tairy

Hello! This is my first post to the forum. I have a 80's Peugeot Vitesses which I like for how lightweight it is and for aesthetics. I am 6 feet (1.8m) tall and the bike I believe is 56cm. Lately I've been feeling some back pain after going out on rides from hunching over. Maybe I don't have the bike setup correctly but the stem doesn't come up any higher. I've been considering on making this a better commuter bike which to me means replacing the drops for straight handlebars and adding a rear rack so I can slap some paniers on.

So I may be ok with getting a longer stem but someone once told me the French measurements may make it hard to find one that fits. I think I would prefer to have the crossbars so I could brake easily while biking in an upright position. I guess if I make these modifications, my lightweight bike is probably not gonna be quite the same.

I'm just right now not sure if making these modifications would be worth it or if I should just look for a more suitable bike for myself.

icemilkcoffee 

First thing you do is measure the diameter of the quill stem- the part that goes into the steerer tube. If it's 22.2mm then it's the universal common type. If it's 22mm then it's the oddball French type. Then you measure the handlebar clamp diameter- where the stem clamps onto the handlebar. If it's 25.4mm or 26mm then it's the universal common type. 25mm French type.
For a bike with downtube or stem mounted shifters it should be very cheap to convert to upright bars. If you've got a well sorted classic bike that you like, it's a no brainer- keep the bike and convert it.

ShannonM

"Vitesses" is French for "speeds," so not the model name of the bike. In fact, I don't remember my '87 Ventoux having the model name on it anywhere. Pix will help.

Your bike may not have French dimensions, depending on when in the 1980s it was made, and for what market. The only way to know for sure is to measure. If you find one French dimension, assume that everything on the bike is French, and triple your estimates of price, difficulty, and frustration for any significant changes, especially to the front end. If the French could have figured out how to have their own standard for handlebar tape, they would have.

I'd start by raising the stem to it's minimum insertion line, if you haven't already done so. A small change can make a big difference. If that's not enough, and the stem isn't French, then the next step is the existing bars on a taller stem, like the long-quill Nittos (Technomic, Tallux, others) and their imitators. That will allow you to resolve the "low bars vs drop bars" distinction. Many riders find that drop bars are in fact the most comfortable bars for them, if they can get them up high enough. Some people just don't like the feel of drop bars at any height, but that's pretty rare.

Lastly, you can swap to a rise / pull-back / 3-speed-style / there-is-no-name-for-this-category-and-that's-annoying handlebar. The most expensive option, which is why I put it as the last option. In addition to the handlebars, you'll need new brake levers. (For hysterical raisins, the outside diameter of the bar is smaller, so your road levers won't fit.) You'll almost certainly need a longer stem to get the ends of the bars far enough away from you. You'll likely decide that you want new shifters, downtube levers on these bars can be really annoying.

Also, be ready to try a few different bars. There are a lot of different bars in this style. A ton of bends, many of which look similar and don't feel similar at all. Different inside diameters, too, so that some can take a road-bar-diameter bar-end shift lever and some can't. All of these bars will change the handling of your bike, to different degrees and in different ways.

Hope that helps a bit, keep us informed, share pictures of the bike, have fun!

--Shannon

hokiefyd 

Some of the later French bikes have a real odd mix of thread standards. Some of them used French threads in the bottom brackets, and some used Swiss threads, especially Motobecane. I'm not sure about Peugeot. They may have even gone to English threads by the mid 1980s. I've had a few Peugeots from the '70s, and all used standard 9/16" pedal threads, and not the French 14mm threads. I would expect standard pedal threads.

To the cockpit area, all of my Peugeot bikes, including the early '80s ones, used French dimensions. You can often find a 22.2mm stem that will fit into the French steerer...or sand/shave one down to fit. Once you get a standard stem into it, then your options for (standard) bars open up quite a bit. I'd recommend a 22.2mm stem with a 25.4mm clamp area -- that'll fit most flat bar/city type bars that you'll encounter.