ftwelder

Hi, These bike are really stunning! I got caught up in finding a mixte when my wife dropped a hint than she wanted a classic for the roads with more gears than her Triumph 3spd. I found this Concord F/F close by and built it with spares. I used Maxy cranks with Suntour "Seven" derailleurs. I modded the original bars and added an Sella saddle and Shimano black 6 speed wheels. It finished at 25 lbs. She loves it !

Rebecca19804

Hi all,

Here's the late 1970s Puch Princess mixte I picked up on eBay (UK) a few months ago. It came with original 5-speed Simplex gears (including intact plastic-capped stem-mounted shifter), Weinmann side-pull caliper brakes, factory issue saddle and pedals, Bluemels Sprint Veloce mudguards/fenders (albeit broken) and incredibly ancient Michelin tyres.

The only work needed to get her back on the road was a good clean & lube, replacing of gear and brake cables and fitting new brake levers (for my shorter reach), and then fitting new Continental Gatorskin tyres (with gum-flecked sidewalls as a nod to the bike's 1970s vintage), tubes and rim tape.

I then did a few upgrades, admittedly for mostly cosmetic purposes! This included black SKS chromoplastic mudguards, a Blackburn rack, a Brooks B17 Flyer saddle in Honey and Pashley Guv'nor handlebars finished with honey Brooks leather wrap.


Here's the bike as purchased:
4636039309_c9ba7417d7.jpg

And here she is now:
4758351572_51c0293be4.jpg

(More pics, both 'before' and 'after', are at https://www.facebook.com/album.php?ai...f&id=701163932)

I'm really pleased with how smooth, quick and almost eerily silent this bike is on the road. The handling is very responsive without being too twitchy - so the ride is exciting yet still manageable for a road bike novice like me. Constantly amazed at how light the bike is overall (lighter than my Brompton). All the weight's in the rear hub... which is tempting me to go singlespeed...

We're not quite there yet on the fit. The frame may be just borderline too small for me - but obviously that's better than too big. The current set up is okay for my usual 20 miles a day commute but I feel the need to stretch out more so will probably change the bars to something that gets me further forward and down. I don't like drops much so considering "bull horns" aka aero bars.

Rebecca

michael k

Rivergull

Hi... I'm a newbie on the Forum. Want to show y'all my 1980 FUJI GRAN TOURER SE, 12-Speed, MIXTE, frosty silver original paint. The wheels are original, but I did change out the racing handlebars for personal comfort (left them at bike shop, and should've kept them). I'm not a techie, but the label on post below seat says "Chrome Molybdenum Steel Framing 441". The brakes say "Tech99 Diatech", tires are marked "IRC HP90" and the rims "UKAIRIM27x1-1/4 w/o"
I barely ever used this bike.... I DO like looking at it...so pretty. It's been garage kept and shows very little wear ...tiny rust dings on pedal parts...and the chains look a bit 'orangy' and dry...need to be lubed. Great ride, but I'm looking to sell in order to buy a wider-tire bike. What do y'all think this bike is worth today?
-Rivergull
https://philadelphia.craigslist.org/bik/1841077020.html
/Users/ritachesterton/Pictures/iPhoto Library/Modified/2010/Apr 18, 2010/IMG_0572.jpg
/Users/ritachesterton/Pictures/iPhoto Library/Originals/2010/Apr 18, 2010/IMG_0569.JPG

corter

my 65 year old mom, of all people, wanted a lavender, fixed gear cruiser. So I built her one, and convinced her single speed was the way to go after a few shaky fixed rides around the block. I spent $60 on the bike, which was really hard to find since she's almost 6 feet tall! I painted it, found a set of bars that kept her nice and upright (they're friggin' huge!) then used old parts off a couple other bikes and parts bin stuff to finish it up for mother's day this year. She was most excited about the basket being removable, of all things, so she can ride to the market at night. I'm going to put a leather saddle on it at some point, but she's happy as a clam riding it like this for the summer.

LeicaLad 

Corter,

That's very sweet. Large mixte frames are as rare as hen's teeth. Just my curiosity: Do you know who made the frame? And what size is it?

Great making the Moms happy!

corter

Thanks! It's just a raleigh, I got 2 of em. Nothing super high end, but it fits, so I grabbed it

ummbnb

I've not posted to this thread for awhile and have two "new" mixtes.

Early 70's Raleigh Grand Prix and a unknown vintage Peugeot which I just got a couple of days ago. Still researching it. Any and all info welcome!!

Various bits about the Raleigh can be found here: https://bikingandbaking.blogspot.com/search/label/Irene

FergieGirl

Wow! Love the colour, and those handlebars are superb :-))

Chicago Al 

Rivergull (if you revisit this thread), there is a separate forum for valuation questions, BUT I'd say your Fuji is priced on the high end of reasonable at $135. You may end up backing off from that a bit as it looks like the tires are old/original so likely the brake pads are as well, and generally 25 year old rubber needs replacing. If you could say (honestly) that everything was 'done' on the bike, new rubber, new cables, overhauled bottom bracket, headset and wheel hubs, adjusted brakes, derailleurs, and trued wheels (whew) then you might get as much as $200. Somewhere between $100 and $135 is probably the 'sweet spot.'

Chicago Al 

Love the recent pictures, esp of the 'swoopy' Peugeot (wonder if the catalog called it that?) and the lavender SS.

I got into this whole C&V thing last summer, actually almost exactly a year ago, with a mixte purchase, a near-mint 1987 Miyata 100, for my college bound daughter. She loves it and says she gets comments on it wherever she rides on campus:

MiyataMixte..jpg

MiyataHeadBadge..jpg


That was so much fun I got another for my younger daughter, a 1978 Niko (a Centurion rebadged). It was a bit rough but daughter, who would pick the runt of the litter every time, immediately named it 'Goldie.' We gave it black PB fenders, also my wife added about racks on the back that only weighed about 20 lbs. :

Niko1..jpg


Niko2.jpg

Then while on family trips, I bought, via CL in Indiana and Ohio, two different Shoguns for my wife. The first is a 1985 model 400, the second a 1983 400, bought mainly because it was a rare 21" frame:

BrwnShogun.jpg

BlueShogun.jpg

The tan-ish Shogun was going off to market, but we found that my FIL's lady friend (in her 70s) used to be an avid cyclist, and did tours in California with the Sierra Club, until her Miyata was stolen. Don't know which Miyata, but she remembered having it converted to a triple. Anyway, we're giving her the Shogun so she has something to ride on the country roads around her house in Michigan.

And the Niko/Centurion was stolen from daughter's HS in the spring. It only had a cable lock, as it had a badly touched-up paint job and (so we thought) would not be appealing to thieves.

So I picked up a slightly rusty Nishiki mixte frame and will be building that up for my daughter. I think this one is going to be SS. I'm looking for the rather narrow bars the Niko had, I think they were Sakae 'All Rounders.' And I think we're going to rattle-can it. I would go for powdercoating but daughter points out that it might be stolen again, and she is very much into the DIY aesthetic anyway. Maybe we can find a way to give it a steampunk look.

Along the way several other C&V bikes have come and some have stayed: my son and I now have two road bikes each. But it was mixtes that first appealed to me, and I know we'll always have them in the family stable.

Rivergull

Thanks Chicago Al ! I've had a few nibbles at $135, but pickup issues got in the way. Hmmm....need to check all the things you mention, and then reconsider price.

sunburst

Rivergull,

That bike would sell fast here in the sf bay area. I think you could possibly even get more. I paid $100 for a Nishiki mixte with the frame stripped and the parts in the box, and still feel like I did OK. Peugeot mixtes go very fast around here, but they are mostly wasted (I know, I've restored my share). I wouldn't lower it, just be patient. It's summer after all.

Corter,
That lavender is very nice. A B67 would look very good on it.

sauze

Wow I love this bike! It would be awesome for tooling around the neighbourhood, even like the colour. If your Mom ever feels like getting rid of it...

smoothness 

This is my main ride: a free Nishiki Olympic 12, found in the basement of a woman who was moving onto a boat. The total cost of maintenance to me (besides time): 28 dollars. New front brake cable, new rear tire, and new glow in the dark grips. The rack came out of the attic; the crate was liberated from a pile of junk; the bell was found on another junked bike.

Originally equipment included a Shimano 600 rear and Shimano 60 front, and Sugino Super Maxy cranks. Replaced the rear derailleur and the cranks with a Suntour ARX and Idol cranks - not as special, but just as functional. Left the brakes as they were.

Enjoy!

lilacattak

Here's mine! 1987 Fuji Absolute mixte. This bike has made me pretty excited about learning all I can about mixtes! Contemplating what I can do to fix it up once I have some extra cash

lugbug

well, here is my latest bike... a Raleigh Record Ace- don't know much about it, but it seems to have all it's original parts. Right away I replaced the rear rim with a new alloy one, and bought a new set of tires. I just need to get a new front alloy wheel, and some upright bars- I also am going to convert her to a SS, as I love in very flat Sacramento! This will be my town beater bike I love mixtes!

lugbug

oh yeah....total cost thus far- $40 for the bike, $30 for the tires and $10 for the alloy rear wheel from the local bike kitchen... total of $80. Im pretty happy

Rivergull

Chicago Al: Thanks...I'll visit the valuation forum. Fuji is good with tires. Replaced them 5 yrs ago and never rode them. All that other stuff would have been done during a tune-up around the same time.

Bionicycle

What a shame... this thread along with several others seems to have lost their "Sticky" status. Oh well, as popular as Mixtes seem to have become lately, I'm sure it will rise to the top at least once every couple of weeks, just like it did before it became a "Sticky". The really great threads always seem to come back around from time to time...

Helloterrio

Here is my Linus Mixte (Lucy), I'm completely in love with her. At the moment everything is stock except the modernist bottle cage, but I'm planning to upgrade the saddle, build a custom crate for the rack, maybe even toss in a double kickstand for fun. Have I mentioned how much I love her?

ColonelJLloyd 

^^^You found a mixte! Good for you. FYI, drive side photos are much preferred over non-drive side photos if given the choice.

Helloterrio

Yes! I searched craigslist month after month looking for a suitable mixte frame in good condition and with little luck. They really aren't very popular in our area. I ended up buying this new mixte at a shop in Columbus and she is everything I've wanted and more.

Thanks for the photo tip. I had'nt even noticed the drive was facing out in the picture, It has a fairly attractive crank design that would be nice to showcase. Next time I'll pay better attention.

Bianchigirll 

again lots of great mixties here.

Rivergull

Thanks Sunburst. Is there a section on this forum for those who wish to sell?