1939 Raleigh Record Ace (RRA) Club version

Raleigh Record Ace (RRA) 1939
model no. 45 serial no. AF55635

Purchased from Paul Raley in December 2011 and back on the road 7 January 2012

The Raleigh Record Ace (1933-1942)

"for the real road enthusiast there is but one mount-- the Raleigh Record Ace.."

Raleigh’s top lightweight racing/time trial machine with three distinct variants over a 25-year span, the first generation Record Ace was announced in November 1933 (in time for that year’s Olympia Cycle Show) for the 1934 model year. It replaced the Record (introduced in 1930), as “a company-built speed bicycle on thoroughbred lines, [which] leaves very little to be desired.” (Cycling, 10 November 1933).

"It’s Design That Matters…. In Cycling
And only quality can interpret it to perfection. It all goes back to design and quality-building—that extra speed and stamina of a track car! It’s the same with cycles, in a hundred refinements of design, devised by experts with road and track experience, the Raleigh Record Ace stands high amongst those who understand a fine machine. Still more important—the exclusive Raleigh design is interpreted only with the very finest materials. That’s why when your feet touch the pedals of the Raleigh Record Ace you recognize, on the instant, a machine that gives you more speed, more pleasure and more riding ease."

In many aspects, the new RRA was an improved Record but incorporating the new HM Tubing (a forerunner to Reynolds 531) and having many of the same components. In keeping with Raleigh’s mid-range market and to keep the price below 10 pounds, the £9 10s (compared to the £8 12 s 6d Record) the frame featured a main triangle of 22g chrome-molydenum tubing while the rear triangle and fork were of 18-21g HM (high-manganese) tubing. The front fork had all-round section blades. The Record's 67/67˚ parallel seat and head tube angles were kept but were a bit too old-fashioned even then and changed to a more responsive 71/71˚ in 1936. Frame sizes were 20-inch, 21-inch and 22-inch with a 41.5-inch wheelbase.

The stock wheelset comprised steel 26 x 1 ¼-inch Dunlop Endrick black-enamelled 32/40-hole rims and black double-butted spokes with a radially-laced front wheel and quick release hubs with distinctive “R” shaped wingnuts and two sided fixed 16t/18t cog rear hub fixed/free rear hub. A freewheel and rear brake could be fitted at extra cost. Carried over from the Record model were the distinctive chainset (but initally with unfluted cranks) with three little Heron’s heads on the detachable chainring (46T stock, 44, 48 and 50T optional) and attractive Heron’s Head steel quill racing pedals.

A single front Raleigh sidepull caliper brake was fitted and the saddle was the new BrooksB-17 Dural Ultralight model weighing 7 oz less than the B-17. Marsh bend chromed (black celluloid covering optional) 15-inch handlebars with Constrictor Shockstop grips were fitted to a three-inch extension in a double locking headclip. A 15-inch Bluemels Featherlight celluloid frame pump and Raleigh’s wider pattern Bluemels Noweight black celluloid mudguards with separate spearpoint extension and special pattern quick release wingnuts and large Brooks saddlebag completed the specification.

Handsomely finished in Raleigh’s unmatched dipped lustrous black enamel with subtle “RRA” gold seat tube transfers, the Record Ace blended well into the stealthy character of road racing and time trialling in Britain at the time when all-black kit was de rigeur for roadmen and machine alike.

Although the frame was stock, from the onset Raleigh offered a range of alternate components to “suit the speedman”. The frame design could accommodate both 26" wire on or sew up rims or 27" (as 700c rims were known then) sew ups and run with fixed, fixed and free or Sturmey-Archer hub gears. Lighter Constrictor Conloy Asp alloy 26" rims and Williams B108 Dureel chainset could be substituted at extra cost to bring the weight down from the catalogue spec. 25 lbs (22-inch frame) to 23.5 lbs. Stripped for racing and with Conloy alloy sprint rims, the weight could be brought down further to as low as 19.5 lbs. On the other side of the scale, addition of a three-speed Sturmey-Archer gear upped the weight to about 28 lbs and with the early very heavy 12 v. Dynohub, as on this machine, as high as 35 lbs.

Attractive to clubmen, triallists and leisure cyclists alike, the versatile RRA was an important and popular addition to Raleigh's range as it sought to expand into the competitive cycling and club market.

Over the years, the RRA was changed and improved:

1936: Frame angles changed to 71/71˚parallel. Brooks B-17 Dural Ultralight saddle whose duralminum frame was prone to cracking replaced by Brooks B-19 Champion Narrow which was designed for long-distance cycling and longer than the B-17. 16-inch 6" drop Bailey bend handlebars instead of Marsh bends. White celluloid mudguards with built-in rear reflector, seat stay braze-on for reflector deleted. Weight of stock machine (22”) 25.25 lbs (due to substitution of dural undercarriage B-17 for steel undercarriage B-19).

1937: fork entirely chromium-plated. Fluted and scalloped crank arms. Rivetted metal headbadge instead of transfer. Optional finishes at no extra charge: Maroon, Blue, Green, Gold or Silver. Rear brake optional at no extra charge. Sturmey-Archer 2-speed close ratio, 3-speed close or wide ratio hub gears optional at extra cost.

1938: Price increased to £9 15s for stock model. Lug design changed to "cutaway and fishtailed" pattern. Sturmey-Archer Dynolamp, AR close-ratio three-speed hub gear and stainless steel spokes optional at extra cost.

1939: 23-inch frame size added. Frame angles now 71 seat 73 head. New pattern Raleigh caliper brakes and rear brake now standard. Chain now Renold Elite. Sturmey-Archer hub brakes, AR, AM, AW hub gears, 12v. Dynohub, rear lamp optional at extra cost. Dunlop EA1 Endrick chromed rims standard (black optional), Dunlop 26 x 1 ¼ HP rims or Constrictor Conloy 700c sprint rims optional. Optional finishes (no extra charge) expanded to Maroon, Blue, Green, Gold or Silver lustre finish, Maroon, Green, Light or Dark Blue enamel as well as six "Continental finishes".

A Record Breaker
"This is the hub [Sturmey-Archer AR ] that helped me break the Edinburgh-to-London, Land’s End to John O’Groats, and 1,000 miles records. It’s exactly what we racing men have always been looking for—a totally enclosed HUB gear with a really close ratio. I’ll never ride without it." Sid Ferris

Not entirely by coincidence, the Raleigh Record Ace or RRA had the same initials as the Road Record Association, the major governing body of cycle time trial and long distance road records in Great Britain which then dominated cycle sport in the country where mass start racing was still prohibited on public roads. The name association between the two RRAs took on more meaning when the bicycle begin to figure in many of the mid to late 1930s record making runs under Raleigh sponsorship to prove and popularise a new range of Sturmey-Archer hubs designed for racing and time trialling .

Sturmey-Archer was spurred to action after Australian Hubert “Oppy”Opperman’s 1935 Edinburgh-John O’Groats record using a four-speed Cyclo derailleur. Raleigh’s renewed interest in road racing and records manifested itself the following year with the sponsorship of Charles Holland who won the Isle of Man International Road Race year on an RRA with Sturmey-Archer gears.

Under the leadership of W. Brown who took over Sturmey-Archer's development and design department in 1935, a new series of racing hubs were developed, principal of which was the AR Close Ratio. First manufactured in November 1936, it offered what had long been sought by time-triallists and long distance racers, an ultra close ratio equal to adding or subtracting one-tooth from the sprocket. Another innovation was the new trigger gear changer which fitted just below the brake lever permitted simultaneous two finger control of both.

To prove the new hub to the "speedman", Raleigh-Sturmey Archer engaged Charlies Holland, Bert James and Sid Ferris to undertake a series of long distance rides on Raleigh Record Aces with AR hubs to beat the records then held by derailleur-equipped machines starting in summer 1937. On 3 June Ferris did Edinburgh-London in 20 hours 19 minutes, besting the previous record by 1 ½ hours and 20 July Land’s End to John O’Groats in 2 days 6 hours 33 minutes, beating Opperman’s time by 2 hours 28 minutes and standing for 21 years. When his June Edinburgh-London record was disallowed because of a rule violation by a assistant rider that October, the opportunity was seized to try again that month and Ferris broke the record again despite riding 15 hours of it in the dark and also proving the worth of another new (1936) Sturmey-Archer innovation, the 12 v. dynohub lighting system.

In 1938, Ferris capped his remarkable career breaking the RRA 24-hour record at 465.75 miles from Edinburgh to the South Coast, again using a Record Ace with the AR hub and Dynohub. That year, Charles Holland, riding for Raleigh/Sturmey-Archer, broke the RRA record for Liverpool-Edinburgh in June, clocking 10 hours for the 210 miles, 12 minutes faster than the previous record held by Frank Southall. On 13 October 1938 he dropped 25 minutes off the Land’s End-London record, doing the 287 miles in 13 hours 44 minutes at an average 21 mph despite hours of rain and four punctures en route riding the new Charles Holland Continental model of the RRA (see below) with an AM hub. Another RRA with AR hub record run was Bert James' London-Portsmouth roundtrip (137 miles) clocked at 8 hours, 33 minutes and 57 seconds despite poor weather and punctures.

A special Charles Holland Continental model (no. 48) of the RRA was introduced in November 1938, designed for closed circuit mass start racing. This had frame sizes in 20.5-inch, 21.5-inch and 22.5-inch in Lustre Blue (including the new Russ pattern fork), 73˚ head and 71˚ seat tube angles, Sturmey-Archer AM medium ratio three-speed hub with trigger control, Pelissier bend 'bars and Brooks B17N saddle all at the cost of the standard RRA.

Charles Holland on his Raleigh Charles Holland Continental:

www.fotolibra.com/gallery/543740/charles-holland-pioneer-...

The RRA/Sid Ferris Era ended in early 1939 with his testing of the new Sturmey-Archer four-speed AF hub (essentially an AR hub with an extra low gear for mass start racing and hills) over some 3,000 miles covered weekly trial runs between London and Nottingham by Ferris prior to its introduction in April. By then, Raleigh boasted it held nine of Britain's 15 road records totally over 3,500 miles of the 4,650 total.

The final record established on a Raleigh Record Ace was that by Tommy Godwin who, sponsored by Raleigh-Sturmey Archer, established the all-time record of 75,065 miles ridden in a year. Setting out on Ley bicycle on 1 January 1939, the demands of the ride proved too much for the small company and on 27 May Raleigh assumed sponsorship with Godwin being provided with a new 21" RRA in special cream livery fitted with the new AF hub and dynohub, 27" sprint rims and tyres and a Brooks B17 Flyer saddle. With two months to spare, he broke the previous record riding into Trafalgar Square on 26 October completing 62,658 miles. Clocking an average of 200 miles a day with up to 18 hours in the saddle, his best days run was 21 June with an amazing 361 miles. Godwin continued riding and by year's end notched up 75,065 miles and by May 1940 reached 100,000 miles.

The RRA in the USA
This particular machine was originally purchased from Hill Cycle Shop, Germantown Avenue, Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, PA in 1939, one of the of 8,000 Raleighs sold in the USA that year. The RRA was described in the first American brochure as being “generally acknowledged to be the finest cycle ever produced. Its Chrome Molybdenum frame tubing and high manganese steel fork in conjunction with fitting and equipment second to none in quality and design, make this cycle generally sought after by connoisseurs, its speed, lightness, maneuverability and safely make the Raleigh Record Ace the cyclist’s ideal”. The standard model sold for $70 with AW hub costing $7.50, AR or AW $10.50 more putting the RRA at the same price point as the new Schwinn Paramount.

The outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939 didn’t immediately end Raleigh cycle commercial production and a full range was offered in 1940 but essentially unchanged from the previous year although prices were increased by 12 ½ per cent with the RRA and Charles Holland costing £10 19s 6d. Production of more practical roadsters took priority and Sturmey-Archer effectively ended hub manufacture in 1942 and switched to war production.

Thus ended the first phase of the Raleigh Record Ace, one indeliably associated with the heyday of the hub gear and RRA long distance records in the 1930s during which Raleigh re-established itself in the clubman and time trial circuit with a factory-made machine of relatively modest qualities that proved itself a record-breaker many times over as well as being a thoroughly delightful bicycle to own and ride even 75 years later.

About this bike
This was purchased on eBay about four years ago by Paul Raley and came from the Boston area. The seller claimed he had the original paperwork but Paul was never able to obtain it from him but indicating he purchased this from the original owner at some point and was probably one of the initial RRAs sold by Raleigh in the USA. Although this machine has had a hard life and in less than perfect condition, it immediately appealed retaining its original paint, chrome and, more important, was in the very rare 23-inch frame available only 1939-40. Apparently, this was damaged in a crash early in its life with ripples evident in the down and top tube but is completely straight and tracks perfectly indicating it was most likely repainted/repainted by Raleigh. The seat stays are badly crimped from numerous rear lamp attachments over the years but the frame is otherwise sound with the paint and chrome forks in pretty good original condition.

When Paul obtained it, the original bar/stem, saddle/mudguards/ rims/ grips had been replaced and these were in turn replaced by original (or close) components as well as adding the very rare original Sturmey-Archer 12v. Dynohub.

I added the original first version of the Sturmey-Archer trigger, touched up the paint, changed the tyres, added period correct toeclips and Brooks saddle bag for the “club” version as pictured here. For a time trialling variant, I am building up an alternate period correct sew-up 700c wheelset as detailed below.

Specifications
Frame: main triangle 22G Molybdenum, round taper chainstays and seatstays High Manganese 2030 steel
Fork: 18-21G extra resilient High Manganese
Braze ons: mudguard eyes, chain hook and pump pegs on down tube.
Fork: round section blades 2030 steel, chromium plated with Raleigh pattern fork crown
Finish: Raleigh black enamel (original), no lining, chromed front fork
Size: seat tube 23” (c to t), top tube 22” (c to c)
Angles: 73 (head) 71 (seat)
Fork rake: 2 ½”
Wheelbase: 41 1/2"
Bottom bracket height: 10 1/2"
Chainstay length: 17 ¼"
Rear spacing: 118 mm
Lugs: cutaway and fishtailed

Components
Wheels: 26 x 1 ¼” Dunlop EA1 Endrick light steel, black enamelled, 32/40h rims, stainless spokes (front spokes are the special Dynohub ones)
Front hub: Sturmey-Archer 32-hole GH12 12 v. Dynohub
Rear hub: Sturmey-Archer medium ratio AW9 three-speed, 1939 date code)
Chainset: Heron pattern chromed steel, detactable 3-pin 46t chainring with fluted and lightened 6 ¾” cranks
Pedals: RRA special pattern steel road racing, Ashby Wanderlust adjustable toeclips and Brooks toestraps
Gears: Sturmey-Archer AW three-speed hub, 1939
Freewheel: Sturmey-Archer 16-tooth
Gear lever: Sturmey-Archer three-speed trigger control, 1st pattern "pat. pending"
Chain: Renold Elite 3/32”
Brakes: Raleigh side-pull calipers and levers, black brake cable housing.
Top tube brake cable clips: Dunlop rubber
Headset: Raleigh headclip fixing, chromed steel
Stem & handlebars: Raleigh pattern chromium-plated stem and 16" Bailey pattern 6" drop 'bars, Romac black rubber sleeves
Saddle: Brooks B19 Champion Narrow with black enameled undercarriage.
Seat pin: Raleigh steel
Mudguards: Bluemel's cream celluloid with separate no. 6 spearpoint extension, quick release stays and RRA pattern wingnuts
Pump: 15" x 7/8th inch Bluemel's black featherweight celluloid
Lamp: Sturmey-Archer Dynohub headlamp
Lamp bracket: Raleigh RRA left fork-mounted and headclip-mounted
Accessories: Brooks Leabrook saddlebag
Weight: 35.5 lbs