1973 Raleigh International - last one.

I found a price list that Raleigh sent to dealers online; you can see that the bike I recently added to my collection retailed for $350. This is interesting to look at because of what the bike was; it was a hand brazed, high end example of the framebuilder's art, built in what remined of a small shop that had been swallowed up by a giant company that was at it's height, but soon to come upon hard times. The components on the bike were the best in their day, but their time on the top of the heap was limited; Japanese component manufacturers like Shimano and SunTour were nipping at their heels by building quality parts that funcioned well and were much cheaper than Euro components, thus lowering the price of dependable cycling for the masses. 

This list is confidential, so be cool.

1973 was the very heart of the bike boom with 15 million bikes sold that year - and in 1973 more and more  of those bikes were wearing Shimano and Suntour gear than Campagnolo. Campy was the ne plus ultra - but Shimano Dura Ace/Crane was nearly as beautiful, and certainly as functional, but most importantly were available. Euro component manufacturers were overwhelmed by the demands of the boom, and that gave the Japanese companies a toe hold in the market - one that soon turned to dominance. 

 Hubbard's 1973 Schwinn World, complete Crane/Dura Ace. Hub has short legs.

So in a way, the Raleigh is very representative of the end of European dominance in cycling manufacture - within 6 years of the 1973 International's release, Raleigh was reorganized and partially owned by Huffy, no longer the great company it once was, riding the fumes of it's good name. Campagnolo released a new group in 1973, but wouldn't release a new gruppo for another decade - while the Japanese quality continued to get better even as costs continued to fall. The two Japanese giants Suntour and Shimano slugged it out, squeezing a big part of the market away from the european component manufacturers - through lower prices and innovation. The International heralded the end of an era, though no one knew it at the time.

1973 Raleigh International with complete Campagnolo gruppo.

This will be the last post about this bike for a while - I know you are all bored with this crappy old green 10 speed. Not too long ago I took a "Tour De Garland" through my old stomping grounds, and I finally found the photos I took on the ride. The ride was fun, if a little bittersweet, but I'll finish that post soon.  

American Picker? Piker!

So after I made my Home Depot trip, with the bike in the back of the car, I then had to go home and work on the laundry room. My find sat in the back of my Jeep until about nine o'clock, when I was able to pull it out and spend some quality time examining my new purchase and learning about it; so I can tell you something about it.

Before I tell you any more about my ride, let me tell you about my collecting sickness; I don't just get as many as I can when I collect something, I make a list of what I want my collection to represent, or what things I'd like to have in my collection in order to make it whole. That's not to say I am disciplined when it comes to collecting; I'll buy lots of stuff I regret buying during my learning phase, but that buying helps me to learn about what I want my core collection to be. I've done it with books, baseball cards, coins, and anything else I have collected. I have a lot of bikes now (as you have seen if you read this with any regularity) and most of the bikes on my "list" are covered, with the exception of some "dream" bikes; a bike from the year I was born, a  bike with a full  Campy group, and a frame with fancy chrome lugs or a chrome frame.

This bike, with one fell swoop, pretty much finishes out my collection. It's a 1973 Raleigh
International equipped with a full Campagnolo group and special one year only chromed
"Capella" lugs. In 1973 this was a $350 dollar bike, in a time when the average joe made $90 -
$100 a week. Today these bikes (and the gruppo hanging off of them) are
highly sought by enthusiasts, and are often considered "grail" bikes because they
are hard to find and have all of these great attributes, and are fairly rare. My International has seen better days, but it is a survivor, and I like all of the scars it's acquired over the years. The guy I bought it from said he bought it from "an old man" - I assume that the old guy bought it new, rode it, let his kids and grandkids ride it, and then just saw it as some old bike to sell to the day laborer.

I  see it as a treasure.

Clicky for Big 

 I rewrapped the bars with cloth

Chrome stays and Campagnolo NR 

I found a very dry Brooks Pro underneath the cover

You can see some of the scrapes the bike has sustained over the years - one of the brake hoods was cut to facilitate a mirror, and you can see the considerable chips on the top tube. The above photos were taken after I cleaned the bike up - while it is a little beat up, it's the same age I am, and I'm not exactly minty fresh anymore. Just like this special old bike, I have my share of scars, and I wear them proudly. I will write more about his bike later, but I didn't want to keep you all in suspense anymore.