Andy_K 

This frame recently came up on the "Are you looking for one of these?" thread, and though I wasn't looking for one of anything in particular, this one caught my interest. The seller had initially identified it as an 1987 Gitane Team Pro. @Markeologist thought it seemed more like a 1988 Exploit. Now that I have it in hand, I thought I'd seek qualified opinions. @verktyg maybe? Perhaps @juvela ?



The tubing decal says it's Reynolds 531 Professional. The frame (with headset cups) weighs 4.5 pounds, so I guess maybe 531P is plausible? The fork is about 1.5 pounds.

I don't see anything in the US Gitane catalogs that would match these frame details and was also available in red. I thought maybe it was repainted, but all the overspray on the steerer, in the bottom bracket, and inside the seat tube is also red. There may be some white around the edges of the paint chips, but that could easily be primer.

The bottom bracket shell has several things stamped on it, which match stampings on the steerer.



Would the "86" be the year it was made? I don't see anything in the 1986 catalogs that would have had bottom entry brake cables.

A couple more detail pics.





Is there anything else I should look at that might offer clues?

bikemig 

All I can say is what's not to like about this bike. Nice catch.

juvela

-----

first thing i would do is to make visitation upon the Gitane USA Home Page web site

"your answer may lie within..."

lug pattern Prugnat 62/d

frame a bit too late for me to be of much assistance

best wishes with it!

-----

Markeologist

As I indicated in my posting of the bike when it was for sale, it appears to be an 88 Exploit/Vainqueur. The routing of the cable into bottom of top tube appears first on production Gitanes in 87 and only on the Team Pro. The Team Pros were blue with the "bubble decals" and were constructed of 531P. Team Pros were available as a frameset or built out with C-Record. I have two 87 Team Pros, once since new that I bought as a frameset for my wife and we built up with mostly French parts (I also have the 87 and 88 catalogs). In 88, the Team Pro was replaced by the Team Replica in white, built of 753 , and available as frameset or built out with C-Record just like in 87. The Replicas (after white Systeme U bikes...pre-Raleigh) also have the cable routed into top tube from bottom. In 88, Gitane also offered the Exploit/Vainqueur which were reportedly (from catalog) built of 531P and 531C respectively. The 88 catalog is a little tricky as the Vainqueur is an inset into the list of the Exploit. Both have cable run up through bottom like 87 Team Pro and 88 Team Replica...as far as I have been able to determine (and I have been at this a long time) only these four bikes had the routing come into bottom of top tube. Since no team rode a red Gitane in this era, I am pretty confident it is neither the Team Pro or Team Replica. The Exploit came in white while the Vainqueur was available in red. Your frame looked like original paint to me...but yours frame has 531P not 531C....so is it a Exploit that was painted in wrong color or Vainqueur made of wrong tubing or maybe just wrong Reynolds sticker. Who knows. In either case, very nice frame.

Markeologist

...here is screenshot of 87 catalog...I have had folks tell me Systeme U team bikes were always white...well here is Fignon in Systeme U kit clearly on a blue Gitane...and the 87 catalog indicates "identical" to Systeme U. If you don't like red, repaint in blue or white and, as I indicated in post when your frame was for sale, release your inner Fignon! Hard part is the yellow Turbo. I have a Hinault version for my 87 Team Pro...there has been a Systeme U yellow/black/white seat for sale on ebay for quite a while.

Andy_K 

It's hard to tell about the paint. It's had a lot of touch up, mostly with a spray can I'd guess. Parts of it have a bit of orange peel texture. Other parts of the paint do look like it was once a good quality paint job at least, and possibly original.

I couldn't tell from the online '88 catalogs if the Vainqueur matched this or not. The color looks a bit darker in the catalog, and the catalog says it's a white/red fade (in spite of what the picture shows). I also wasn't sure what cable routing I was seeing in the picture.

I was thinking I'd have it powder coated in something like the team blue, but the red is very compelling. I might just try to clean it up. Also the headset is quite nice. It's got sealed cartridge upper bearings with needle lower bearings and it's just wonderfully smooth. That's a bit of a point in favor of keeping the red, I think, because the black headset wouldn't work as well with the team blue.

con50582

One of these showed up on the Gitane Facebook group. Attached the article from winning magazine. Supposedly these were twins, one for Martina and one for her partner.

Also, how did I miss this. I need a Team Pro. What size is it?

SurferRosa

Deanodize and polish?

Andy_K 

Wow! I just looked up the Facebook post. That's a dead ringer for the bike I have. The bottom bracket stamping even matches except that one had an "NA" where mine has "NN".

I'd call the one I've got a 56, but the top tube is more like 55. I'm not sure how Gitane measured them.

Andy_K 

I thought about that. It sounds like a lot of work, but maybe....

RiddleOfSteel

Paint looks really nice. Though you could paint it Celeste........

Andy_K 

Don't make me start a thread about Gitane bleu. I've already order 15 swatches.

RiddleOfSteel

This sort of...not obsession (not the right word), but...concern will never end for us, will it? (and I mean this in the best of enthusiast ways)

Andy_K 

You may have been more right than I expected.

gitaneusa.com :: View topic - Team Pro frame

That thread is about a red bike with the exact same markings on the bottom bracket as mine.



But the one there has the 531 decal in a different location, so I don’t think it’s the same frame. Together with the one on FB, that’s three of these, suggesting they aren’t just the “twins” from the Winning magazine article (which would have been a Douglas Adams level coincidence). Interestingly, the frame on FB and the one discussed on the Gitane forum seem to share a decal placement oddity.

con50582

Gitane measures top tube Center to Center.

Also decal placement on Gitanes varies as to how the guy at the factory stuck them on that day. The Systeme U replica in the catalog has the seat tube decal on backwards. You cannot go off decal placement, colors, or build sheet from the catalogs.

con50582

I think that is the same frame. 86 is year, The letters are possible initials. So there should be 1 NA and 1 NN.

Andy_K 

Yeah, I see now that you're correct about this being the same frame as in the gitaneusa post. I was focused on the chrome (which has been cleaned of rust) and the moved 531 decal, but looking closely at the "Fabrication Française" decal I see that it has the exact same damage.

The top parts of the headset have also been swapped out. That looks like it was done quite recently. The old bits were shown in the craigslist ad where I bought this.

Mad Honk 

Well Andy,
It looks like you got a gem of a frame! Since you know the provenance I would leave it red and try to get some white decals. I was about to offer up this set from '86 that are factory when Trek started importing the frames and bikes. But upon further thoughts I think the red and white is the way to go with the bike.

These would be the wrong thing on your bike. Great catch and I hope you can get everything to rebuild it to specs. , MH Smiles

Markeologist

The colors in the catalog are too dark, the Team Pro in 87 catalog is way too dark as the bikes are lighter and brighter (again I have two, both unrestored, one since new). This is a no stories Team Pro built up with French parts since new...bottom bracket marking completely different.

Markeologist

...and here is my other 1987 Team Pro...not built up yet, have 1st gen Chorus to go on it. Again, bottom bracket markings different. Both these bikes are 531P with cable routed through bottom of top tube...that does not appear on production bikes until 87 and only then on Team Pro. Similar routing shows up on 753 built Team Replica and Exploit...I agree Andy K....the small inset of Vainqueur is awfully small to determine if it is similarly routed. The French catalog on Gitane USA shows Vainqueur with top routed cable AND made of 501. My wife’s Team Pro (the built one) only has exposed chrome on chain stay, it does not wrap around rear drop out and up seat stay like my frame.

Andy_K 

Working from the theory that this is the special build bike (which still seems fanciful to me, but is at least possible), I believe I'd take the approach that since it was custom spec'd and painted to suit the preferences of its original owner, I should outfit it now the way I want it to be. Right?

Ok, yes, that's blatant rationalization of what I was going to do anyway. I'm rarely inclined to restore bikes to original spec, and in this case less so than usual. It's going to get my usual second generation Campy ergo triple build.

I do think I'll keep it red and use some variation of the original white decals to maintain a degree of continuity with its past. I usually try for that. This particular shade of red looks like it's going to be very easy to match, so I'll try my luck with touching up the paint. The full decal set in the pictures I've seen for this is too busy for my tastes. I think I'll start with the head tube and down tube decals, and see how I like it. That may be all I use. That would leave the option for a future owner to add the rest.

Andy_K 

Do you think Gitane team blue is a single identifiable color. Online pictures seem to show a lot of variation. Most are muh lighter than I'd like, though I wondered if that was a result of fading.

When I was thinking I'd make this one blue I was planning to just pick a color I liked that was close enough to honor the tradition. It's probably best not to rush into powder coat with this frame though. It's a relatively irreversible change.

Andy_K 

This was my first Gitane. A 1977 Gypsy Sport.



Though it was an entry-level, Japanese made boom bike that I bought in the condition above, I loved it -- especially the color. If I could find one of these in my size I'd buy it in a second.

SurferRosa

You making progress on this thing, @Andy_K, or what?

Andy_K 

Yeah, a bit.



(Yes, I intentionally color coordinated my drinks with the bike. )

I built it up with the components I stripped off of my Bianchi before I sent the Bianchi off to be powder coated. They'll have to fight it out when the Bianchi comes back.

I generally try to copy the fit exactly from one bike to another, putting the saddle, bars, and bottom bracket in the same relative positions, but the seat tube angle on this Gitane is so slack that I'd need a zero-offset seatpost to make it work. Since I didn't have a zero-offset 26.4 seatpost handy, I decided to embrace the relaxed geometry and try a different fit. It's too early to say if I need a longer stem, but the new position definitely incorporates some muscles I wasn't using as much with my usual fit. I have a theory that if I switch back and forth, I'll develop better overall leg strength. I've only ridden it about 50 miles so far, but I like it. It's smooth, comfortable, and tracks well.

If you saw the pictures from the sale ad, you'll know there were a lot of places where the paint had been rubbed off to bare metal. The seller touched it up, but he didn't get a perfect match so you can see the spots where he did it if you're looking for them. I think what I'm going to do is fill in the chipped spots with primer, then rub the whole frame down with some semi-fine grit sandpaper and respray the whole thing with a closely matching rattle can color. I've ordered replacement decals, and I think the only original decal on the bike now is the "Fabrication Française" decal, so not much to lose there. Then I'll try a clear coat over the decals and see how well I can shine it up. That's all new territory for me, but I figure if I screw it up I can always send it out to be done right later.