So! Months ago, when the new Raleigh Tourist was released online, I thoroughly enjoyed the fact that Raleigh was releasing something that seemed to have the spirit of an old 3-speed Sports roadster, but its price, however reasonable in terms of bang-for-buck, was a bit high for me to be shelling out just for the sake of having a "new Sports." But in mid-December, prices for these on a popular online shopping site plummeted to about a 1/4 MSRP and when a friend brought it to my attention, I couldn't refuse it ...
I am first going to say that I was incorrect in comparing it to the Sports at first and when the new Tourist arrived, I realized that it did in fact resemble a classic DL-1 Tourist in ride quality and size. The two bikes look similar in the photo above due to perspective and proportions (oversize tubing and fat tires on the new Tourist) but in reality, the Tourist is a few inches longer. Weight-wise, it is very similar to that of an old Sports, perhaps on the heavier side. All of the assessments I make below should be taken with this in mind.
Raleigh USA has had a seemingly-great line of "heritage" bikes for sale and I'm not entirely sure how well they're selling. I'm also not very clear on what the intended customer base was for the new Tourist - for example, you have people like me and some other vintage enthusiasts who already have old Sports and Tourist bikes, who don't need another bike and tend to think old stuff is better (or at least better looking). We know the history behind the bikes and appreciate the fact that Raleigh is making a new version, but also not likely to buy one at full price. And then you have the people who usually go and buy Linus, Bobbin, and Pure City bikes that might look at this in comparison and evaluate accordingly. They might buy one and they might enjoy the ride immensely but not know as much about the history. So why did Raleigh try so hard with the classic touches? The same friend who alerted me about the sale online told me that it could be for people who used to own a Sports or Tourist decades ago, or for someone who remembers a father or grandfather who owned one. That makes sense.
First impressions are that Raleigh did a great job on the details and everything is of very high quality - dare I say, better than some of the old stuff. Certainly better than the 1979 Superbe that it's being compared to. The bike took only 20 minutes to assemble out of the box and nothing was damaged.
The Tourist seems to have a stiffer frame than the old Sports roadsters but the fat (700x45c) tires take up a lot more force than the comparatively skinny 26x1-3/8" (590x37mm) tires. Overall, it makes for a better ride over the uneven streets in my neighborhood. The frame angles are noticeably less slack than those of a Sports or Tourist and the fork has less rake. Therefore, the front wheel did not extend so far ahead and the handling was a bit more nimble. It was an interesting feeling given the weight of the bike. The tires also feel quite quite heavy, so I may be switching them out for nicer 42 mm ones. I'd be careful not to go too narrow lest I make the wide fenders look weird. The new rotary-shifted RS-RK3 3-speed hub shifts a lot more smoothly than the classic AW. It not only gets ride of the vulnerable indicator chain that protrudes outside of the axle but offers a stronger, solid axle since the shifting mechanism doesn't have to go through it. The new hubs are better-sealed and grease-lubricated, so they won't have a tendency to leave oil on the floor or make a grimy mess. While the S-RF3/RK3 was a slight upgrade from the AW by getting rid of the neutral-gear problem, the RS series is what I would see as a complete upgrade.
The old bikes came stock with at 46/18-tooth gear ratio and the new one comes with a 42/18. My Superbe has a 20-tooth rear sprocket which makes the gear ratios between the two
roughly equal, but the tires on the new bike are a lot taller. I haven't figured out what it is, but something about the new bike makes it feel a little more effortless when accelerating from a stop. It is a little harder to max out 3rd gear, though.
The mechanical disc brakes are nice, but they necessitated an eccentric bottom bracket since disc brakes are not friendly to for-aft rear wheel adjustment. I am wondering what drove the choice of disc brakes because my gut feeling (which very well could be wrong) is that the disc brakes and eccentric bottom bracket added more cost than value to the bike. I was thinking that folks who would most likely purchase this bike would feel just fine with Tektro calipers on alloy rims, just like the ones that Linus and Bobbin offers. Perhaps Raleigh was trying to set itself apart. In the end, I think they are adequately powerful but lack the modulation that the hydraulic discs of my Stuntman have. However, I have no right to complain in the slightest, given that I am accustomed to the flexy steel calipers and steel rims of my old 3-speeds.
The new Tourist came with a leather Gyes GS-14 saddle with the Raleigh heron branded on it. Design-wise, it is quite similar to the Brooks B72 that an old Sports or Tourist (B66 on a Superbe pictured) would have come with. The loops are a different shape and the bag loops are reinforced with extra surrounding material. The leather that Gyes uses feels less dense than Brooks leather but I expect that it is still of great quality, judging by some reviews online. I also have a Gyes saddle on my Dunelt. I haven't ridden that one nearly enough to begin breaking it in yet, and I would assume the same will happen with this one. They are still adequately comfortable out of the box.
I have been waffling on the modifications I want to do. Part of it is because the bike is already so close to "perfect" (for what it is) to begin with, but part of it is also because I am unsure what exactly I am going to be using this bike for. The absence of a dynohub would probably take it out of the running for a daily commuter, without accounting for the fact that I am "too proud of a retrogrouch" to be riding anything new and off-the-shelf on a regular basis. Nonetheless, the bike is still very nice and very comfortable and deserves to be enjoyed. However tough the old 3-speeds were, this new bike seems like it can stand up to even more abuse. I would at least try to keep it around if possible. I could use it as a winter bike because it's not as precious as the old bikes, but using a brand new bike like that would be mean. Plus, I already have the fixed gear for the winter. There is a pair of nice, retro-style lights that I want to install on the bike. The tail light will be mounted lower on the white tail than the reflector is currently, with the hole through which the fender brace is attached, to make it look more similar to the older bikes. I'm thinking of an alloy rack to make the bike more practical, as well as a lower stem because the bars are too high for my liking even at their lowest setting (pictured). I want to give it a set of cream 700x42c tires which, for whatever reason, can only be had overseas so shipping cost may or may not be prohibitive (I've seen it go both ways). Anyway, I plan to spend more time with this bike before I make any big decisions and overall I am very glad to have it. There will be updates.
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