Raleighs - Comparing Sports Lugs from the 1940s and 50s

Raleigh made a number of subtle changes to their famed Sports bikes in the 1940s and 50s. This included improved front fork ends, frame-brazed pulley bosses, more modern frame graphics, improved dynohub systems, rubber rather than cloth-covered brake cables, improved shifters, and more ornate frame lugs. 

I've talked earlier about the subtle evolution of front forks, so let us take a closer look at frame lugs. In this case, I'm comparing a 1947 Sports frame and a 1958 Sports frame.

 

Plain lug (1947)

The 1947 Sports lugs are the old lugs, which are quite plain and are described variously as "fish tail" or "fish mouth" (depending on which side you are looking at) lugs. This are traditional lugs that are very functional and understated. They go perfectly with the old-style graphics and paint schemes of these bikes.

Plain lug (1947)

The seat cluster lug of the old style is particularly plain, and has a very substantial appearance. It is straight-cut and extends fairly deeply into the top tube. It certainly is built for durability before style. A separate, clamp-on Sturmey Archer pulley is used for the shifter cable.

Old-Style (1947) Seat Cluster Lug

 

In the early 1950s, the old-style seat cluster lug gained a directly-mount boss so the pulley wheel could be mounted to the frame without a clamp. It is a hybrid of the pulley boss shown below on the later 1950s bike, but with the old-style lug of the late 1940s bike. These are transitional lugs because they combine the direct-mount pulley with the old style seat lug.

 

 

During the 1950s, Raleigh changed the lugs to be somewhat more ornate. The lugs are not as ornate as those found on the Clubman, but the Sports bikes did get a bit of embellishment. These lugs go nicely with the more ornate frame graphics of the later 1950s. 

Later 50s Lug (1958 Raleigh Sports)

 

The later 1950s seat lug is very different from the old-type. It has a deep cutaway with an ornate hook pattern. It also has a pulley boss mounted to the underside of the lug. A special pulley axle/stud is used to mount directly to the lug boss. 

Later 1950s Ornate Lug with Pulley Boss (1958 Sports Bike)

 

 

Bottom brackets also change a bit. In this case, the oiler port moved and settled on a more user-friendly, flip-cap type top. The spring-ball oiler does seal a bit better, but it is notoriously more difficult to use with a common oil bottle today. At the time, there was a thin-tip, needle oiler meant to go with this spring-ball oiler, though I don't have one in my tool bin. I prefer the flip-cap type for adding oil. The bottom bracket lug shape was largely the same, plain type. 

 

Late 1940s bottom bracket (1947)

 

Later 1950s Bottom Bracket (1958)

 

These kinds of changes show the subtle evolution of the Sports-style Raleigh frame. It's not that one is better than the other. Rather, they form a nice variety in the bikes from a collector and historical standpoint. Both of the bikes used in these examples, a 1947 Model 35 Sports and a 1958 Sports, ride beautifully and are representative of their particular eras of Raleigh history. I enjoy both.