O.K. ,
So the experts would say that I paid a couple of bucks too much , 'cause it's not really completely historically accurate ( and it needs a good deal of washing and polishing and waxing ) .
But , looking at what you can buy brand new today , it's a huge bargain .
And , through several bizarre coincidences , the few parts on it which happen to be totally-incorrect , WRONG , "oh-how-could-you-do-that??" , "what-a-terrible-mistake!!" - also just happen to be , just exactly the Schwinn parts I'm looking for . . . for another bicycle .
And the "oh-we-wish-you-hadn't-done-that" drilling of the front fork crown , to allow for the fitment of a front brake , despite being historically incorrect , and a terrible mistake , is , just what I'm looking for . I want a front brake , 'cause I'm gonna ride it on the streets , thank you very much .
And , it's the very largest ( and maybe the rarest ) frame size , which , for a genuine serious track racing bicycle , is really too big for me . But , it happens to be just exactly my perfect size for a real bicycle to be ridden on real streets .
So , it's perfect for me !
If I can find a few parts to build it up with , I'll finally have a nice , almost-modern , but lovely vintage-looking , fixed-gear , pedigreed , racing bicycle , to ride around on !
So , is it really a 1973 bicycle , as the seller ( supposedly the 3rd owner ) , has told me over the telephone ?
The photos in the old catalogs make it a definite 1974 .
hmmmmm . . . So , this morning , I finally got around to researching what little has been published by the experts , on the Internet , about Raleigh serial numbers . The best known source ? Why of course :
http://retroraleighs.com/
When I finally arrived at the pertinent information relating to mine , I was literally doubled over , laughing out loud .
My cardio-aerobic exercise for the morning .
Surely , this system could only have arisen in England .
The serial number on the Raleigh bicycle in question is :
WK 4002456
And it also features a really large cut-out in the bottom bracket shell , " C C " .
Since the genuine racing bicycles were not made in the main Raleigh factory , but instead were made in the former Carlton shop ( bought out by Raleigh years before ) that " C C " was the last remaining trace of the fine old Carlton Cycles name .
Since the Carlton facilities were located in the town of Worksop , England , that " WK" at the front of the serial number also makes perfect sense .
Ahhhhh , but no , I'm wrong .
The first letter , W , indeed stood for the Carlton workshop in Worksop ( if that's not too confusing ) .
The second letter stood for , and here I quote the truly World renown , Mr. Sheldon Brown :
" In 1972, an entirely different numbering system was introduced for the higher end (531 and subsequently 753) Raleighs. Serial numbers should begin with a "W", which stands for Worksop, the facility which produced these frames. This is followed by another alphabet. This alphabet indicates the fortnight in which the frame was built (i.e. A = 1st fortnight, B = 2nd, etc.). The third character is always a numeral. It indicates the year of manufacture, the decade being assumed (i.e. "4" could be '74 or '84; it is up to the interpreter to know enough to tell if the frame is from the 70's or 80's). What then follows is a series of numbers. At this point, these appear to be some sort of sequence, but this has not been substantiated. "
Oh .
Oh , sure , fine .
Counting FORTNIGHTS ??
sigh . . .
Well , another Raleigh serial number system used numbered days of the year , starting at the beginning of the year , 001 through 365 . Let's see , divide by 30.62 or some such to find out what month . . .
Anyway , back to mine .
The letter K is the 11th letter of the alphabet . Which means it was produced during the 11th fortnight .
Let's see , uhhhhhmmmmm , that would be weeks numbers 21 & 22 of the year .
"Googling" for a perpetual calendar takes me to a site :
And the particular perpetual calendar which applies to 1974 is :
http://www.vpcalendar.net/
O.K. !
My Raleigh Pro. Track was made sometime between 12 May 1974 , and , 25 May 1974 .
Darn ! I just missed its birthday !
Hey , what sign does that make it born under ?
( well probably a really-big Raleigh sign . . . )
But , now I do know for sure that it's a 1974 .
It's a silly World .
And I'm just one more silly person in it .
: ^ )
Raoul Delmare
Marysville Kansas
U.S.A.