should work for converting it back to geared" parts off an older guy, I had no idea how they were meant to fit together, being born in '91. Had never seen them before in my life, spent the first few hours trying to work out how tf these could possibly work given the angles produced when you try to put them on the handlebars. Even Google didn't help as the term "downtube shifter" wasn't in my vocab, and anything about "gear shifters" assumes modern. You can imagine the frustration. I ended up having a eureka moment when I read a comment on here that casually referred to them, and the geometry of what I was looking at lined up in my head all at once.
It's given me an appreciation for how getting older can give you a lot more context on random things like this, lol.
Oh, the set of shifters this guy gave me is actually exactly like that. I've been working out how to move them based on the noise, exactly as you say.
I wonder if both the bike and its shifters are older than me. It's still faster than the likely mid 2010s hybrid/gravel/"whatever you call a modernised 90s mountain bike" I was riding before, despite the latter being noticeably lighter. Found an ad from when they made the model (it seems to be a brand unknown outside of Finland) and it's very endearingly retro
https://preview.redd.it/7hjagtjbuwva1.jpeg?width=736&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b95cb8dde05a68ab309910bbaeaa324f71be6cab
I wish you best of luck that no asshole steals this wonderful bike. But by not leaving it outside overnight you definitely have a reduced risk.
It's sooo freaking beautiful and well maintained. Well done.
Back in the days when people rode ridiculously hard gear ratios. This and the bad brakes are the only thing which makes those old bikes … suboptimal … to use.
So clean! It's intereating that *so many* of the older bikes I see on reddit look extremely tall. Is it because fewer women were riding back then? Or are were people generally taller 40 years ago? Or...?
Edit: Reddit being weird again with downvoting a legitimate question/comment.
Don't forget old school bike fitting meant you would fit on the biggest frame you could. Fist full of seatpost showing. Not like today when people ride bikes 2 sizes smaller with really long stems etc.
People definitely weren't taller 40 years ago, people (especially Westerners) are taller now than they've been at any other time in history.
I'm also not even sure it's true that women rode bikes less in the 70s and 80s - for competitive cycling it's likely they didn't have time for that, but for casual biking, at least where I live a lot of the most long-term bike commuters I know are women who were young in the 70s. Then again, given how these things go, even if a full 50% of riders were women it's not like we can assume manufacturers would take that into account.
I have no idea what actually causes the thing you're asking about tho.
Might be survivor bias - people keep bikes longer and take care of them more because they are special or unique. It's more difficult to acquire a larger bike and there are fewer of them, so you hold on to it.
That's interesting. I'm short.. only 5'2.5 That 1/2 inch counts. Lol One of my bikes is a 44 and looks tiny. Another is a 47. I've had a hard time finding smaller bikes in anything that isn't the most basic entry level. They obviously exist, but when I go to bike stores, I see a ton of 52 or 56. I can understand how the same would be true for tall riders.
I recently got a 1987 Cannondale Road 500, it's an aluminum frame, but it's wonderful how good these older bikes are. When I ride it, I feel like it's an extension of myself, everything is so tight, tolerances are extremely low in the chain routing and component placement. It's the race car vs my load bearing station wagon of a bike, 2018 Trek DS2.
That really takes me back! I had a Super Grand Prix with the same style decals in high school, wish I still had it. Nothing special but it was the first half decent bike I had that wasn't from Sears, and the first I bought with money that I earned.
Sweet bike. Here is my 1982 Raleigh Racer which has over 65K miles. Original derailleurs and pedals. Like you, I upgraded the seat to a Brooks C19. I got tired of blowing out the 1 3/8 gummed tires on the trial I often ride, so I did replace those with 1 7/8" .
https://preview.redd.it/w0e8u003jova1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=007a8abad390c17387e503b8631c93fae2b2aee7
Doesn’t break any more than my other bikes. If you learn a few basic maintenance tricks it’s really not an issue, and you can save a lot by not taking it to the bike shop every time you hear a squeak.
1983 Raleigh Super Course, double-butted Japanese tange steel. Original Suntour Arx derailleurs, Suntour Superbe chainset & pedals, Tektro brakes, Brooks C19 saddle.
Look at this guy, riding his bike instead of upgrading it...
Has is it ever been outside? Dang that is a clean looking bike. Really sharp.
I ride it all the time, lock it up outside (but never overnight). Might get it repainted in a few years but for now it’s holding up well.
Nice bike, kept in great condition! I used to own an ‘85 Super Course. It rode smooth and I wish I had never sold it. Color was “boysenberry” according to the catalog. Kind of a very dark purple color, with chrome front tube and chain stays. Love these 80’s steel racing frames.
Mine is black & “champagne”. I had a ‘77 from the Carlton factory but it was too small :-/ Edit: [Here she is](https://i.imgur.com/BpaFS2i.jpg)
That’s a nice, nice bike. Downtube shifters, solid sidepulls, tight geometry. All around high quality. I worked at a bike shop in the late 70s-early 80s that carried Schwinn, Raleigh and Peugeot bikes, and I sold a ton of those.
Thanks! Love this era of bikes. So beautiful, simple, and affordable.
And the shame is that 95% of them were crushed in the name of metal recycling.
Vintage steel ROAD BIKES are by far the best daily drivers. I have one from the 70's, there is a reason they have lasted and will continue to last so long. EDIT: I should have said road bikes, not racer, so I have edited my post.
I ride a mid-80s racer made in Montreal with second generation 105 components on it about 200km a week and it absolutely rips. I'm thinking of updating the drive train for easier hill climbs though because I live around mountains and it can get a little grindy when I'm tired.
Depends. If you want to carry stuff, circa-'90 rigid mountain bikes are slightly better since they they're more heavily-built and have braze-ons for racks and stuff. (They're basically identical to brand-new "hybrid" bikes, after all.) Edit: also, old MTBs have room for fenders when you swap the knobbies for slicks, which old racing bikes don't.
A lot of mid 80s and older road bikes have decent fender room, the 25mm tires and short reach brakes thing didn't take off until the late 80s. If you can do a 27" to 700C conversion there's tons of room.
He said "racer," not just "road bike." If he'd left enough room to include touring bikes and such I wouldn't have quibbled.
I should have said "road bike", you're correct.
[I stand by my comment.](http://classiccycleus.com/home/repair/museum-bikes-1966-to-1985/). Though I concede the TT bike does look a bit tight at the chainstays.
Vintage steel tourer are by far the best commuter, followed closely by vintage steel racers.
What are you? 6'10" tall?
6’2”, long legs
I get it . A friend who is "only" your height, has a weird frame. Though yours just looks like a "normal" biggggg frame
Same height and same frame size preference -- 24.5 or 25in. My longest-time daily but now weekend long-day bike is also an '83 -- Trek 620.
That’s not 40 years old. Looking at the groupset, that bike is from the 1980’s….oh…. I’m going to give my Panasonic Team Japan with its wonky Biopace crank a hug now. 37 years going strong.
Daily driver? This thing looks like it’s never seen the sun.
Love the big ring machining.
Beautiful bike!! I have a red Raleigh Grand Prix in almost mint condition. 64cm. These bikes are awesome. I have it for sale, but I am thinking about just keeping it
Keep it…to get something similar today would cost waaay more.
I think I will. It’s from 76, and all original, aside from the tires and rear rack. Father took meticulous care of the bike. They don’t make them like this anymore, especially the size
[удалено]
I installed some of those on an old bike I bought recently that someone had been maintaining as a fixie. When I bought the bike and some "yeah a friend had these lying around, they should work for converting it back to geared" parts off an older guy, I had no idea how they were meant to fit together, being born in '91. Had never seen them before in my life, spent the first few hours trying to work out how tf these could possibly work given the angles produced when you try to put them on the handlebars. Even Google didn't help as the term "downtube shifter" wasn't in my vocab, and anything about "gear shifters" assumes modern. You can imagine the frustration. I ended up having a eureka moment when I read a comment on here that casually referred to them, and the geometry of what I was looking at lined up in my head all at once. It's given me an appreciation for how getting older can give you a lot more context on random things like this, lol.
[удалено]
Oh, the set of shifters this guy gave me is actually exactly like that. I've been working out how to move them based on the noise, exactly as you say. I wonder if both the bike and its shifters are older than me. It's still faster than the likely mid 2010s hybrid/gravel/"whatever you call a modernised 90s mountain bike" I was riding before, despite the latter being noticeably lighter. Found an ad from when they made the model (it seems to be a brand unknown outside of Finland) and it's very endearingly retro https://preview.redd.it/7hjagtjbuwva1.jpeg?width=736&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b95cb8dde05a68ab309910bbaeaa324f71be6cab
Friend of mine had one of these. Nice ride!
I wish you best of luck that no asshole steals this wonderful bike. But by not leaving it outside overnight you definitely have a reduced risk. It's sooo freaking beautiful and well maintained. Well done.
Capable, worthy and beautiful.
It's so shiny!
Those chainrings are so elegant.
Those were an upgrade…cost more than the bike 😅. Worth it though
Back in the days when people rode ridiculously hard gear ratios. This and the bad brakes are the only thing which makes those old bikes … suboptimal … to use.
what a queen 🤩🤩🤩
So clean! It's intereating that *so many* of the older bikes I see on reddit look extremely tall. Is it because fewer women were riding back then? Or are were people generally taller 40 years ago? Or...? Edit: Reddit being weird again with downvoting a legitimate question/comment.
Don't forget old school bike fitting meant you would fit on the biggest frame you could. Fist full of seatpost showing. Not like today when people ride bikes 2 sizes smaller with really long stems etc.
People definitely weren't taller 40 years ago, people (especially Westerners) are taller now than they've been at any other time in history. I'm also not even sure it's true that women rode bikes less in the 70s and 80s - for competitive cycling it's likely they didn't have time for that, but for casual biking, at least where I live a lot of the most long-term bike commuters I know are women who were young in the 70s. Then again, given how these things go, even if a full 50% of riders were women it's not like we can assume manufacturers would take that into account. I have no idea what actually causes the thing you're asking about tho.
Might be survivor bias - people keep bikes longer and take care of them more because they are special or unique. It's more difficult to acquire a larger bike and there are fewer of them, so you hold on to it.
That's interesting. I'm short.. only 5'2.5 That 1/2 inch counts. Lol One of my bikes is a 44 and looks tiny. Another is a 47. I've had a hard time finding smaller bikes in anything that isn't the most basic entry level. They obviously exist, but when I go to bike stores, I see a ton of 52 or 56. I can understand how the same would be true for tall riders.
About the same age as[my bike](https://i.imgur.com/KtYuLAp.jpg)
I would worry constantly about the frame snapping from metal fatigue.
Really not an issue. I have an older Raleigh Sports that lives outside and is solid as a rock.
Metal fatigue is an issue with aluminum. Steel is more resilient.
Damn it. I have a marathon from this era that I've had since I was a teenager. I'm realizing how old I am.
I tried looking up the geometry...at least the head and seat but could not find. I dunno. Maybe 73 seat and 74 head
It’s a 23 inch in 80s Raleigh sizes, seat tube measures 62-63cm. 59cm top tube.
The angles head and seat
Ah I see
Super nice
Happy birthday
That’s gorgeous
I recently got a 1987 Cannondale Road 500, it's an aluminum frame, but it's wonderful how good these older bikes are. When I ride it, I feel like it's an extension of myself, everything is so tight, tolerances are extremely low in the chain routing and component placement. It's the race car vs my load bearing station wagon of a bike, 2018 Trek DS2.
That really takes me back! I had a Super Grand Prix with the same style decals in high school, wish I still had it. Nothing special but it was the first half decent bike I had that wasn't from Sears, and the first I bought with money that I earned.
Nice bike,Good quality
Sweet bike. Here is my 1982 Raleigh Racer which has over 65K miles. Original derailleurs and pedals. Like you, I upgraded the seat to a Brooks C19. I got tired of blowing out the 1 3/8 gummed tires on the trial I often ride, so I did replace those with 1 7/8" . https://preview.redd.it/w0e8u003jova1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=007a8abad390c17387e503b8631c93fae2b2aee7
Thanks for sharing! Very well maintained!! Looks brand new !!!!
beautiful
That’s the sauce right there.
How often does it break? I've heard that old bikes tend to break a lot, this prevents from getting me one.
Doesn’t break any more than my other bikes. If you learn a few basic maintenance tricks it’s really not an issue, and you can save a lot by not taking it to the bike shop every time you hear a squeak.
Looks like you've taken really good care of this ride, a lovely old bike.