The Raleigh Chopper Sprint GT.
There are not many words which can describe this bike. Like a UFO, especially when it dropped in 1972. The Chopper had been around for 3 years already, with the Mk1 finished in production. 1972 saw the first of the Mk2s being released, but this was so out of the ordinary. Maybe too much, Raleigh dealers often fitted standard ape hanger bars in order to sell these bikes. They rolled off the production line with many different parts to the average Mk2. For example, taller but skinner front wheel and tyre, slick rear tyre, taller frame at the tube area, short reflector pedals, banana saddle and not to mention the elephant in the room: the drop bars. The Sprint GT was only produced for one year. This bike is a very early one, dating to June 1972, therefore it features a stainless steel spoke protector which was used on the Mk1s.
I was lucky enough to purchase this beloved bike off the first and only owner from new. His parents bought it for him brand new in 1972 and as the usual story goes, it was used for a few years until he grew out of it and then stored at the back of the shed until the end of time. In this instance, 1975-2025. It had stayed static in a damp shed for 50 years! Not good, but surprisingly better than most. The chrome work was very bad upon first inspection. Both front and rear rims were beyond economical repair and needed replacements or re chroming. The spokes were bent and spray painted silver on both wheels. It seemed that the bottom half of the bike was significantly worse than the top! The frame set and chain guard however were very good original condition. This in effect is a blank canvas and would make for a fantastic clean up job. To add to the great story that this bike retains, it also has the postcode of the first owners house engraved in the bottom bracket. This was part of the coded cycle scheme. It certainly did the job as it never got stolen!
I began by stripping the bike to a bare frame. Everything came off okay until I got to the cotter pins and sissy bar. I had to be really persistent with both. Eventually after 2 weeks of soaking the sissy bar in penetrative oil and twisting it for a couple of hours every evening, it came out! I was very glad as the Sprint GT sissy is different length to the other Choppers and quite hard to find! The cotter pins however were a real pain and I eventually took it to my friends bicycle shop where he got them out with about 10 hands!
Once stripped down, I cleaned the frame very gently, making sure that the decals remained stuck to the frame. I just wanted to get rid of all the grease and dirt. I then took some fast cut compound to the frame to get shot of the oxidised paint and after that, super resin polish to give the bike a brilliant shine that you can see from it!
As mentioned earlier, the wheels were very far gone. In the end I purchased an original front and rear rim from a good friend of mine, as well as new spokes and rear spoked the wheels. As you can tell, they look phenomenal and still retain all original parts. Rather than re-chroming, this means the bike is all original chrome! I also rebuilt the Sturmey Archer 3 speed gear hub and replaced the perished bar tape. After that, I found a good original early Mk2 seat strap and new period tyres and chain to finish the bike off! It didn’t have many replacement parts. 80% of the components haven’t been changed over, just cleaned to perfection! I completed the rebuild from start to finish in just over a month. That includes working on it every evening for a couple of hours but the time and effort was sure worth it. It now remains in my personal collection and will not be for sale. I have simply put so much love and due care into it that I have a sentimental attachment to it now!
