was launched in February 1996. It was available at first in red, then purple then various colours followed including Limited Edition models, in deference to modern safety concerns, adopted a more conventional saddle design to discourage "backies", and dropped the groin-catching gear lever in favour of handlebar mounted gear controls; to commemorate this former feature the Mk3 had a sticker where the lever once was located. Rather than steel, the frame was made from aluminium alloy tubing to make the bicycle lighter. The wheels were still 20 inches at the back and 16 at the front. The Mk3 remained in production until 2004 when it was replaced by the slightly changed Mk4 Mk5, which were only produced and sold in China and never released in Europe or North America and ceased production in summer 2018 and were only sold in Asia, included many editions such as the Ninja, the JPS and the Mod. A 6-speed Shimano derailleur replaced the 3-speed Sturmey Archer hub. Design The Raleigh Chopper's design has been subject of debate but only since 1996, with claims by Alan Oakley (1927-2012) chief designer for Raleigh and then more than 30 yrs later, from Tom Karen of OGLE Design. Alan Oakley's archive was sold in 2018 (Mellor & Kirk Auctioneers, Nottingham, August 2018) and reveals valuable insight into this debate that until 2018 had not been seen in public. The archive reveals that the Design Council did not consult Raleigh before citing Tom Karen as designer of the Chopper and the Design Museum merely acknowledge Karen as the designer of the finished 'product'. The Oakley archive contains an account from the then Managing Director and Chairman of Raleigh that reveals the reasoning for Raleigh sending their chief designer to America for a three week fact-finding mission, it describes the trip, the 'envelope sketch' that provided the inspiration for the eventual product and the months following the trip. It describes the market's need for the Chopper and the strategy for going to market. Whilst this debate was active for a short while, study of the Oakley archive confirms that Oakley's famous envelope sketch was the inspriation and was included in the brief that was offered to an outside design firm, OGLE design, who then designed the product. The Raleigh Chopper was the bike that rescued Raleigh from administration with huge global sales from a total production run including Mk1 Mk2