Carlton Bicycles (Cyclone, Cobra, Professional, etc)

Hi,

I also have a Carlton frameset that I'm currently building. You need to double check your frame number as the single letter prefix F is a 1957/1958 frame (as mine is).

Unless it is a Pro or a Giro - though these are harder to identify. If it has more than one prefix letter then it will be a later frame.

If this is the case with your then the frame is pre-Raleigh takeover. Raleigh took Carlton over in 1960 and produced bicycles in fairly limited numbers until the takeover (up to 1960 about 2500 a year, and therefore much more"exclusive"). The Carlton website is quite good but no longer maintained, and only covered Worksop Carltons and not Nottingham ones.

Photo makes identifying easier (lugwork is a major identifier to the model).

Some"collectors"can be a little snooty about Carltons, but they built fine frames and have a great competiion pedigree - Gerald O'Donovan ran Carlton and later created the Specialist Bicycle Development Unit at Raleigh - see my article on the SBDU on the classic lightweights website.

Any other help PM me.

Cheers, Roadking.

Hi

Thanks for the information re carlton framesets my frame is no F1676 it also has the numbers 351 stamped into the bb it was sold to me as a carlton pro way back in 1980 i think it is the real deal but not sure about the colour it was when it was built if you have any thoughts on this that would be great.
i am also looking for a front fork the orginal was half chrome with a slopped chrome crown any idea where i would get my hands on them

Regards
RD

hI

Will upload some photos as soon as i get the computer working again for some reason it will not upload attachments but i am working on that.
The post by roadking is very good, did you cheak the carlton website ?
better go and do some work chat later

Regards
RD

Doesn't any one hav any more info? my frame no doesn't seem to relate to what is on the carlton website, mine is BD96LP. Also someone has replaced my BB with one that is clearly the wrong width as they have had to add a spacer to give enough clearance for the chain ring, any idea what BB these frames take? I have never replaced a BB before so am a complete newbie but I guess I am looking for and english thread, square taper, I just dont know what axel length I need...?

Any advice would be much appreciated

Thanks

Hi again

That website is classic cars & bicycles not bicycle and google if without the .com
As for the bb measure the bb of the bike this will give you the size its very easy

Regards rd

Hi again bro,

your frame no confuses me...you say it is BD961P.

Where is this number on the frame - rear dropout, under the BB or seat tube? Raleigh moved Carlton production to Nottingham as I've said, but to confuse things frames nos still began with the W prefix.

Carlton production ended at Worksop in 1981.

If you're having the frame refinished put some Nitromors on the frame to expose the number more, you may find paint has filled and obscured some of the digits.

Useful tip is - numbers on the bracket could be simply castings number from the bracket manufacturers dies, make sure you've got the right set of numbers.

I'll try at some point soon to upload images of my 1958/59 Carlton. reason there's nt much info on Carlton's is, as I've said, people are quite"snooty"about them.

Good luck, Roadking.

ok, So I have just finished nitromorsing my frame ready for a nice new powder coat.

And I have noticed something strange about my BB, which explains why I was having a problem Identifying it!!

It seems the original no has been scratched out I can just about make out a W at the beginning and a 9 at the end!

Can anyone explain why someone may have done this?

Martin

2 Attachments

Just got my frame back from the powder coaters. Will post some pictures when I get a chance! Still waiting to see some other peoples Carlton pros.

Was wondering if any ones knows what wheel size these bikes/ my bike was made for? I bought some nuovo record brake calipers which fit my 700cc wheels ok but I am just curious if it was originally made for 700cc. Would this help date it? Surely post 1970 if its originally for 700cc??

got one of these, who would like to buy it?

nice pics, only mine still is 5speed.
should i keep it, sell it, single speed....

I've had one of these - nice metallic blue colour but slightly garish foil decals? Mine was a ten speed, but it was basic Raleigh group stuff - SR chainwheel and cranks, Huret derailleur, all badged Raleigh. But the frame was still very handsome.

i love carlton cyclones! recently managed to hunt one down in glasgow. the frame's too small for me but i like the look of it so much i'm gonna rebuild it anyway x

Hi there guys, I'm currently looking for a nice vintage british road bike to add to my collection. I've been offered a Carlton Pro-Am complete with 531 tubing and a black brooks saddle for £280. Am i being ripped off or is it normally the price for Carlton Pro-Ams.

Haven't got a picture yet but looks very similar to this but with brooks saddle:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eternalseptember/3804016202/sizes/z/in/photostream/

No one?

is it a conversion like in the picture, or geeared with original parts? and decent groupset?

280 for that in the picture is 100 quid too much I would say

280 for that in the picture is 100 quid too much I would say

Much appreciated,.. its a converted Fixed gear. The frame however i must say is completely rust free, and it really shines. I will see it again, if its love i'll buy it.

You can get a Carlton Pro Am bike for about £100 - £130.

I sold a good Pro Am frame and forks + gears, bars for £40 just three weeks ago on Ebay.

In my opinion, £280 is way too much !

I have a 10 speed Raleigh Carlton Cyclone. Bought for my 16th birthday back in the early 80's and still in use. A 'few' scratches and a bit of rust but still has the original tape on the handlebars, original short mudguards and I even have the original tyres, although I have swapped them for more chunky Michelin's as they punctured too easily.

The one thing that I did have replaced about 5 years ago, due to me being stupid and shredding the thread on the original crank arm was the bottom bracket and chain set. Recently, this is working itself loose. I've taken it to a bike specialist who has tightened it up but it is working itself loose again causing the pedals to wobble and making changing gear difficult as I ride along. Because of the age of the bike the guy at the shop said it would be difficult to source a new bottom bracket as that type of assembly is obsolete, but without it the bike is shortly going to be un-rideable.

Can anyone advise me where I may be able to find a replacement crank. Does it need to be specific to a Raleigh Cyclone or are these things standard. Are they based on framesize?

As you can tell I'm quite attached to this bike so any helpful advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Andrew

Cranks shouldnt be an issue at all, i would guess its sqare tapered,so loads availabe, but from what you say its more likely the bottom bracket getting loose not the cranks. If its not 531 or above it's likely to be Raleighs 26 tpi, making changing the bottom bracket harder. It maybe someone on here can suggest ways of stopping it loosening, which may be a better solution. If you need to replace it though, check the bottom bracket size needed, and if it's 68mm there's a threadless one sold by sjs cycles that I've been itching to see if it works.

Many thanks Denedium. How do I measure if it is 68mm? Is it the width of the frame? Sorry if that's a really stupid question. Would it help if I sent a photo or two?

Andrew

No problem, this should help you. http://www.ehow.com/how_6552219_measure-bottom-bracket.html

Also the sjs bittom bracket I mentioned http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/prestine-threadless-68mm-sealed-bearing-bottom-bracket-for-frames-with-damaged-threads-prod16505/

As I said I'd been wondering how well the bb works. Unfortunately for me my rudge isnt 68mm. Hope your able to sort it.

Hi. Thanks for the links. I measured the width quickly this afternoon and it is approx 68mm but need to capture accurately as it says in the article that 70mm is also common. Not going to be easy to measure the length either. Do I need to remove the cranks to get that accurately? BB currently out of stock but if it does turn out to be right fit etc I'll certainly let you know.

Andrew

Andrew