Don,
I was the high bidder on the second one on Ebay that you mentioned. I made a deal with the seller and it now resides in the basement. It is indeed a nearly perfect garage queen. It has some nice period upgrades that I was told occurred at the time of purchase. It sports Campy Record pedals with the toe strap loop and the wheels are Campy small flange Record laced to old logo Fiamme red label rims, and the labels are nearly perfect. I'm not sure it is original but it also has a beautiful Simplex seatpost. I probably overpaid a little but it it is in fantastic shape, it has some nice upgrades and they are, at least, somewhat uncommon. Plus, it was always the missing piece of my mid-1970's higher-end Raleigh collection. However, I may steal the wheels for my 1974 Cinelli. They are absolutely correct for the Cinelli and I can always find another set that would be appropriate for the RRA.
George Allen Lexington, Kentucky USA
donald gillies wrote:
>The presence of a 'CC' on the BB shell indicates it was made by carlton,
>i.e. in Worksop, england. The 'CC' is normally made by a punch that
>would only be present at the Carlton shop.
>
>I captured the last 2 RRA full-bike auctions from ebay. The 1st was a
>garage queen owned by the wife of a west coast bike distributor, a
>friend of someone here in san diego that I know. This guy I know also
>has an RRA, with slight top-tube damage. Anyway, the wife-bike sold
>for about $1100, and was in mint condition (no decal damage). I can
>provide pix if you are interested, they're in my screensaver.
>
>The other RRA auction was about 1-3 months ago, I remember the price
>ended up at $1050-$1150 somewhere, and IT DID NOT MEET RESERVE. That
>one too was in mint condition. Both were 22.5" bikes.
>
>This one is imho a bargain, there is some wear on it, but the rarity
>(200 made) and story (from my ride-mate 3 weeks ago : (a) Raleigh used
>this model to threaten campagnolo which was becoming squirrelly about
>parts supply, and (b) This bike was also given to a team that was
>supposed to ride 'stock' manufacturer bikes, so Raleigh was forced to
>make and distribute a certain number (200) so the team could qualify
>for its race(s).)
>
>My friend says his RRA is an awesome ride and to get it, you'll have
>to pry it from his cold dead fingers ... :-) :-)
>
>- Don Gillies
>San Diego, CA
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>
>
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