I also seem to remember that the white model was made for a German based pro team, and the B/R/G/ panel was to ID it as the national color for them.
Believe it was Wolfgang Gronen who did that.
Ted ernst
Palos Verdes Estates
CA USA
On Dec 31, 2010, at 11:58 PM, verktyg wrote:
> George,
>
> I'm far from being any kind of Raleigh expert but in Sheldon (RIP) Brown's "A Chronology of Models" page of his Retro Raleighs website, he listed 1966 as the year the Professional was introduced.
>
> http://www.sheldonbrown.com/
>
> The 1977 Raleigh Professional was a departure from the previous year's models. The 77s had brazed on oval seat stay caps instead of the shot in fast back design. They also changed the fork crown from full slopping to a semi-slopping style to fit the newer Continental Oval fork blades.
>
> The 1977 Professionals came in Mink Blue/Silver 2 tone paint. We sold a few of those. The 1978 seemed to be the same bike except it came in solid Steel Blue colour.
>
> The 1979 Raleigh Professional is listed in the spec sheet as Steel Blue but the bike pictured in the 1979 catalog is the older Mink Blue and Silver colour.
>
> http://www.jaysmarine.com/
>
> The 1981 Raleigh Catalog lists the MK V Professional in Steel Blue but the bike pictured on page 4 of that catalog is Mink Blue and Silver.
>
> http://www.jaysmarine.com/
>
> 1981 seems to be the end of the line for the Professional as the 1982 Raleigh UK catalog list the Team Replica 12 as the top of the line model.
>
> Happy New Year
>
> Chas. Colerich
> Oakland, CA USA
>
> Strickler, George M wrote:
>> All this talk about the colors of Pros (What did they mean by "mink"?) got me wondering how long the Pro that we are talking about was made. Mr. Baylis specifies 1976 as the last year in the color sequence. Was that the last year they were made? I know that Raleigh subsequently sold a "Team Pro" which was Red, Yellow and Black and, if I remember correctly, was an entirely different bike from the earlier Pro's. George Strickler
>> New Orleans, La.