Well, it depends entirely what you mean by value. The high-end Raleighs, which I define as those made from 531 DB, namely Team Pro, Pro, International, Competition, Super Tourer, and Grand Sport, were admittedly inconsistent in the quality of their brazing and finish. There were some very nicely finished one and some pretty crude ones within the same model.
But on the other hand, Raleigh often offerred bikes with 531 DB tubing and top quality components at a price that was more attractive than available elsewhere, especially in the US market, where there were far fewer quality lightweight options than in UK or Europe.
As an outsider looking in, their seems to have been a multi-tiered pantheon of British makers, with the divine like Gillott and Ephgrave, the near-divine like Cooper and Jack Taylor, the blessed like Witcombe and Woodrup, the somewhat distingusihed like Bob Jackson and maybe Kitching, and the ubiquitious, mainly Raleigh. Raleigh produced al lot more, even a lot more high end that the others, with admittedly less individual attention than the more exhalted brands, but at a lower price with comparable tubing and equipment. And, their chartreuse green aside, many of the Raleighs had rather attractive graphics.
Now, reading the postings of our UK members who were riding In The Day, I get the impression that avid British racers and clubmen somewhat distained Raleigh and felt it worth the extra price to purchase a frame from a more highly regarded low volume builder. So in the UK, the market for high end Raleighs may have been among relative neophytes. But the US market was a different matter. The frames a UK clubman might seek out and equip for only slightly more than a comparable Raleigh were mostly unavailable and indeed unknown in the US, while Raleigh had a width of distribution and name recognition second only to Schwinn. So in the US, Raleigh compared favorably to msot of the competition.
Regards,
Jerry Moos Big Spring, Texas ,USA
dean 53x13 <dpcowboy54@yahoo.com> wrote: I know there is a certain appeal to these old Raleigh Pro and International frames, but really, people, and I know this is MY OPINION only, which may not be worth much...but they are not a good value. These bikes were pretty poorly brazed....I worked in Raleigh shops for years as a teenager and college student, and we had a lot of bad ones. They rode okay, but on the stiff and dull side, at least IMHO. Just two cents. Dean Patterson Alpine, CA USA
Peter Naiman wrote: Jack; I was cruising the web doing my usual Hetchin's search and noticed the advert which I think you're referring to. Below is the URL to the advert on Craigslist.
http://boston.craigslist.org/
I called as well and if the bike is mint why the seller using a stock photo on Craigslist, and willing to email photos. He might be honest, but seems a bit fishy. Plus the advert has been around for a while. The only way to buy is if you know someone close by who could check out the bike and purchase it for you. My thoughts !!
Peter Naiman Milwaukee, WI USA
Jackson Kokeny wrote: Careful with this one. If the fluctuation in model year and list price isn't enough of a red flag, I offered the guy $700 (this was on the 1974 $1,000 version from a few weeks ago). He accepted and I haven't heard from him since. Could be he's just playing the market or could be he's collecting numbers (*no emails*) for his boss at for 24 Hour Fitness. In any case, I'm not touching it, but I did manage to get a few fuzzy photos of it if anyone else wants to have a go. Hit me up off list and I'll share the pics. Other than some hideous bar tape (which I ironically just replaced on my non-mint '74), it does appear to be a nice mount.
Jackson Kokeny Aspen CO USA
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Dean Patterson Alpine, CA, USA DPCowboy
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