The coolest thing on two wheels in the 1970s was the Raleigh “Chopper” bicycle.
Every child of the ‘70s this author included, yearned after a one of these iconic bicycles which were built for several years in a factory at Hanover Quay, Dublin.
The Raleigh Bicycle Company was founded in 1885 in Nottingham, England and is among the world’s oldest bicycle manufacturers. Renamed The Raleigh Cycle Company after its acquisition by Frank Bowden in 1887, by 1913 the company had grown to become the largest bicycle manufacturer in the world.
RALEIGH IN IRELAND
Raleigh has a long history in Ireland. Beginning around 1936, Beaty & Crabe motor factors on Liffey Street in central Dublin held the franchise for assembling Raleigh bikes. Throughout the Emergency (WW2), the Dublin factory kept producing bicycles while the Nottingham facility transitioned from bike production to wartime manufacturing. In 1944, the company crossed the River Liffey and relocated to York Street.
By 1952, this factory was set to close, as plans were underway for the opening, eighteen months later of a brand new Raleigh factory on Hanover Quay. During the construction of the Hanover Quay factory, several employees and apprentices were relocated to Nottingham. The Hanover Quay facility was eventually completed and opened in late 1953, at which point the newly trained apprentices returned to Dublin.
THE CHOPPER IS BORN
In the 1967 Raleigh sent their chief designer Alan Oakley to America for a three week fact-finding mission, when there he was inspired by the 1962 designed American Schwinn “Stingray” bicycle and also by the craze amongst children there for customising their bikes. It was said that Oakley sketched his Raleigh Chopper on the back of an envelope on the way into Heathrow airport and in 1969 Raleigh launched their own version the Chopper (Mk1) and a whole new segment of the market was opened up.
In the following years, there was controversy surrounding the true originator of the Chopper, with Tom Karen of OGLE Design claiming the Chopper as his own. However, it wasn’t until Alan Oakley’s archives were made public and his famous envelope sketch was discovered that the truth emerged and it was then widely acknowledged that Oakley was indeed the original inspiration behind the Raleigh Chopper. Oakley’s archive confirmed that in 1969 the product brief was offered to an outside design firm, OGLE Design and Tom Karen, who then designed the Chopper.
CHOPPER DESIGN
Launched firstly in the USA and then later in the UK and Ireland Alan Oakley’s Chopper sold for £34.00 equivalent to £563.79 today – a princely sum!
Differing from the American Schwinn Stingray the Raleigh Chopper had a fully sprung “L-bucket dragstar saddle”, taller “ape hanger” handlebars a “suicide” 3-speed Sturmey-Archer gear-change on the crossbar and a sissy bar straight out of the Easy Rider movie.
There was a very small front wheel and a large rear wheel reminiscent of a scrambler tyre, both of these were a departure from what was considered a normal bicycle design at that time. The ‘70s cues continued with fat red-walled tyres, blinging chrome mudguards, a rear reflector that looked like a brake light from a motorcycle and a fake rear disc-brake and all finished off with a kick-stand.
All of these design features shouted “I am a rebel” and every child in the world wanted one!
For all the street-cred of riding a Chopper, it did take some considerable practice to keep the bike upright and the “ape-hanger” handlebars in a straight line while you changed gears, you really did not want to fall off while looking so cool.
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CHOPPER Mk2
The Chopper Mk2 was launched in 1972 and addressed some of the design elements such as unwanted wheelies that frequently occurred with the Mk1.The Mk2 seat had a warning label stating that in no uncertain terms that “This bicycle is not constructed to carry passengers”. As this author can attest, the dragster saddle could easily hold a friend and as we often did as kids hold several friends. I can remember cycling around our street with up to six of us on the Chopper far exceeding Alan Oakley’s design parameters – great times!
The MK 2 Chopper, manufactured from 1973 to 1985, propelled the bike to great success, selling millions worldwide. In the 1980s, it played a pivotal role in rescuing Raleigh from near-bankruptcy. The Chopper was built at Hanover Quay Dublin, Raleigh headquarters in Nottingham, England and The Springs Plant in South Africa.
COLLECTABLE IRISH CHOPPERS
According to Irish Raleigh Chopper collector Les Deasy the bicycles were assembled in the Hanover Quay factory only as the orders were placed. Les has told us that there were several Dublin-built bikes that would be considered rare today such as the 1976 Platinum and Hot Pink painted bikes.
According to Les; “several Hundred Platinum’s were produced and, they are still rare enough but they do turn up today. The Hot Pink Choppers were a girls version and sold in tiny numbers. Only produced for two years, they appeared at what was an economically devastating time here in Ireland, with industrial disputes and strikes. This would explain why these bikes were preserved and some survive until today. Because they cost a month’s wages in real terms they were well minded.
The best examples of Irish bikes tend to be the Platinum painted bike, the others including the Mk1 from 71 to the Mk2’s ‘72 – ‘76 were often trashed and painted over. We did have the Black Prismatic painted bikes on sale here in Ireland however, these were all Nottingham-built bikes. The Platinum and Hot Pink Choppers were the last bikes to be made here.”
DUBLIN FACTORY FIRES
On July 29th 1977 there was a major fire in the Raleigh factory and according to an RTÉ News report on the day; ‘Nobody was hurt in the fire at a warehouse on Hanover Quay in Dublin. The 230 staff escaped the building before it was engulfed in flames. The fire started in the basement at noon and rapidly spread from a small storeroom throughout the building. Burning rubber and plastic released toxic fumes….It took six sections of Dublin Fire Brigade about three hours to bring the blaze under control.”
The factory resumed operations in February 1978. A second fire occurred at the facility the following June, but it resulted in only superficial damage, largely due to the implementation of a new automatic sprinkler system.
DEMISE OF THE CHOPPER
By the late 1970s, the Raleigh Dublin plant was considered economically inefficient, especially in comparison to the highly efficient Raleigh Plant in Nottingham. The Nottingham plant’s output was so substantial that just one week’s production could meet the demand of the Irish market for an entire year. Consequently, the Hanover Quay factory shut down, resulting in the loss of jobs for several hundred employees.
Until the BMX came along in the mid-1980s, the Chopper outsold all other bikes by 6 to 1 and sold an incredible 1.5 million units! In 2006, the Raleigh Chopper was listed as a British design icon in the Great British Design Quest organized by the BBC and the Design Museum.
In 2004, the legendary Raleigh Chopper made a comeback, marking thirty years since its debut. The updated Mk3 model featured a lighter aluminium frame, a redesigned seat to meet contemporary safety regulations and gear controls relocated to the handlebars. Despite these enhancements, sales were sluggish, leading to production ceasing in 2018.
Irish-built Raleigh bicycles lack the typical “Made in Nottingham” lettering on the head badge, often featuring instead a “Made in Eire” or “Made in the Republic of Ireland” mark. Irish built Choppers are highly sought after and a number of enthusiasts groups have been formed.
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Information Sources and Photo Credits:
BBC Archive
Cycling News
Irish Raleigh Chopper Club
Little Car
Mellors & Kirk Auction House
National Treasures – John Hughes
Pedalling Dreams the Raleigh Story – BBC4
Raleigh.com
Roots Chat – LUAS
Royal Irish Constabulary forum – Cyclistcollects
RTÉ News
Wiki – Raleigh Chopper
