Raleigh Chopper resto, '76 mk2

[cheddar]

To the OP.

[Murph7355]

Great job. Yellow's a fantastic colour for it.

I had a Tomahawk when a bit too small for a chopper.

Did a good line in wheelies, sitting on the top of the seat to help. Until one day it went to far. The bike came over, and my noggin fit nicely between the handlebars, coming into rapid contact with the headset. Out cold and a massive lump that to this day my mum likens to a cartoon one rising out of my head.

I found out that day what the white warning tags on the seat were for. Though it didn't stop me pulling wheelies

[Bretskee]

Excellent Job mate. I thoroughly enjoyed your post. I hope it won't go out of your sight for even a second when you take it down the Pub in the Summer ?
Can you tell me what kind of Lacquer you used and can I spray it on my bike over my new decals to make them more permanent, without having to sand my paintwork ? My bike an ex Prizmatic Black Chopper.

When I first bought it about three years ago it look like this:

Edited by Bretskee on Thursday 17th March 22:45

Then after a few mods:



I also find these Pedals lovely to ride with:

Edited by Bretskee on Thursday 17th March 22:56

[anonymous-user]

I'll have to copy you & buy an early 70s mk1 for restoration. I loved that bike (despite still having a cracked tooth due to going OTT when standing up on those gears!). Happy days...

[Pickled Piper]

cheddar said:

To the OP.

and again



Thanks for sharing.

pp

[splodge s4]

Bretskee said:

Can you tell me what kind of Lacquer you used and can I spray it on my bike over my new decals to make them more permanent

Lovely Bike! Looks cool with the gold decals, cracking job!

As for the lacquer, I just used a spray from Halfords. Once the frame was sprayed I left it a week then sanded it just enough to take the shine away. It doesnt seem right after getting the yellow perfect & its tempting to leave it but best results means sanding the shine off. I then applied the decals then when its a sunny warm day (if your doing it outside) spray the lacquer. Go very light over the decals, the lacquer sticks well to paint but not so good on vinyl decals so only lightly over them. I gave it 2 coats & left it about half hour between coats.

Then I left the frame for 2 weeks in a warm place to dry & the lacquer to harden. If im honest, the pics look great but just under the chopper decal the lacquer did run slightly, luckly though as its underneath the bottom tube no one sees it.

Ive nearly finished the mk1 blue Grifter & ive sprayed it the same way & its come out much better, real deep shine. Build thread will follow on that in a week or so, im just waiting for the lacquer to dry.

Thanks for all your comments guys, I took it to the pub last weekend & it caused quite a stir, 'coor I ad one a dem wen I waz a kid' & 'not seen a choppa fur ages' was the common remarks

[andrewz105]

Hi
Just brought myself a 78' MK2 Prismatic chopper. I have completely dismantled it, cleaned all the chrome (thanks to your tips its looking smashing!) now just need to have it resprayed. I'd rather have a go at doing it myself then fork out £130+ to have it done by a professional. Although im not very confident, could you give me some tips and run me through the process of the respray?

Much appreciated

Andrew

[anonymous-user]

Lasting impression of my old 80's Choppper was slipping off the pedals at 40mph and gettign wedged in the handlebars! Always wanted a Grifter but in hindsight this was way cooler.

[splodge s4]

andrewz105 said:

Hi
could you give me some tips and run me through the process of the respray?

Andrew

No probs, I'm not a professional sprayer at all, I sprayed a couple of bikes when I was a kid (BMX colours always changed) & I watched my dad spray the dents on the wings of his Cortina when I was about 10 so I had excellent training in how to do it

This is how I do it, its all about preparation. The best sprayer in the world will do a crap job if the surface isnt right. Make sure all the old paint is off, even little bits left on may still show through so all off. Lots of wet & dry sand paper & water & sand the whole from so its smooth. Primer undercoat ( I usually use white or gray) the frame all over & let that dry for an hour or so then sand it smooth with wet & dry again. I seems a waste of undercoat spray to then rub it back again but its the best way to get a smooth surface. I normally do this at least twice then give it a couple of coats of primer undercoat & let that dry.

For the colour top coat, make sure you shake the can for at least 2 mins & if your spraying out side do it on a warm dry day. If its nice & warm the paint will instantly stick to the primer & wont run. I tried it when it was overcast once & no matter how thinly you spray it still started to run as there was moisture in the air. It makes a huge difference, ill only spray on warm sunny days!

Hold the can about 10 inches away the sweep side to side & only spray when the can is moving, after each stroke stop spraying if you know what I mean. It makes sense to start one end of the frame & continue to the other end but make sure you get in all the corners & underneath, there will be bits you miss on the first coat so after the first coat has been applied leave if 15 mins then if you can turn the frame around so the next coat naturally falls on the opposite side to started, that way no matter how careful you are you should naturally cover the whole frame.

If you spot any runs then don't worry, just crack on & do the whole frame. When its dried after about half hour you can then get out the wet n dry again & rub down any patches that started to run, get then smooth again. Then crack on with at least another 2 top coats, i normally keep going until the can runs out, I managed 4 coats on the Grifter I recently sprayed.

Now leave it in a warm area to dry for at least a week. Your perfect smooth shiny frame looks lovely. You now have to ruin it by sanding it with wet n dry again To get the best finish you have to sand the shine off the paint so its dull, gently using very fine wet n dry rub down the while frame so its like a matt colour. Then swill it off with water so there's no dust & dry it. If your applying stickers then this is when to stick them on.

Finally, warm sunny day again, apply the lacquer, use the same technique as spraying & take your time, it the lacquer runs now then its hard to rectify it so thin coats & take your time. The frame is now far more shiny than when you finished the top coat. I normally do at least 2 coats of lacquer then leave it in a warm place for at least 2 weeks to harden. Dont touch it as your finger prints will show on the lacquer until its hardened.

That's it, its takes a long time but defiantly worth it. Good luck!

[anonymous-user]

Great work and a fantastic thread!.

[Edelle]

Hello there. I hope you're still blogging about this as I am about to start to restore a Raleigh MK3 and would really appreciate help if needed. Although your step by step guide is amazing !!!

[splodge s4]

Edelle said:

Hello there. I hope you're still blogging about this as I am about to start to restore a Raleigh MK3 and would really appreciate help if needed. Although your step by step guide is amazing !!!

Thank you & yup, still here!

[Justin S]

Just re rimmed some wheels for a colleagues chopper rebuild. Has had the frame painted fizzy lemon b( allegedly a ford colour although I think it was daytona) He has most of the stuff now, apart from getting the seat recovered. Hopefully have some piccies when i start the rebuild. We took the stand out on his. Was a bit of a struggle but we got there in the end. he has new brakes, cables etc. You can buy a new gear shifter black case rather than rebuild one, off ebay, which he has done. Just got to get the black panel replaced under the seat and the rivet holding the seatpost to the seat changed to go and the rebuild will begin.

[RJJ]

Just wow op, brought back memories, very

Must check in parents shed if my red grifter is still around, my mum still has my old technic Lego & some rc's.

You ever considered the Raleigh Superburner (think that's correct), black & gold from that era, so wanted one.

[barneybear69]

I've re-read your article a few times and used the ovenpride tip (it stings if it gets on your arm :-( )

I've now completed a restoration of a 1974 MKII from a similar box of bits and converted it to 6 speed as I'm going to attempt the C2C on it.
I've never owned anything which has brought as much attention or is as much fun to ride.

The full story is here: www.purplechopper.co.uk - don't worry it's clean ;-)