Friday, January 27, 2012

Can anybody remember a bike similar to the 70`s Raleigh Chopper bicycle?

Many moons ago when i was a brat, my dad was in the Norwegian merchant navy as a Deck-hand and my uncle Axel was a boson. My dad and my uncle Axle brought home two bikes

for my cousin and myself that were very similar to the British "Chopper" bike but well before the Chopper hit the market. They were yellow and i`m sure they had the name "Dragster" The front tyre was fatter than the chopper and the seat back rest bar was not quite as high, if my memory is correct. I remember my cuz was about 2 yrs older than me, and he could ride his bike OK but my grandpa had to strap wooden blocks to the peddles even with the seat at its lowest point so my feet could reach! But even though our bikes were not Choppers, they were the envy of the local Bandits and Axel`s was stolen from the school shed. I remember when Axel spotted some kid on it on the way home and we followed him on my bike. Me ,hanging on for dear life. Axel, trying to get his enormous feet to stay on the wooden peddle blocks, and screams of sheer terror from yours truly as we went down Huntington hill! my butty box and rucksack left a trail of Banana skins, P.E kit and unwanted math homework And then we crashed! .But! we. meaning Axel.Caught him trying to escape in his back yard.Guess who got thrown over the wall and bitten by a Tyrannosaurus chocolate Labrador ? Anywho! Sorry for getting carried away. Can anyone remember this bike?

I also remember a brilliant toy gun called " Johnny seven" and a huge green Tank that was operated by a walkie talkie from a wire to the tank.This tank was huge, even by today's standards, and had proper rubber tracks. It was able to climb a HUGE compost heap,and chase any invading ducks, puppies,kittens,or sisters away from your territory ( if you could get it off dad!) I would love to know any thing about these toys !Can anybody remember a bike similar to the 70`s Raleigh Chopper bicycle?
There was a smaller version of the "Chopper" called the "Chipper" for smaller/younger kids with a smaller frame and no gears. The latest incarnation of the Chopper has handgrip gear change so the "gentleman vegetables" are not damaged as you slide forward off the saddle! I've seen one with a 250cc engine!

The Johnny Seven is still available from a guy on ebay who has a mnassive stock of pre-owned ones that he repairs and reassembles.

Don't recall the tank, but a mate had a huge warship (with wheels) that trundled around firing sucker tipped darts from the turrets at his dog.
Not sureCan anybody remember a bike similar to the 70`s Raleigh Chopper bicycle?
Could it have been the Raleigh Budgie?
don't know many toys from those years but the old Christmas catalogs from those years (http://www.wishbookweb.com/) are a good help if it came from the USCan anybody remember a bike similar to the 70`s Raleigh Chopper bicycle?
Wow those sound cool. I don't remember those, they were before my time unfortunately. :( I checked out photos of the Raleigh Chopper and if you wanted to get something similar for the kids, I found some children's bikes that are similar:

http://2wheelbikes.com/bicycle-beach-cru鈥?/a>

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