And another Dawes Kingpin

I found another Dawes Kingpin local to me advertised for £30:00 pounds, I went to view it, knowing full well that I was going to buy the bike. I offered the seller £25:00 and they accepted. 

This is a September 1985 bike so coming towards the end of a 30 year production run for Dawes Kingpins. 

The bike was in quite nice condition tyres were flat and I had to repair a rear puncture, but the bike rode well. 

The saddle is not original, but aside from that the bike hasn’t had a lot of use, the tyres had a lot of tread on them but the sidewalls are perished so they will be replaced. The chrome is mostly ok, but the handlebars are a bit corroded in places. 

The next thing to do is service and clean the bike it very grubby. I will do a full bearing service on the wheels, the bottom bracket and headset, clean the chain which has no signs of wear and give the bike a good wash and polish. 

No full restoration for this one, the only money I will spend on it is for new tyres. 

Bad chrome on the handlebars 

No standard saddle 

The dealer sticker 

This is a photo of the Chesil Cycle Depot from where the Kingpin was bought. 

This is where the shop was today. 

The later bikes no longer had the spindle and BB shells made in England. Now made in Japan. 

Here is the bike with new tyres, it has a complete service, including new bearing and grease in the bottom bracket, headsets and wheel hubs. I have also added added a bag which I already owned and a chrome pump. At some point I may change the brake cables.  

I sold this bike in 2022

Purple to Gold Dawes Kingpin

In my last post I mentioned that I bought a purple Dawes Kingpin, well here it is customised. See photos below. The frame has been powder coated metallic gold. 

I also rebuilt the wheels using the original hubs, which I refurbished with new bearings and grease, and rims with new black spokes, spoke nipples and new tyres. 

I also replaced the chain set with a new Sturmey Archer chain set, pedals, chain and rear cog. 

I painted some of the bright work, brake levers and callipers mat black to tie in the gold/black/chrome effect. I also added a new black Selle Italia saddle, black decathlon handlebar grips along with  inner and outer brake and gear cables. The bell came from an old Dawes Diploma bike I bough and moved on. All the original fitted parts that were kept were thoroughly cleaned, polished and refurbished. 

I think the overall effect is quite contemporary. It rides very well and is much lighter than my other shopper bikes. 

 I recently added a Selle Italia leather saddle bag. 

 UPDATE: I have ridden this bike a few times, unfortunately last time I rode it it got damaged by falling over, it is not a pristine as it was. Still looks cool though. 

Click on the photos to enlarge