The Raleigh Grifter was a children's bicycle

Bicycle

A bicycle, also known as a bike, pushbike or cycle, is a human-powered, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A person who rides a bicycle is called a cyclist, or bicyclist....

 manufactured and marketed from 1976 and until early 1983 by the Raleigh Bicycle Company

Raleigh Bicycle Company

The Raleigh Bicycle Company is a bicycle manufacturer originally based in Nottingham, UK. It is one of the oldest bicycle companies in the world. From 1921 to 1935 Raleigh also produced motorcycles and three-wheel cars, leading to the formation of the Reliant Company.-Early years:Raleigh's history...

 of Nottingham

Nottingham

Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. It was the "must have" bicycle of its time and bridged a gap between the Raleigh Chopper

Raleigh Chopper

The Raleigh Chopper is a children's bicycle, a wheelie bike, manufactured and marketed in the 1970s by the Raleigh Bicycle Company of Nottingham, England. Its unique design became a true 70s cultural icon, and is fondly remembered by many who grew up in that period...

 and the Raleigh Burner

Raleigh Burner

The Raleigh Burner is a BMX bicycle first launched in early 1982 by the Raleigh Bicycle Company. It was a replacement of the Grifter. The name continued to 1988 and was brought back in early 2000s, although it has been nowhere near as successful sales wise as the 80s item...

 models. Like an upside down Chopper, it was part of a range of age-specific bicycles and was positioned at the top of that range. The smallest in the range was the Raleigh Boxer with the Raleigh Strika in the middle.

There is a strong following with enthusiast groups.

MK1

The MK1 Grifter dates back to May 1976, although this pre-mass production version of the bike is quite rare (Frame numbers starting with ng6) Main production started in june 1976 and continued until 1979. The MK1 changed slightly as production progressed, there are a few differences between the earliest and later mk1 Grifters. The early pre mass production models had super mx tyres instead of the supergrips and skinny handlebar foam. The MK1 came in two colours, Metallic Blue and Metallic Red, although the earliest Grifters were mainly blue. It is now known that the later MK1 models were more of a bronzy red rather than the original candy apple red. The Grifter featured a 3-speed Sturmey Archer hub gear controlled by a handlebar-mounted twist grip.

Raleigh also produced the mk1 for import around the world with some slight changes to the model such as chainguards and decals.
These import models have now become very rare and very collectable.

MK2

Raleigh produced the MK2 Grifter from 1979 - 1983 available in 7 various models:-
Flame Red, Blaze Blue, Silver, XL, GS, Black and Gold Super Grifter & Silver & Blue Super Grifter.
The Mk2 had a longer rear mudguard.