Chopper re release and special edition
Discussion
Apologies if a repost, but treated myself to the re released chopper, bought the 1 of 400 limited edition as it's the same price as the halfords one but better equipped. Always wanted an original chopper but they are way too expensive, 250 quid is justifiable IMHO.
http://www.velorution.com/raleigh-chopper/
http://www.velorution.com/raleigh-chopper/
chrisxr2 said:
I suspect the seat and gears have been banned due to hse, I believe raleigh wanted closer to original but where stopped. Banana seat should be an easy swap hopefully.
Unlikely I think. I'm not sure of any regs relating to bikes which would result in the seat being an issue, I think it's far more likely to have been a cost issue to hit a price point without having to tool up for the seat. It probably ships in a smaller box as a result as well. jamiebae said:
chrisxr2 said:
I suspect the seat and gears have been banned due to hse, I believe raleigh wanted closer to original but where stopped. Banana seat should be an easy swap hopefully.
Unlikely I think. I'm not sure of any regs relating to bikes which would result in the seat being an issue, I think it's far more likely to have been a cost issue to hit a price point without having to tool up for the seat. It probably ships in a smaller box as a result as well. A new version of the Chopper, the Mk 3, was launched in 2004, after being out of production for almost 25 years. The Mk3, in deference to modern safety concerns, adopts a more conventional saddle design to discourage "backies", and has dropped the groin-catching gear lever in favour of handlebar mounted gear controls; to commemorate this former feature the Mk 3 has a sticker where the lever once was. The frame is made from aluminium alloy tubing, rather than the originals' steel, to make the bicycle lighter. The wheels are again 20 inches for the back wheel and 16 for the front wheel.
Not sure my spectacles are as rose tinted as all of yours 
.
Admittedly it was the 80's for me, but I recall they were a bit rubbish. All of the kids I knew who had Choppers wanted Burners, and none of us who had Burners wanted Choppers
.
BMX was where it was at in the 80's. Choppers and Grifters were too unwieldy or too heavy.
.Admittedly it was the 80's for me, but I recall they were a bit rubbish. All of the kids I knew who had Choppers wanted Burners, and none of us who had Burners wanted Choppers
.BMX was where it was at in the 80's. Choppers and Grifters were too unwieldy or too heavy.
neilbauer said:
Wikipedia says different,
A new version of the Chopper, the Mk 3, was launched in 2004, after being out of production for almost 25 years. The Mk3, in deference to modern safety concerns, adopts a more conventional saddle design to discourage "backies", and has dropped the groin-catching gear lever in favour of handlebar mounted gear controls; to commemorate this former feature the Mk 3 has a sticker where the lever once was. The frame is made from aluminium alloy tubing, rather than the originals' steel, to make the bicycle lighter. The wheels are again 20 inches for the back wheel and 16 for the front wheel.
I'm standing by my view it was done for cost not safety. Both features would mean tooling up specific components for the bike, but by replacing them with off the peg bits they save a fortune. Having spent many years doing PR that smells like an entry written by Raleigh's PR bods to justify their cost saving.A new version of the Chopper, the Mk 3, was launched in 2004, after being out of production for almost 25 years. The Mk3, in deference to modern safety concerns, adopts a more conventional saddle design to discourage "backies", and has dropped the groin-catching gear lever in favour of handlebar mounted gear controls; to commemorate this former feature the Mk 3 has a sticker where the lever once was. The frame is made from aluminium alloy tubing, rather than the originals' steel, to make the bicycle lighter. The wheels are again 20 inches for the back wheel and 16 for the front wheel.
Funny I was only talking to a mate of mine about theses after I showed him my Kuwahara ltd edition. He bought it thinking it would be worth a bit and paid £60 for it and stuck it on Ebay. No interest and others for sale were not selling. £70 seems the best you'll get for a near perfect alloy framed bike.
It is funny how we look at these bikes through rose tinted glasses, the Chopper in its original form was awful to ride and probably caused quite a few visits to casualty with its crushed nuts/ through the bars/ lowside/ over the back handling characteristics.
If it hasnt got the 3 speed stick and solid seat then its a poor copy. Shame realy, they would have sold a shedload with a genuine replica though as said H&S said otherwise.
It is funny how we look at these bikes through rose tinted glasses, the Chopper in its original form was awful to ride and probably caused quite a few visits to casualty with its crushed nuts/ through the bars/ lowside/ over the back handling characteristics.
If it hasnt got the 3 speed stick and solid seat then its a poor copy. Shame realy, they would have sold a shedload with a genuine replica though as said H&S said otherwise.
With these feet said:
Shame realy, they would have sold a shedload with a genuine replica though as said H&S said otherwise.
IT IS NOTHING TO DO WITH H&S!It is because tooling up those unique components for a short run would cost a fortune and put the price up to the wrong side of £300 and maybe even more. They are using the H&S get-out in their PR and sales materials but there is no law in existence which would have prevented them selling a faithful replica, they have done it for the same reason the bike has lost its hub gears - cost.
jamiebae said:
It looks rubbish. What's the point of a re-creation if you remove the cool/interesting bits to make it cheaper to build? With the rear mech and silly seat it just looks daft.
What do you mean it looks silly with a rear mech? I agree with the seat comment, but the originals had a five speed option, so a rear mech on a Chopper is nothing new.gazza285 said:
What do you mean it looks silly with a rear mech? I agree with the seat comment, but the originals had a five speed option, so a rear mech on a Chopper is nothing new.
The mech looks like it's almost scraping the ground in the pics. I didn't know they came with a 5 speed option though, but I did have a Burner and not a Chopper when I was small younger, because the Burner was generally better....Gassing Station | Pedal Powered | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff