Time machine

[TheGreek]

just sitting on this is likely to take you back 40 years...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/RALEIGH-CHOPPER-BARN-FIND-RETRO-CLASSIC-CONSERVATION-FIXIE-ELECTRIC-CONVERSION/222869627658?hash=item33e410a30a:g:FBEAAOSw8W5aZkW7

[spectoremg]

It's an original with adjustable handlebar angle. This was quite quickly deemed dangerous by Raleigh and subsequent models had the joint welded.

[Bassassin]

It's not - it's a (fairly) recent reissue. Two-part seat, no stick shift, alloy cranks. Ain't no Mark One.

The idea of some hipster converting this into a fixie is genuinely hilarious, though.

[fleabag]

I never had one. Are they some kind of big deal ?

[BreadBin]

They were terrible 

[Bassassin]

21 minutes ago, fleabag said:

I never had one. Are they some kind of big deal ?

If you were 12 in 1974, perhaps.

But not if you were a snotty little road bike snob, like I am I mean was.

Real ones in good condition (the proper 70s death traps) go for seriously stupid money these days.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/raleigh-chopper-mk1/183147735002

[TheGreek]

£800+???

One of the kids who lived in the next street (ex GF's bro actually) had a purple/mauve 5 speed, yes I know...never seen one of those before....we always said it would be worth some money one day. I wonder how much it would sell for...

http://hawx.co.uk/chopper/homepage.ntlworld.com/catfoodrob/choppers/models/pnk.html

 

[BigRedX]

I never saw the attraction either. 

I had a friend in the early 70s (when we were 10/11) who must have had one of the original versions. He looked like a complete idiot wobbling about on his brand new Raleigh Chopper and was the only person in our year who failed his Cycling Proficiency Test due to him not being in adequate control of his bicycle. Also the big fat tyres were rather prone to getting punctures compared with other designs and as a result we tended not to ask him out when we zoomed around the neighbourhood on our bikes as inevitably he'd slow us down when his tyres became defaulted and we'd end up having to help him carry his heavy and ridiculous excuse for a bicycle back home.

[ahpook]

5 hours ago, BreadBin said:

They were terrible 

Absolutely. 

[Frank Blank]

4 hours ago, TheGreek said:

£800+???

One of the kids who lived in the next street (ex GF's bro actually) had a purple/mauve 5 speed, yes I know...never seen one of those before....we always said it would be worth some money one day. I wonder how much it would sell for...

http://hawx.co.uk/chopper/homepage.ntlworld.com/catfoodrob/choppers/models/pnk.html

 

A mate of mine had one of these and I was beyond jealous.

[ped]

‘Twas all about the Wildcat bike when I was a young pedlet. Built in sound effects, probably my first synth. 

 

[yorks5stringer]

When we were lads( on the penny farthing) we had sound effects too...piece of cardboard and a clothes pegs to attach it to the frame so it touched the spokes...

[Frank Blank]

54 minutes ago, yorks5stringer said:

When we were lads( on the penny farthing) we had sound effects too...piece of cardboard and a clothes pegs to attach it to the frame so it touched the spokes...

Oh lord, playing cards in the spokes held on by pegs, I miss that.

[TheGreek]

1 hour ago, yorks5stringer said:

When we were lads( on the penny farthing) we had sound effects too...piece of cardboard and a clothes pegs to attach it to the frame so it touched the spokes...

Remember it well...

[prowla]

I liked them back when I was a kid.

 

I think there was an issue with the original one with the high-back seat, so a revised version was brought out without the backrest.

[Bassassin]

Dunno how come I know anything about these as I found them ridiculous even when I was a kid - but the problem with the original was the straight/vertical seat-stays, which made them highly unstable & prone to tipping over backwards! Subsequent ones had a bend in the seat stays, presumably to move the rider's weight far enough forward to make this less of an issue.

Of course the comical banana seat meant riders all gave their mates backies, leading to double the brain damage when the whole lot fell over backwards. Probably explains a thing or two. Anyway, that's why the reissues (like the one in the OP link) had single seats with fake sissy bar backrests. Also had a conventional handlebar gear change for the preservation of genitalia.