Raleigh USA Bicycle Company Team

Price Paid:  $1800.00

Favorite Ride:
2003 Raleigh Team Heritage 62cm Campy Record 10

Bike Setup:
stock 2003 Raleight Team with Campy Record 10 double, aluminum record cranks, Selle italia SLR saddle, Vittoria Rubino Pro tires

Summary:
Beautiful, light weight, strong but supple frame, responsive but relatively soft ride, great component set. Record 10 group functions smoothly and flawlessly (my first campy bike after owning several shimano spec'd bikes). Eurus wheels are very strong and smooth. This bike has taken it in a year's worth of riding under my heavy ass (240 lbs) with no groaning or other problems---wish I could say the same about some of my other bikes.
Frame set looks like Pinarello without the expense.

Strengths:
Light weight, soft and supple ride. Plush component setup.

Weaknesses:
Not so fond of the Selle italia SLR seat (I should say my ass is not so fond of it). Otherwise no real issues. Wish it had come with Campy's carbon record cranks instead of the aluminum record.

Similar Products Used:
Cannondale R4000si D/A9, Raleigh R700 Ultegra triple

Price Paid:  $0.00

Bike Setup:
Stock except for Look 396 Pedals and Record Carbon Seatpost

Summary:
Outstanding value even at more money. Very light and responsive while Carbon fork and stays dampen road vibration. Only thing I've upgraded is seatpost to Campy Record Carbon. I had a difficult time finding the bike to buy and ended up getting it out of state. If you can find one. A tremendous bargain with all of the Campy components.

Strengths:
Component Group, light weight, responsive frame.

Price Paid:  $950.00

Favorite Ride:
mountains

Bike Setup:
56 cm, 110 mm stem, Record carbon gruppo,
Brooks Swift saddle, Sestrierre wheelset

Summary:
After owning Raleigh bikes for decades, including an '82 Team, I could not pass up on the 2002 version of Raleighs flagship model, the Team. I bought the frame, fork & headset, building it up w/ Campy Record & Rolf Sestrierre wheels. Adding a carbon bar, stem & seat post kept final weight at 17.2 lbs, yet under $2,500. Much less than the competition. The frame is constructed of Columbus Airplane ultra-light shaped aluminum, with a Columbus Carve carbon Seat stay & full carbon Carve Fork. A Columbus headset
holds it all together. This frame is identical to many bikes used in the pro peloton, like Fondriest & Pinarello. It's a european design, and quickly dominating all of the competition. If you are seeking a race quality frame for fast rides or for competition, this one is a bargain. Raleigh's Team is equal to any task.

Strengths:
Very light weight, yet laterally stiff. An excellent climber, smooth descender, the carbon slurps up the bumps. A very comfortable century ride. Has 2 bottle mounts & a pump peg!

Weaknesses:
Paint appears to be weak. One chain slap chipped the chainstay paint, causing it to flake off.This will need to be watched closely. Also, the welds are not as smooth as some I've seen. Strong, just lumpy looking.

Similar Products Used:
'82 Raleigh Team, '90 Raleigh Team, 3 Masi's, 2 Colnago's, etc..

Price Paid:  $2800.00 at Scat Bikes; Portsmou

Favorite Ride:
with the wind

Bike Setup:
59cm
switched from the 130mm stem to a 120mm
Cuissi Gel wb cages
18 lbs.!

Summary:
Raleigh really kicked it up a notch with thier new Heritage line. I went with the Team model for many reasons; the frame, Campy Record, and the price. The frame is a euro-design, super light aluminum mainframe with carbon rear stays and an 1 1/8" integrated headset. Campy Record is cool--nuff said. The price is way below anything else like it, $500-$800 less. The ride is silky smooth, absorbing virtually all of the road vibration and softening the bigger bumps. Out of the saddle the bike has little if any flex making it a wonderful sprinter. The paintjob is outstanding, I'm still trying to figure out if the lettering is painted on or if it is just a really good decal. Raleigh didn't specify a weight on the bike so I weighed it myself--18 lbs for a 59cm with waterbottle cages.

Strengths:
Price, Frame, Ride, Campy, Seat, Paint, Price, ...

Weaknesses:
The bike came with a cheap seatpost. I replaced it with a ITM Millenium to match the bars and stem. It also came with a Centaur cassette that just doesn't seem to do the Record components any justice. I havn't had any problems with the cassette, but I will certainly upgrade if it wears out.

Similar Products Used:
Schwinn Paramount, Lemond Zurich