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Raleigh Grifter

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Raleigh GrifterWhile the Raleigh Chopper may have been the glamour bike of the 1970's, Raleigh's attempt to carry this success forward into the 80's didn't quite hit the same heights. The Raleigh Grifter was their half hearted first response to the BMX craze in the US. Seems Releigh though it was a passing fad so instead of a pared down action machine they came out with a heavy brute that looked BMX. It was a fun road machine but with so much weight that cross country stuff was out of the question; it was not quick off the mark and was reluctant to leave the ground on jumps.

Daza got his in New Zealand sometime in the early 80's and he seems to recall there was an advertising blitz at the time but there were never really that many of the bikes around; he had the only one in his school, which might explain why people kept stealing the handle grips off it every five minutes.

Key Features

  • A 3 speed hub gear you operated via the handle grip, just like a motorbike
  • Fat tires
  • Red pin-strips on the tire walls
  • In New Zealand the bike came with a limited edition yellow wind-breaker, and had the seat from the chopper for some reason
  • A rubbish black plastic chain guard on the front pedal cog that got chipped 5 minutes after you first rode it.