Mike, I read your post with great interest and hope that you can answer a question that has bugged me for years. I would like to know what the brazing sequence of tubes was at the Ilkeston shop when making 753 frames. I asked this very question to someone (probably you) when I visited there in September of 1978 but got the answer scared out of me by the big boss Gerald O'Donovan. I am still dying to know although now the answer is just a matter of curiosity. This is the story.
753 tubing had been out a little while and to be able to use it, framebuilders had to pass a proficiency test of building a frame with it. I heard that it was difficult to pass and I didn't want to fail so I wanted to gather all the information that I could and the Ilkeston shop seemed like a great place to find out what to do right. I had an opportunity to pass through England and after visiting where I learned to build frames at Ellis Briggs a few years before and the doctor family I stayed with in the small village of Esholt, I called Gerald and asked if I could pay a visit to the Raleigh workshop. We made an appointment for the next day late morning. As I was driving south from Esholt looking at my watch to make sure I got there on time, I suddenly realized that I forgot my US passport back at the Doc's house. I had no alternative but to turn around and go back since I was to continue south to London to fly out. By now I was south of Bradford and 45 minutes away from my start. This made me extremely irritated at myself since I don't like to be late to appointments and I really wanted to make a good impression on Mr. O'Donovan so he would be willing to share information.
Of course I got there too late and when I went into the offices everyone was gone, completely empty. He had left for lunch. I could have walked off with anything. Not wanting to wait without company, I went to the next building where the frames were being made. I asked who the shop manager was (you?) and told him who I was and that I wanted to see how they made frames there. Everyone was just so nice and I asked a lot of questions, took a lot of pictures (which I still have) and was enjoying the experience immensely for about 45 minutes until suddenly the boss himself came through the door and the atmosphere changed immediately. "Get the hell out of here" Gerald bellowed and I meekly left (but without any remorse and pleased with the success of getting in there). I didn't want to defend myself by saying I asked permission to be there because I didn't want to get the manager in trouble for saying it was okay to be there. I met him back in his office and he apologized for being rude but said it was his job to protect information. He could have asked nicely and I would have left just as fast but never mind. We chatted for a bit and he said at his age he could still turn a 1 hour 25. I was skeptical because he looked like he was in his 50's and overweight but expressing skepticism didn't seem in my best interests right then.
Anyway, you or someone there did answer this question of brazing sequence but after my confrontation with Mr. O'Donovan, he scared the information right out of me and I couldn't remember exactly what was said. I would be pleased beyond measure to know this and hope you do remember. By chance do you remember me visiting there? I was 5'8" and 120/25 lbs., wore glasses and have blond hair.
Thank you, Doug Fattic Niles, Michigan
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Dating Raleighs from Ilkeston is proving a hot topic. Ilkeston started in 1974 and got under way in 1975. The factory was previously owned by Rolls Royce at Derby, and Gerald O'Donovan moved down from Ilkeston the set up the unit.
Ilkeston turned out approx 700 frames a year and the SB prefix of the frame number stood for "Special Bicycle". The unit was known as Special Bicycle Development Department which was printed on a small decal on the left hand chainstay, hence the SB prefix to the frame numbers. It employed approx 12 craftsmen handbuilding the frames.
The deep blue framesets which should have a black head tube and seat panel and a Raleigh self adhesive decal as opposed to the metal head badge were originally created in 1976/7 for the BSA Midlet pro team, but the colour scheme proved very popular and was available to special order. As far as frame numbers go: January 1976 started at approx 500; 1979 at approx 2800; 1980 at 3500 and 1981 at approx 4100. The SB 4074 mentioned by Peter Kohler seems very suspect for 1978!
The DT bottle bosses mentioned in one of the posts were indeed lever bosses but were discontinued after a short while. The original 753 tubing was initially only available in metric sizes 26mm TT, 28mm DT, 28mm ST and 32mm HT) and had 2 code numbers, 801 and 803. The 801 was the lighter of the 2 and took a 27mm seat pin whilst the 803 required a 26.8 seat pin. As the tubing was metric the franch manufactured RGF BB shells were use. The change to Cinelli together with the Cinelli fork crown came about 1979. Certainly all the team bikes for the 1980 TDF were Cinelli equipped.
My Team Raleigh was built in the summer of 1979 for the Harrogate show, by me. It is now in my store room together with all the original Campag SR kit and Mavic Service de Course black rims.
Mike Mullett. Workshop Manager, Ilkeston 1978 to 1981
------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------- Mike Mullett IT Tutor Thames Valley University (0118) 901 5216
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