I've been waiting ages for a Raleigh Chopper to come up for auction at my local pop up auction and here it is! Check out the video and watch the live auction to see the amazing price it achieves! To watch other auction videos, check out the playlists and the Kew Gardens fifty pence in particular! ruclips.net/video/1UlPfX9eahg/видео.html
I worked at Raleigh in the 70s my job was fitting the front forks on all bikes and the Chopper was the òne that we did more of every day all colours.Great memories of those days.
Raleigh made some decent bikes back then. Pretty good build quality. I wouldn't take a Raleigh as a gift now, the build quality and design are both shit. In fact all the British marks are way behind the curve now. Ridgeback, Razorback, Raleigh. Last 3 bikes I've had were Giant, before that a Marin, before that a Ridgeback (one of their top models) After the Ridgeback I said to myself, never buying another British made bike. Poor build quality (comparative) really old, behind the times design and expensive for what they are. Not good value for money. It's only tariffs on imports since Brexit that's made them viable.....even then, Giant.
I have a purple (ultra violet) 76 Mk2, I was on holiday in Holland ten years ago & it was on a blokes drive for sale, I paid him five hundred quid for it, Its in superb condition especially the chrome, I took it to the Silverstone classic car weekend a couple of years ago, I couldn`t ride it more than ten yards without someone wanting pics, it got more attention than the millions of pounds worth of classic Ferrari`s, Lambo`s, Aston Martins etc....
@@tonycardall7334 I had a mk1 in yellow.... why did your older brother have a grifter? I'm only asking cos I thought the chopper was bigger and cooler in the 70s?
Couldn't agree more Rebekah. They say that possessions aren't important in life but sometimes I think they can be the foundation of treasured memories 😁👍
I had the purple mk2 in 1973 and I really loved it, and I have now just bought two mk4 chopper's the red chopper and fizzy lemon chopper, and are my love and joy and brings back great memories
Had 3 or 4 Choppers from about 1980-84, my mates dad in our street used to bring them home from the local tip and i'd buy them off him for a fiver a time. Nothing wrong with them bar say a puncture or a new 3-speed toggle chain for the gears then good to go. Great bike and memories and used to carry a few kids on them at one time and then the BMX came along 🤣
Saw a beautiful mark 1 in Scarborough last summer in red..Was talking to the guy who said he would never sell it no matter what the price..A beautiful bike that takes me back to my youth.Everyone who could afford it had a Chopper or a Grifter..I unfortunately never owned either but love them both..❤
@@antiquescentral I suppose there is always a price but he had already been offered silly money he was adamant he wouldn’t sell, but I suppose you can never say never..It was all original and the first thing I noticed was the longer seat without the passenger band on..Thanks for the video 🫶🏽
Mine was a 1968 model painted in metallic purple, with a seat white on the sides with a sparkling metallic purple vinyl top. Shimano 3 gear T-bar similar to this, and white walled tyres…simply stunning, and oh so 1968!
How times have changed🤷♂️. Back then, you got presents at Christmas and on your birthday, and at no other time. These days, it’s Christmas nearly every day for the kids. 😭
I had a red one as a kid in the early seventies. One of my best childhood memories. I was the only one in my northern Icelandic town. I could do acrobatics on that bike that nobody could copy. Never had a serious mishap.
I remember these ha usually in red There was also the grifter, and boxer and of course bmx came along...if you had a mongoose or skyway ta..ohhh When Britain was still British
@@antiquescentral Nice one, what memories , I was a very small child during this time born 67 , These bikes were around when shakeboards came onto the scene, within a year the council resurfaced the very smooth tarmac ( great for skate boards and bikes ) to rough gravel . lol spoil sports
So right we know now allrigjt I've allready told my kids you've never had the childhood I had we all had the same nothing but we made do and it was fun coming off a council estate we was so happy
@@paulnicholls1074you said it👍. We knew how to play back then. Council estates were just one big playground. There wasn’t anything you couldn’t climb on or hang from, jump over or hide in😊. Metal slides, roundabouts and death defying swings😄
I have a beautiful, restored, fizzy lemon Raleigh chopper Mk2 from 76/3 with high-rise cissy bar ,rear mud flap, period correct new old stock ever ready lights and a mileometer on the front forks it lives in my spare bedroom under a bike cover.
The greatest chopper bicycle of them all was the one from Norway, *DBS Tomahawk Chopper* made from 71 to 73. It had 2-handle drumbrakes, speed-o-meter, fatter rear wheel, taller seat leaning bars, cooler handlebar, cooler gear stick. It really outshined the english and american choppers!
@@antiquescentral The bike is very rare, and the production was forced to stop due to all the accidents from failed wheelies. Several pictures of the bike are missing original parts as the cool head light, speed-o-meter and the original rear tyre. I think the original rear tyre was a slimmer moped tyre if Im not mistaken (I will try to find a picture of a complete original bike if you are interested)
I had a bright red one, loved it, Even after I caught my thumb in the cog, while trying to wheel the bike along, sitting on it, & trying to reach down & guide the chain back onto the cog, My dad had to turn the cog one full rotation, to get my squashed thumb out, & off to hospital we went, I was back on the bike with a bandaged thumb the next day😁
56 yrs old, I wish i still had mine, it was second hand,red, not sure what mark it was,and before that i had a purple Tomahawk, the small version. I remember the grifter i didn't have one of those,i remember they were heavy, and then the film ET started BMX craze. I've still got an 80s BMX in the attic. Oh to be young again 😊
@@mikehunt-qr9so Yes mate I remember that,I probably did my first wheely on the Tomahawk, the big seat meant you would not slip off the back. Bringing it all back now 😊
This is the same model and colour as the one that I had in the seventies. I would take any color now but if I could get a yellow one to take back to my original house I grew up in, that would be my dream come true
That price range for Chopper bikes was unrealistic for a lot of us kids and we had to just make the best with second hand gear whatever we could get our hands on.
Best description that I recently read about the Raleigh Chopper was "cool, but basically unrideable". I lusted after one in the early 70s, but it was a green Raleigh 20 my steed.
I had a purple chopper 😂... Seriously i remember my Dad took me after school one day it was about 1977 to rhe shop as came back in a taxi with my Brand new bike , it had wonderful chrome Guards etc. Happy Days.
I had a Chipper & a Tomahawk as a kid but progressed to a Dawes dropped handlebar racer & never got to owning a Chopper unfortunately !! I remember my mate had 1 & the padding came off of the front of the seat exposing a metal plate, he had a epic crash riding around the park & the plate ripped half of his calf open, happy days.
Still got mine which was a Christmas present in 1975 .... MK2 & purple. Not practical at all but how I loved it! Needs a fair bit of TLC now but not sure if I should sell it or pump tyres up & embarrass myself. Great days indeed.
Not fun for anyone on the front either if you hit a curb or slammed the breaks on and either their Jack 'n' Danny or Meat 'n' two Veg rammed into the Choppers gearstick. Used to have 3-4 kids getting what we called backies (free ride/lift) on our Choppers.
Had an orange Mk1 and never had an issue with the gear lever. As I got older and wanted a 'proper' bike, the Chopper disappeared one day and was replace by a Freddie Grubb Galibier racing bike, which I rode from Durham to Cornwall and back in 1976, aged 16. And that bike, I still have,
I loved mine and it was a Christmas present the first and the last brand new bike I ever had and I thought I was in heaven.the seventy’s great times we didn’t have a pot to piss in but some how I got a chopper 😊
I had a mk2 1974 metallic green one with raised white letter writing on the back tyre. Loved that colour. I remember i was considering a red one but the green was a standout. I thought l was the man for an 8yo.
Family brought mine to Australia in our furniture container when we emigrated. Ozzy kids were very impressed. Too hot to pedal this purple monster to school. Got a 10 speed racer 👍🏼
@@antiquescentral My purple chopper had 3 gears, way too hard to pedal. I was lucky enough to get a Malvin Star 10 speed road racer when I got to high school. Australian kids had stripped down bikes (no brakes) you would have to wedge the toe of your sand shoe between the seat stem and the back wheel 😬 to stop.
@antiquescentral true that mate. Made up 3 in all. But all seemed to have the gear shift removed. I don't know anyone who wore the front tyre out lol. Replaced a few back ones though
Great video I did bid on chopper I believe it's one of those items that will never diminish like corgi /dinky any quality toys really I see that 1990s toys and bikes like the BMX are fetching serious money now
Currently better than putting money in the bank! Although, prices can go up and down and they could go out of fashion once everyone who wants one has got one!
I had a pink 5gear chopper which my parents bought an an auction in the late 70’s for 5£, Probably worth a fortune now, i knew no one else had one but did not realise how rare it was. Wished i had of kept it.
@@antiquescentral I had (still got) a purple MK2 & they were the most iconic bicycle ever. But talking of iconic I grew up & still live in Peter Powell's old cottage & his stunt kites were on every kids wish list also.
the lad i grew up with mother won 11-000 pounds on the pools coupon football scores? She bought him a brand new chopper bike in purple ? i was soooooo jealous !!!!
I rebuilt one, MK3, back the late 90's, Melbourne, it was red, Asked my friend to store it for me as I had about 12 other choppers, and Malvernstar's. Anyway, never saw him again. back then it fetched $4-700+, depending on how clean it was. now days up to $1500+ Some second best friend he turned out to be.
My sister had one!!! It was purple. She got it in 1972. I got the dragster. I was younger! These were either imported to Australia or I'm pretty sure made by Malvern Star or Repco in Oz.
@antiquescentral I looked at the photos and I would say pretty much to. What I think happened is the manufacturers would go overseas for the latest crazes and designs and make them in their respective countries. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it all started in the US. You'd see these bikes on episodes of The Brady Bunch etc.
I used to do taxi rides on mine due to the long seat. The only thing of importance to mention here is that during the 70's we also wore flared trousers, and they were notorious for getting caught up in the chain. A very heavy bike for long distances, comes with water blisters.
I had a purple one with a dynamo, the worst lights ever. Anyone remember anybody mixing a Chopper and Grifter together. My pal built one just before the Rally burner BMX came out, i was in 1st/2nd yr high school in around 82 at a guess.
I inherited a purple chopper from the next door neighbors kids back in the day. But before that , I had the little brother to the chopper, the tomahawk.
Such great times, we had sawdust on butchers floors, coal lorries, smoking 🚬 carriages and pride. Thanks to lack of technology and Google we had all the time in the world 🌎, plenty of time to ride our bikes 🚲
I was fortunate enough to buy a worse for wear, beat up rusted Chopper bike for £2 from a schoolmate a year older than me, back in 78-79, I had saved up the funds from my school dinner money.. I had some enjoyable times with that Chopper bike, but then I eventually sold it for about £5, after I had fixed it up to the best of my abilities, I was only about 10 or 11 years old at the time..
@@antiquescentral Yes, I did make a profit, easy come easy go as they say, but I slightly always regretted selling it after because I knew Chopper bikes were expensive brand new so I kind of knew they were getting a great deal, but I was persuaded that it was a good deal to sell by the guys who were a few years older than me, they were good friends of the family, but were on the wrong side of the law at times, sadly they both passed away quite young, they were great guys..
This brings back memory's, i was born in 77 and had to settle for a Grifter as my older brothers mark2 was gathering rust in the shed and he would not let me fix her up....that would had been ab out 1986, sadly i think he let the scrap man take her away just to be a pr$ck....brotherly love lol. Iconic times that one wishes we could rewind to, life was different then .
Mine was orange , with black lettering. It also had lights , a red bullet light on the back and a headlight on the front. It had a front wheel hub dynamo to power the lights as you road it. So it was a 1974 or 75 model. None of the choppers shown had that.
@ Hi , it was a factory Raleigh Chopper made in the UK. It was bought from the EX , stands for European Exchange at CFB Baden Soellingen In Germany around 74 or 75 . That was Canadian Forces Base in Germany. It’s long since been closed now and the airport was privatized. Seeing your video and how much they go for was amazing. Although it was a mark 1 , probably the most rare. Just to add , the EX is where all the Canadian personal and families went to shop. It was on base and had everything, groceries, toys , everything you needed .
Me and my brother wanted one, I got a rsw14, my brother got a tomahawk, but a lot of kids said they where uncomfortable to ride, I think this is where the trend started where you got to have what everyone had, but as kids if parents couldn't afford it you got on with it, now kids want the latest phones trainers, clothes and us stupid parents go into debt for them
I've been waiting ages for a Raleigh Chopper to come up for auction at my local pop up auction and here it is! Check out the video and watch the live auction to see the amazing price it achieves! To watch other auction videos, check out the playlists and the Kew Gardens fifty pence in particular!
ruclips.net/video/1UlPfX9eahg/видео.html
@@antiquescentral they’re always on eBay, including mint reissued ones made over the last couple of years.
Apologies, I should have been more clear in my comment, I meant at my local pop up auction. I wanted to see what it went for compared to online 😁👍.
I got a second hand one about 1975 paid a fiver for it,took a lot of effort to get it going at a resonable speed but still good fun.
I worked at Raleigh in the 70s my job was fitting the front forks on all bikes and the Chopper was the òne that we did more of every day all colours.Great memories of those days.
I suspect you are the envy of quite a few people 😁👍
Well, thank you for your service😄.
THEY MUST OF MADE THOUSANDS OF THESE BIKE
If you watch my latest video you will find out how many they made 😁👍
Raleigh made some decent bikes back then. Pretty good build quality. I wouldn't take a Raleigh as a gift now, the build quality and design are both shit. In fact all the British marks are way behind the curve now. Ridgeback, Razorback, Raleigh. Last 3 bikes I've had were Giant, before that a Marin, before that a Ridgeback (one of their top models) After the Ridgeback I said to myself, never buying another British made bike. Poor build quality (comparative) really old, behind the times design and expensive for what they are. Not good value for money. It's only tariffs on imports since Brexit that's made them viable.....even then, Giant.
My wife loves her chopper she rides it most days. I love watching her ride away
😳
i bet you do🤣🤣🤣
I bet it was a wee Budgie she was riding as your Chopper was always flat and too tyred.😛
@leeoliver7151 Any more information you would like to share, videos, stories etc?
Steady! 😂
I have a purple (ultra violet) 76 Mk2, I was on holiday in Holland ten years ago & it was on a blokes drive for sale, I paid him five hundred quid for it, Its in superb condition especially the chrome, I took it to the Silverstone classic car weekend a couple of years ago, I couldn`t ride it more than ten yards without someone wanting pics, it got more attention than the millions of pounds worth of classic Ferrari`s, Lambo`s, Aston Martins etc....
Brilliant story and a great investment! 😁👍
I had the yellow one. The 2nd gear notoriously slipped regularly, hence bruised plums! Great memories!
@@johnjo7778 You can say that again! 🤣👍
😂😂😂😂I had the same problem...
That brings back memories i remember smashing myself to pieces many times.I had a red one.🤣👍
@ripvanwincle2258 💪💪💪🤗
Infra Red?
I had a purple one, my brother had a tomahawk and sister had a chipper. My older brother had the Raleigh grifter. All great bikes.
Gone but not forgotten 😁👍
@tonycardall7334 mine was purple too 💜
@@tonycardall7334 I had a mk1 in yellow.... why did your older brother have a grifter? I'm only asking cos I thought the chopper was bigger and cooler in the 70s?
Wish i still had mine, not for it's value but because i loved it.
Well said Shaun! 😁👍
Got a chopper with my paper round money colour yellow best bicycle when l was a kid.👍
I think you'd have to have a big paper round nowadays to afford a Chopper? 😁👍
I have owned a chopper as well, the best looking design I have ever seen till this day.
Great memories.
Can't argue with you there! 😁
I had one loved this bike got it in 1970 chopper mk1 grate memories
Couldn't agree more Rebekah. They say that possessions aren't important in life but sometimes I think they can be the foundation of treasured memories 😁👍
I had the purple mk2 in 1973 and I really loved it, and I have now just bought two mk4 chopper's the red chopper and fizzy lemon chopper, and are my love and joy and brings back great memories
Excellent John. I'm sure you will love owning the two MK4s 😁👍
Miss mine as well. Delivered a lot of news papers with it! Great Times!
Had 3 or 4 Choppers from about 1980-84, my mates dad in our street used to bring them home from the local tip and i'd buy them off him for a fiver a time. Nothing wrong with them bar say a puncture or a new 3-speed toggle chain for the gears then good to go. Great bike and memories and used to carry a few kids on them at one time and then the BMX came along 🤣
Fiver a shot, that's a result 😁👍
I would of been in heaven Fantasic store thankyou for sharing that brilliant .
if the toggle chain was broken you only had 3rd gear so we used an old spoke and it threaded in perfect just bend it over wen you got the right gear
I had a Grifter, it was like a tank. I loved it.
Definitely a solid bike! 😁👍
Still got my purple Tomahawk chopper , just love it !
Excellent! Can you still ride it? 😁👍
Saw a beautiful mark 1 in Scarborough last summer in red..Was talking to the guy who said he would never sell it no matter what the price..A beautiful bike that takes me back to my youth.Everyone who could afford it had a Chopper or a Grifter..I unfortunately never owned either but love them both..❤
I wonder if there was a price that would have tempted him? 😁👍
@@antiquescentral I suppose there is always a price but he had already been offered silly money he was adamant he wouldn’t sell, but I suppose you can never say never..It was all original and the first thing I noticed was the longer seat without the passenger band on..Thanks for the video 🫶🏽
Ive just bought an unrestored fizzy lemon for £750! Good to know the price was right on!
Bang on the right price, nice job 😁👍
Mine was a 1968 model painted in metallic purple, with a seat white on the sides with a sparkling metallic purple vinyl top. Shimano 3 gear T-bar similar to this, and white walled tyres…simply stunning, and oh so 1968!
DFid you paint it yourself or did it come in that paint job? 😁
Born in 65 i upgraded while I grew up , what a time to live .
I agree, great time to be a kid in the UK 😁👍
Mine was £36. Combined Birthday and Christmas present. And more than a couple of weeks of my dad’s wages!
Makes you realise the sacrifices a lot of parents made for us as kids! 😁👍
How times have changed🤷♂️. Back then, you got presents at Christmas and on your birthday, and at no other time. These days, it’s Christmas nearly every day for the kids. 😭
You're right about the Christmas bike! 😁
Crapiest bike I ever owned, I loved it ❤
It was even worse than the 15 ton Grifter.
I remember falling off mine more than I stayed on it! Still have the scars to show for it 🤣👍
Grifter was a tank...think about 9 i had one😂
Lol Raleigh Striker! Back pedal braking and tormenting skateboarders!
The Raleigh Bommer was way ahead of its time, such a comfortable ride.
Will have to check out the Raleigh Bommer? 👍
I had a red one as a kid in the early seventies. One of my best childhood memories. I was the only one in my northern Icelandic town. I could do acrobatics on that bike that nobody could copy. Never had a serious mishap.
You must have had good balance! 👍
I remember these ha usually in red
There was also the grifter, and boxer and of course bmx came along...if you had a mongoose or skyway ta..ohhh
When Britain was still British
A couple of those bikes mentioned will be included in the next video 😁👍
Skyway TA was the nuts 😂
Will look it up! 👍
I had a red one. Loved it. These days Starmer would probably ban these.
Maybe the blue ones! 🤣
But he’d have no problem Lord Alli buying a bunch of them for his kids - even the one we’re not supposed to know about (allegedly).
You also had to look down to change gear. Way to dangerous these days😂
Health and safety rules now! 😇
I had one in red , happy days
I can't remember what happened to mine, also red! 😁👍
I had the Raleigh Grifter bk in 1980 my friend had the chopper..The good ole days.
Yes, happy days!
I had a chopper, but I never had any problems with the gear shift.
Loved it!
I remember sliding onto it several times ... not fun! 🤪 🤣👍
@@antiquescentral Maybe you should've used the back brake first 🤣🤣🤣
You may well have a good point there! 🤣👍
had the purple
loved it so much
Excellent choice! 😁
Great bikes, I had one of these as a kid and you could carry a friend on the back, and don't forget the chipper
Hi Steve. The next video is a rundown of the top six kids bikes of the 70s and 80s! 😁👍
@@antiquescentral Nice one, what memories , I was a very small child during this time born 67 , These bikes were around when shakeboards came onto the scene, within a year the council resurfaced the very smooth tarmac ( great for skate boards and bikes ) to rough gravel . lol spoil sports
That sounds typical of the council! 🤣
Had a Chopper Sprint back in 1972.
Was that the version with the dropped handlebars?
@@antiquescentral Yes it was. Think it had a slightly different frame and a smaller back wheel.
Yes it was more rare.
Had 1 in 1970 you couldn't beat this fantastic time in life orange in colour loved it if you was born in the early 60s we was blessed
Don't think we realised how lucky we were back in the 60s 😁👍.
So right we know now allrigjt I've allready told my kids you've never had the childhood I had we all had the same nothing but we made do and it was fun coming off a council estate we was so happy
@@paulnicholls1074you said it👍. We knew how to play back then. Council estates were just one big playground. There wasn’t anything you couldn’t climb on or hang from, jump over or hide in😊. Metal slides, roundabouts and death defying swings😄
I have a beautiful, restored, fizzy lemon Raleigh chopper Mk2 from 76/3 with high-rise cissy bar ,rear mud flap, period correct new old stock ever ready lights and a mileometer on the front forks it lives in my spare bedroom under a bike cover.
Fantastic Peter. I wish I'd kept my red MK2 from 1973! 😁👍
The greatest chopper bicycle of them all was the one from Norway, *DBS Tomahawk Chopper* made from 71 to 73.
It had 2-handle drumbrakes, speed-o-meter, fatter rear wheel, taller seat leaning bars, cooler handlebar, cooler gear stick.
It really outshined the english and american choppers!
Will check it out 😁👍
@@antiquescentral The bike is very rare, and the production was forced to stop due to all the accidents from failed wheelies. Several pictures of the bike are missing original parts as the cool head light, speed-o-meter and the original rear tyre. I think the original rear tyre was a slimmer moped tyre if Im not mistaken
(I will try to find a picture of a complete original bike if you are interested)
Yes please, that would be really interesting. Thanks. All my contact details are on my website, antiquescentral.co.uk
@@antiquescentral There is also a video of the DBS Tomahawk chopper on youtube, but they are not 100% original
I'm old enough to remember when those were new in the early 70s. Also old enough to remember the Schwinn Krate bikes when they were new as well..
Were there many Schwinn bikes in the UK?
I had a bright red one, loved it,
Even after I caught my thumb in the cog, while trying to wheel the bike along, sitting on it, & trying to reach down & guide the chain back onto the cog,
My dad had to turn the cog one full rotation, to get my squashed thumb out, & off to hospital we went,
I was back on the bike with a bandaged thumb the next day😁
Great story, albeit with a squashed thumb! 😁👍
@@antiquescentral I’m 55yrs now, my thumb nail is still damaged from it,
Those were the days though👍😁
I used to have a metallic blue Chopper back in the late 70's.
Do you remember what happened to it? 😁👍
My parents couldn’t afford to buy me a chopper so i got a tracker bike..great days to be alive 🏴🇮🇪
Happy days! 😁
had a green one in NZ when i was a kid. Loved it.
Were there many in New Zealand? 😁👍
This was sold at a very low price compare to what they are chasing in Australia.Im on the hunt for what was so much a part of my life. ❤❤❤❤
What kind of prices do they sell for in Australia? 😁👍
56 yrs old, I wish i still had mine, it was second hand,red, not sure what mark it was,and before that i had a purple Tomahawk, the small version. I remember the grifter i didn't have one of those,i remember they were heavy, and then the film ET started BMX craze. I've still got an 80s BMX in the attic. Oh to be young again 😊
Can't argue with any of that. If only we had a time machine! Well done for hanging on to your 80s BMX!
@mycolliesandme268 tomahawk light as a feather cracking wheelies u could do choppa straight over handle bars
@@mikehunt-qr9so Yes mate I remember that,I probably did my first wheely on the Tomahawk, the big seat meant you would not slip off the back. Bringing it all back now 😊
Don’t forget the Chipper in between the two.
@steveblack610 weren't 1 called a Budgie aswell
I used to live in Widnes, I always remember chopper Smith, he had one in black and white, same as his cloths, and supported Widnes rugby team.
I wonder where Chopper Smith is now?
Bloody lethal going fast downhill 😂
Yes, as I can testify to ... a faceful of gravel later! 😁👍
@@billb4089 Yup. That small front wheel starts getting a life of its own.🤕
You can say that again! 🤣👍
This is the same model and colour as the one that I had in the seventies. I would take any color now but if I could get a yellow one to take back to my original house I grew up in, that would be my dream come true
If any more come up for auction, I'll let the community know. Consider subscribing so you don't miss out on future uploads😁👍.
That price range for Chopper bikes was unrealistic for a lot of us kids and we had to just make the best with second hand gear whatever we could get our hands on.
Very true Graham. I remember a lot of chopped up hybrid bikes made to look like Choppers back in the day. It was urban design artwork in itself! 😁👍
Used to get a backie off me mate from school in 81, 82 was great.
Best ever bike for backies? 👍
Ahhh, the good old backie👏🏼. You could also sit in the front handlebars . Or I should say, in between the bars😄.
I think we were all stunt riders back then!?
Oh yes!! Making ramps and seeing how many of your friends you could jump over. Evil knievel was big back in the day 😄
@jameskavanagh4315 I think everyone was a mini Evel Knievel!
I had a Raleigh chipper in that same colour, I remember so clearly riding around my cul de sac on it whilst eating a curlywurly, great times!
They should bring curlywurlys back! 👍
had one same colour second hand.loved it.
Quite a rare colour apparently? 😁👍
Best description that I recently read about the Raleigh Chopper was "cool, but basically unrideable". I lusted after one in the early 70s, but it was a green Raleigh 20 my steed.
I wouldn't argue with that! 🤣👍
I had a purple chopper 😂... Seriously i remember my Dad took me after school one day it was about 1977 to rhe shop as came back in a taxi with my Brand new bike , it had wonderful chrome Guards etc. Happy Days.
Fantastic memories Terry. It was more than a bike to many people 😁👍
I had a Chipper & a Tomahawk as a kid but progressed to a Dawes dropped handlebar racer & never got to owning a Chopper unfortunately !! I remember my mate had 1 & the padding came off of the front of the seat exposing a metal plate, he had a epic crash riding around the park & the plate ripped half of his calf open, happy days.
Ouch! That sounds painful! 👍
Still got mine which was a Christmas present in 1975 .... MK2 & purple. Not practical at all but how I loved it! Needs a fair bit of TLC now but not sure if I should sell it or pump tyres up & embarrass myself. Great days indeed.
I'd get your pump out if I were you! 😊👍
I had some of my best times on this bike in the 1970 in blue with three gears
I haven't received a negative comment about the Chopper yet, incredibly popular 😁👍.
Sturmey Archer 3 speed gears happy days. A bike from the same era seems to be forgotten about and that was the Dragster another beauty.
Was it a Raleigh?
Not so good being on the back when doing a wheelie goes horribly wrong 🤣Great times!❤️
I can only imagine 🤣👍
Not fun for anyone on the front either if you hit a curb or slammed the breaks on and either their Jack 'n' Danny or Meat 'n' two Veg rammed into the Choppers gearstick. Used to have 3-4 kids getting what we called backies (free ride/lift) on our Choppers.
I remember it well! 🤪😁👍
Had an orange Mk1 and never had an issue with the gear lever. As I got older and wanted a 'proper' bike, the Chopper disappeared one day and was replace by a Freddie Grubb Galibier racing bike, which I rode from Durham to Cornwall and back in 1976, aged 16. And that bike, I still have,
Amazing to think that your 'new' bike is almost fifty years old! 😁👍
@@antiquescentral Let's just say that is 'showing it's age', but it is on the list for a resto!
I loved mine and it was a Christmas present the first and the last brand new bike I ever had and I thought I was in heaven.the seventy’s great times we didn’t have a pot to piss in but some how I got a chopper 😊
I think my infra red MK2 Chopper was the last bike I owned as well 😁👍
I had a mk2 1974 metallic green one with raised white letter writing on the back tyre. Loved that colour. I remember i was considering a red one but the green was a standout. I thought l was the man for an 8yo.
Definitely a stand out colour, brilliant! 😁
Family brought mine to Australia in our furniture container when we emigrated.
Ozzy kids were very impressed.
Too hot to pedal this purple monster to school. Got a 10 speed racer 👍🏼
Emigrated in 1974. Your video brought back many childhood memories.
Thank you 🙏🏼
The ten speed Chopper was the rarest bike out there! 😁👍
@@antiquescentral
My purple chopper had 3 gears, way too hard to pedal. I was lucky enough to get a Malvin Star 10 speed road racer when I got to high school.
Australian kids had stripped down bikes (no brakes) you would have to wedge the toe of your sand shoe between the seat stem and the back wheel 😬 to stop.
I see now! 😁 I always get the impression it's very flat terrain in Australia, good for a racer?! 👍
its nice to read i was not the only kid that grew up with a purple one, mom n dad could not afford a new one , so i got some girls purple one....
You definitely weren't on your own 😁👍
I’ve got one boxed up brand new in yellow in my dads loft. Never put together!
Marvellous!!! 😉👌🏻
I suspect your bike might be unique?! 😁👍
@@antiquescentralcertainly think that after watching this mate. I’ll get it out for the First time in 50 years not touching it though!
I'd be very careful passing it down from the loft! 😁🤞👍
And don’t let the kids near it.
Definitely! 🤣👍
I recently bought a beige 1980 Record Ace for £85. I love it!
That's a great buy!
Mine was red ,loved it
Same as mine, infra red 😁👍
mk1 i had and was the best model. it had a longer seat for 2 up riding and had adjustable handelbars.
Great for backies! 😁👍
I had a Fastback 100 in the early 70's those were the days.
Excellent choice! Did you keep any photos from back in the day? My big regret is I can't find any of mine! 😁👍
I had the purple one. Bloody loved it
Has to be the most iconic bicycle of the 20th century?
I had a O'brien (BSA) Panther. Very similar to the chopper. This was around 1974.
I'll look that make and model up. Sounds excellent! 😁👍
Used pull them out of rubbish dumps and do them up. Loved em.
Shame we can't still pull them out of skips! 😁👍
@antiquescentral true that mate. Made up 3 in all. But all seemed to have the gear shift removed. I don't know anyone who wore the front tyre out lol. Replaced a few back ones though
Great memories. It's amazing the impact these bikes had on our lives as kids! 😁👍
Great video I did bid on chopper I believe it's one of those items that will never diminish like corgi /dinky any quality toys really I see that 1990s toys and bikes like the BMX are fetching serious money now
Currently better than putting money in the bank! Although, prices can go up and down and they could go out of fashion once everyone who wants one has got one!
I had a pink 5gear chopper which my parents bought an an auction in the late 70’s for 5£, Probably worth a fortune now, i knew no one else had one but did not realise how rare it was. Wished i had of kept it.
£5!!! What would a pink Chopper be worth now?! 👍
I never had one but I built my own chopper..you could buy parts every bike shop.
Excellent! Did you give your bike a name back in the day? 😁👍
My big bro had a yellow mark 1. A thing of beauty. I’d a tomahawk 😂😂😂
Did you ever get the Chopper when he outgrew it?
Mark 1 Pumpkin Orange for me. What a machine, it was a glorious time!
Do you think they were the most iconic bicycle ever made? 😁👍
@@antiquescentral Without a doubt!
@@antiquescentral I had (still got) a purple MK2 & they were the most iconic bicycle ever. But talking of iconic I grew up & still live in Peter Powell's old cottage & his stunt kites were on every kids wish list also.
I wonder if Peter Powell ever got confused with the radio DJ?
the lad i grew up with mother won 11-000 pounds on the pools coupon football scores? She bought him a brand new chopper bike in purple ? i was soooooo jealous !!!!
What a great memory in every respect. Hope you eventually got your Chopper?
I rebuilt one, MK3, back the late 90's, Melbourne, it was red, Asked my friend to store it for me as I had about 12 other choppers, and Malvernstar's.
Anyway, never saw him again. back then it fetched $4-700+, depending on how clean it was. now days up to $1500+
Some second best friend he turned out to be.
We live and learn, especially about people! 😏😁👍
My sister had one!!! It was purple. She got it in 1972. I got the dragster. I was younger! These were either imported to Australia or I'm pretty sure made by Malvern Star or Repco in Oz.
Were the Malvern Star bikes identical to the Raleigh Choppers?
@antiquescentral I looked at the photos and I would say pretty much to. What I think happened is the manufacturers would go overseas for the latest crazes and designs and make them in their respective countries. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it all started in the US. You'd see these bikes on episodes of The Brady Bunch etc.
Yes, I'm sure it was all inspired by the US Chopper motorbike scene? 😁👍
I used to do taxi rides on mine due to the long seat. The only thing of importance to mention here is that during the 70's we also wore flared trousers, and they were notorious for getting caught up in the chain. A very heavy bike for long distances, comes with water blisters.
Great memories and the flares, the wider the better! 😁👍.
I had a yellow mk2 exactly the same back then, but i dropped it and bent the pedal in and it hit the guard. God i wished i had kept it.
How we all wish we'd kept them! 😁👍
I had the exact one except in bright orange which was released in Canada; loved it, it was cool as hell.
Were they popular in Canada compared to Canadian and US bicycles? 😁👍
I had a blue mark 2, best bike for wheelies and croggies.
What's a croggie? 🤣👍😁
I wanted one in the early 70s but got a racing bike for xmas instead it was much faster than my mates choppers 😁
And a lot safer at speed! 😁👍
I had a purple one with a dynamo, the worst lights ever. Anyone remember anybody mixing a Chopper and Grifter together. My pal built one just before the Rally burner BMX came out, i was in 1st/2nd yr high school in around 82 at a guess.
Sounds like an interesting hybrid! What would you have called it? 🤔 😁👍
I inherited a purple chopper from the next door neighbors kids back in the day. But before that , I had the little brother to the chopper, the tomahawk.
I think we all wish we could inherit one now! 😁👍
@@antiquescentraldinky toys , choppers. Why did I throw them away when I got in my teens😭😭😭😂
If I had a time machine I'd only need to go back fifty years! 😁👍
If i had a quid for all the competitions I entered as a kid trying to win a chopper.. Never had one . Always wanted one.....
Yes, Raleigh got the look spot on, although it was a scary ride at times! 🤣😁👍
I had one. 2nd didn't work and it was slow compared to my friends. I miss it so much
I had a red one I put tow tank aerials on it, loved it and well missed
Sounds classic Glen! 😁👍
I was the coolest kid on the block with my yellow 3 speed chopper.
Without doubt! 😁
Such great times, we had sawdust on butchers floors, coal lorries, smoking 🚬 carriages and pride. Thanks to lack of technology and Google we had all the time in the world 🌎, plenty of time to ride our bikes 🚲
That sums it up very nicely! 😁👍
Yes, plus a lack of Big Brother, great music and freedoms the current generation and future generations cannot even dream about.
And we had Gordon Honeycomb presenting the 5.50 ITN news in his straight forward, non emotional manner just before a possible power strike😅
@@anthonycrumb5753 Agreed, different world back then!
@@QuoPaperPlane I remember those times well! 🤣😁👍
This is a mark 2 model, the original mark 1 had the knob gear selector and came in just 2 colours, the JCB Yellow and later, the tangerine orange.
Thanks for the information about the colours of the MK1 😁👍
I seem to remember the purple 3 speed raleigh chopper being the most common colour on my estate .
2 a penny that one was
By me, it was the infra red Chopper that was most common 😁👍
My yellow Chopper cost £34 new in the early 70s. Wish I still had it.
Join the club, wish I'd kept my Infra red! 😁👍
I was fortunate enough to buy a worse for wear, beat up rusted Chopper bike for £2 from a schoolmate a year older than me, back in 78-79, I had saved up the funds from my school dinner money..
I had some enjoyable times with that Chopper bike, but then I eventually sold it for about £5, after I had fixed it up to the best of my abilities, I was only about 10 or 11 years old at the time..
Great story and you made a profit! 😁👍
@@antiquescentral Yes, I did make a profit, easy come easy go as they say, but I slightly always regretted selling it after because I knew Chopper bikes were expensive brand new so I kind of knew they were getting a great deal, but I was persuaded that it was a good deal to sell by the guys who were a few years older than me, they were good friends of the family, but were on the wrong side of the law at times, sadly they both passed away quite young, they were great guys..
They altered the rear stays on the Mk2 because they used to break on Mk1, with kids riding 2 up 😊
I dread to think! 🤣👍
Had a red one in 78 a grifter then a burner. My mate here in NZ has 3 in his garage 2 red 1 green in mint condition too.
How we all wish now that we had kept them?! 😁👍
This brings back memory's, i was born in 77 and had to settle for a Grifter as my older brothers mark2 was gathering rust in the shed and he would not let me fix her up....that would had been ab out 1986, sadly i think he let the scrap man take her away just to be a pr$ck....brotherly love lol. Iconic times that one wishes we could rewind to, life was different then .
Real shame your brother didn't pass it on ☹. The Grifter is still an iconic bike for those born in the 70s 😁👍.
Mine was orange , with black lettering.
It also had lights , a red bullet light on the back and a headlight on the front. It had a front wheel hub dynamo to power the lights as you road it.
So it was a 1974 or 75 model. None of the choppers shown had that.
Thanks for sharing your memories, sounds like a unique bike. Did you add the accessories? 😁👍
@
Hi , it was a factory Raleigh Chopper made in the UK.
It was bought from the EX , stands for European Exchange at CFB Baden Soellingen In Germany around 74 or 75 . That was Canadian Forces Base in Germany. It’s long since been closed now and the airport was privatized. Seeing your video and how much they go for was amazing. Although it was a mark 1 , probably the most rare.
Just to add , the EX is where all the Canadian personal and families went to shop. It was on base and had everything, groceries, toys , everything you needed .
@universalhead Thanks for the information, fascinating ... and I've learnt something new! 😁👍
I remember that shifter😂, damn it I'm old
If you're anything like me, feels like yesterday! 😁👍
On the back of the success of the chopper came the Raleigh Chipper, a smaller version if the chopper for little kids.
Makes you wonder how Raleigh didn't build on the success of these bikes? 🤔
Me and my brother wanted one, I got a rsw14, my brother got a tomahawk, but a lot of kids said they where uncomfortable to ride, I think this is where the trend started where you got to have what everyone had, but as kids if parents couldn't afford it you got on with it, now kids want the latest phones trainers, clothes and us stupid parents go into debt for them
You might well have a good point there, I hadn't thought about it that way? 😁👍
2:23-2:24: funniest thing on RUclips for a long time! 😄
Trust me, it wasn't funny at the time! 🤣🤣🤣👍
@@antiquescentral 555 LOL 😆
I brought a blue 💙 chopper off a school friend for $60,convinced my parents, 👍😀Lol,hours of fun
Great buy! 😁👍