My TI-Raleigh SBDU Blog

It's just over six years since I fastened the first component to this frame and four or five years since I completed the first build on a long road to making this the best example of a restored TI-Raleigh Team Pro 753 that I could make, and now the time ...

Having a large collection of SBDU frames means that I've accumulated most of the various features that they built with. Fork ends are one such area of the frame design where I have an almost complete set, ranging from the earliest 531 frames produced at Ilkeston using Campagnolo 1010/A, through ...

eBay! Love it or loathe it, every now and then it does serve a purpose. Personally I loathe it and while I'm definately not a fan, it has actually accounted for a small amount of my new arrivals. I do prefer to collect frames that fly under the radar but ...

What an amazing year! MORE frames, MORE posts, MORE visitors, MORE views, MORE comments, MORE questions and MORE people helped! In a year where the size of my collection doubled, I was able to use all the frames at my disposal to add so much more information to the content ...

SBDU frames and the TI colours have become hugely popular. More people are seeking to buy an SBDU frame and recreate the red black and yellow TI-Raleigh scheme. With this recent resurgence, sellers are looking to sell and buyers are readily buying. The demand for these frames is producing a ...

I've always kept an eye out for anything interesting and different with an SB frame number, something that might expand my collection and add a new dimension, even if that means moving outside my comfort zone of the Specialist Bicycle Development Unit (SBDU) at Ilkeston. My initial interest, and basis ...

The year was 1984. I was only 14 and riding a beat up Raleigh Grifter around the estate. My parent's shed was my workshop and I was kept busy fixing the bikes for all the local kids. My own bikes were fitted with names such as Sturmey Archer, Simplex, Huret ...

It was just another night in front of the television when an email dropped into my Inbox regarding an SBDU frame, this is a situation I've been in a few times now. Another frame with a case of mistaken identity came up on my screen, actually, this time it was ...

Following the change of cables on SB4059 there is now only one thing that I need to do, one more thing to sort out, one more thing that has bugged me the most about this build over the last couple of years. The one thing I'm talking about just happens ...

It's been a while since I've written anything about this bike. SB4059 is my original bike, number #1 in the collection, the bike that started the blog and the search for SBDU knowledge! One day I hope to say SB4059 is finally finished and today, it takes one step closer ...

Every new addition gets a good clean and although it was already looking quite good, SH377T still needed a bit of work. Wet oil and grease on the surface of a tube will attract dirt and dust, and that is all that was covering this frame. When a frame is ...

It's been a busy week! First came SB4933, an SBDU 531SL frame with beautiful chrome and exquisite new paint. Following on quickly came SH377T, Steve Heffernan's Reynolds 753 pursuit frame. And finally, to end the week, GH6175 has just arrived on the workbench, the second Raleigh frame of the week ...

eBay... it is a place I try to avoid. I like to find bikes and frames that haven't had much exposure to the internet. eBay links containing interesting vintage bikes are shared across social media, and before you know it, the item has been seen by thousands and hyped up ...

I've started a few blog posts recently with the words "I received an email..."; and this story is the same. Late on a Sunday evening I received a couple of emails with several images attached and then an email summarising very clearly what the frame was and what seemed like ...

What would you consider rare about the Specialist Bicycle Development Unit (SBDU)? I've heard people say that SBDU Reynolds 753 frames are rare... are they, or is that just perception? Defining something as rare really has to be done carefully, and in relation to the context of the subject. The ...

If I ever get the time and opportunity, I'll take bikes into my wife's photography studio and pick up the camera to capture the details of these frames. It's good to get them into an environment where there are no background distractions, the focus is purely on the frame. Because ...

The SBDU seemed to stop stamping their H reference on frames towards the end of 1979, meaning the frames coming out of Ilkeston at the beginning of the 80s would only have the SB frame number stamp and nothing to identify a frame as somehow different. I guess from this ...

I've been itching to bring the original paint on this frame back to life ever since it arrived last week. And even though SB3505 is already in great condition, it never fails to amaze me how well these frames respond when I give them a wipe with paint renovator and ...

The process of purchasing SB3505 was super smooth... a late Friday evening email, additional images on the Saturday, deal done on the Sunday morning, packaged on Sunday evening, dispatched and collected on Monday and delivered by lunch time on the Tuesday... A lovely bike at a good price! Packaged together ...

It's been a busy week. Two SBDU frames have been received, unpacked, documented and blogged. SB1500 was intriguing, it didn't need any clean up at all, I've left it exactly how it arrived; the story with that frame was amazing. While I was blogging about that frame, SB5084 was sitting ...

I have several frames and bikes in my SBDU collection that constantly vie for top spot. Should top spot go to JR178T, my Jan Raas frame? Should it be SB632, the earliest known Reynolds 753 SB numbered Track frame; the Beryl Burton connection on that frame alone should surely make that ...

I've been searching and looking to expand my collection into new areas for as long as I've been collecting these frames. Up until now I've accumulated a good selection of the types of frame that the Specialist Bicycle Development Unit (SBDU) produced. I've got beautiful examples of Road, Track, Time ...

Sometimes my plans for builds go smoothly and sometimes those plans stall and start to back up. I started the rebuild of SB1861 a little while ago when I brought some gleaming shine back to the original paint. But since then, I've had a few new frames join the collection, and ...

After working out that SB664 was built from an early type of Imperial Reynolds 753 tubing, I wanted to use the calipers and metal rule again to try and figure out what type of use the frame was built for. Was the geometry designed specifically for Road or Time Trial; ...

In the beginning there was Metric Reynolds 753 tubing, and then later in 1982, a new Imperial Reynolds 753 tube was introduced. The new tube, called 753R, had different diameters, different gauges and was slightly heavier than the original Metric tube. And that's how it was always known... Metric 753 ...

There is no long winded waffle from me on this post, at least that is the intention... it's hopefully just a short introduction about a new addition to the collection. There WILL be many more posts about this frame;  this frame could fill my blog with new content for an ...

Finding bikes built by the Specialist Bicycle Development Unit (SBDU) that aren't what they appear to be is part of the appeal of bike hunting and collecting for me. These are bikes and frames are hiding in plain sight, often with other builders frame transfers or paint schemes. They are ...

Back at the beginning of May, I had a weekend of frame repairs! SB4409 had new transfers and a bit of clear coat, while SB6560 had new gear lever bosses brazed into place. Before I tidied up and put the files away, I thought I'd squeeze in one more project; ...

When did the Specialist Bicycle Development Unit (SBDU) at Ilkeston close and relocate to Nottingham? What frame number were they up to at that time? Those are just two of the many questions that surround this seemingly mysterious unit. I've been searching for the answer to these questions for as ...

Now that is a massively bold statement to make... here it is again just to make sure that I did actually say it... "The most comprehensive resource available for frames built at the Specialist Bicycle Development Unit (SBDU)..."  ...

After selling one of my frames a few years ago (SB447), I promised myself that I wouldn't sell another. These frames are sought after and I get lots of requests to part with them, but I decline them all. My frames form a very important collection - they document the ...

There has always been lots said on the subject of Reynolds 753, and that doesn't surprise me. This tubing had such an impact on the sport of cycling; the frames and their riders were breaking records before anyone even knew 753 existed! 753 frames are still sought after 40+ years following their introduction. You ...

The last time you saw this frame, it was dirty, greasy, dusty and covered in spider's webs. The parts were rusty and some were even beyond help. But after a few days and some hard work and elbow grease, the frame for SB1861 is looking so much better; although it ...

I've been itching to take this bike to pieces and to get my first good look at the detail of this frame and today was the day. I purposely haven't taken many photos of the stripdown process as my hands are usually too oily and dirty to handle the camera, ...

Bikes do not get more original than this! Original owner, original paint and original components. After a 500 mile round trip, SB1861 is on the workbench. SB1861 dates to late 1977/early 1978 (there will be more on the date in the next post); it is built from Reynolds 531 Double ...

It is Easter and I am loving the amount of time I've had in the workshop this weekend. I'm getting stuck into a couple of projects. Today is the turn of SB6560, a 531c 1984 Services des Courses frame that needs a small frame repair. I prepped the frame for ...

The Easter weekend has given me some free time so I decided to work on a couple of projects. SB4409 was the first frame to get some attention. It's been sitting in the workshop for a few weeks while I continue to look at the amazing profile of these unique ...

Over the last couple of years the amount of people seeking anything painted black red and yellow has spiralled. So many Raleigh frames are getting a fresh coat of paint and transformed into the colours of the TI-Raleigh team. Some are done well while some are... well, some are just really lacking. Looking to ...

I thought I had moved away from using tubs, but I had second thoughts about them after I decided to rebuild the wheels on SB5794 with some MAVIC GP4 rims. So using GP4 rims and having no choice, I've been dragged back into the process of prepping rims and tubs, and the smell ...

It's been a little while, but SB5794 is finally getting the wheels that it deserves! When I initially built this bike I just used the set of wheels that came with the 6207/6208 600EX group when I bought it; those wheels had Shimano 6400 7 speed hubs (I fitted a ...

This is post number two looking at new arrival SB632, and I'm measuring geometry. How will this frame measure up? What size is it? How long (or short) is it? What angles does it use? What is the bottom bracket height? Does the fork clearance affect the frame geometry and size? ...

I've not got much to write in this post as the pictures will hopefully say everything. This Raleigh Banana has been an awesome bike to build, a real blast from the past. I took it to the studio today to capture it looking its best ...

I've had another new arrival, not long after the 753 Dynaflite came into the workshop, I've found another rather special frame that just deserves to be in the collection. SB632 is much smaller than anything I would normally collect, but the significance of this frame meant I had to have it ...

Wow, there are some rare frames, and then there is this one. The overwhelming reaction from most people is "Never seen one of those before..." ...

It's not often I write a quick blog post, but this is just too exciting to wait for a full and detailed review - so here is a short teaser of what just landed in the workshop! This is a really amazing and rare SBDU frame - there will be more ...

Sometimes my frames come to me without any signs of originality meaning that I can't accurately identify them. There is seldom a known history to accompany a 2nd hand frame. SB7121 was a classic example of this. I bought it on a whim, based on a basic description which indicated that it ...

I've been working through my collection of frames, and next on the list is SB6560, a 531c Services des Courses 1984 frame in the '84 team Panasonic Raleigh colours. I've moved this up the list as I really want to get a Panasonic schemed bike built to fit in with the ...

This post isn't necessarily about the SBDU, but I thought I'd write it as I get asked regularly to confirm seat pin sizes, or to try and decipher what an SBDU frame might be made from based on the seat pin and tube size. After collecting several SB frames over the ...

To say that I'm happy with how 2017 has started is an understatement! My first SBDU bike for the year is built and it is stunning. My 753R Raleigh Banana is complete; and it has been such an enjoyable build to do. From getting the 753R SBDU frame looking its ...

I've been collecting a few items for this build since getting my hands on the frame in December last year. It's been a bit of a stretch as Christmas has drained funds, but I now think I've got all the components needed to get this built. I'm not putting myself through ...