I've been meaning to get this back for years, but yesterday I went up to my parents house in South Shields and collected my old Raleigh Grifter XL. I got this bike as a present on Christmas Day 1981. Loved it. It was a sort of early BMX, but was way too heavy to be ridden like one. Great bike in their day, they were made between 1976 and 1983.
I was actually surprised at how decent it looked after 30 years of sitting motionless in the same place. First pic of it after it's 'rescue'...
and first sit on it after 30 years or so...
Got it home....
First thing was to see if the tyres would hold air. Amazingly, despite the tyres being a bit cracked, they do still hold the air...
Abit of a clean....
Proof of age is stamped on the hub...1981...
Amazingly, after it's wash, some air in the tyres and a touch of oil on the chain, an hour after being sat motionless for 30 years, it was up and running again......
It's strange looking at the Grifter, not having seen it for 30 years. I think a good one like this is probably worth about £150, which I suppose is decent money, but I don't really have any plans to sell it.
I was actually surprised at how decent it looked after 30 years of sitting motionless in the same place. First pic of it after it's 'rescue'...
and first sit on it after 30 years or so...
Got it home....
First thing was to see if the tyres would hold air. Amazingly, despite the tyres being a bit cracked, they do still hold the air...
Abit of a clean....
Proof of age is stamped on the hub...1981...
Amazingly, after it's wash, some air in the tyres and a touch of oil on the chain, an hour after being sat motionless for 30 years, it was up and running again......
It's strange looking at the Grifter, not having seen it for 30 years. I think a good one like this is probably worth about £150, which I suppose is decent money, but I don't really have any plans to sell it.
