My friend in college had one of those yellow and black GRs until he ran into the back of a car while messing with his toe strap...

If we're going to discuss these bikes like they are works of art, we have to start calling that 'craquelure.'

Why not, we already talk about 'patina.'

Or, though not nearly French, I like the term I learned in China, Al, when I did a lot of searching for old, wooden things while I lived there.
Pi Ke. Pronounced "pee ker", it literally means "skin shell".

Why I've added that here I have no idea. ;)

Anyway, nice Pi ke on that yellow Moto Frank.

Here is what I think is a '73 Grand Record. I picked it up last weekend, and I can't stop staring at this French beauty!

-Record hubs
-NR derailleurs (I assume the front is the same as the rear)
-TA crank
-Universal brakes
-Stronglight headset
-SR post
-Brooks Professional
-Tubular rims
-Atom pedals
-Pivo bar/stem

The ST is a much larger than I usually ride, but the TT is spot on. I'm hoping it's nice and comfy :) I can't wait to get some tires on it, clean it, and go for a ride!

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...s/IMG_9739.jpg

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...s/IMG_9749.jpg

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...s/IMG_9742.jpg

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...s/IMG_9741.jpg

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...s/IMG_9745.jpg

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...s/IMG_9760.jpg

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...s/IMG_9757.jpg

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...s/IMG_9756.jpg

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...s/IMG_9752.jpg

^ Wow!

Just the paint texture we were talking about. Also, the red lugs/black headtube is just like the bike from eBay last week. The ribbed cable housings almost look like woven cloth rather than plastic...are they? Also they have held color really well compared to plastic...clearly that bike has not sat in a dark room for the last forty years.

If you don't mind, please post the SN...the more of them we can gather, the better the chance of finding a pattern to help in dating. Assuming one exists.

I got the 1978 catalog off velobase this evening, the French rather than US/Export one. It has a much wider range of bikes than were exported, and though the familiar models are in there they are not called the same things, rather the ones we see in the US appear to be a few select models from the racing/radonneur/'sport' lines.

Thanks :)

The paint texture/color you see is what the whole bike is. There is not one spot of glossy paint anywhere that I can see, but perhaps under the clamps it's shiny. I really like the matte finish.
The cable housings are plastic with the metal spiral underneath, and they certainly look original I suppose.

The SN as best as I can tell is 1750656

*** Rear derailleur says Pat. 72 **

Very nice pickup, YoKev.

Wow Yokev ! What a nice bike!

YoKev, done well man.. that will clean up nice. I love a complete find. Great Pi Ke.

Here's one I just picked up. No clue on date other than early 70s based on the headbadge and script style decals. RD says pat 71. Paint is bad but components and hubs are all there/original (minus .5 of the front caliper) and very decent. Pivo stem & bars, campy derailers and shifters, TA 52/40 crank, Normandy luxe competition hubs, weinmann 27 rims, stronglight competition headset, atom pedals and skewers, weinmann vanquer brakes and levers, Reynolds 531 (very little left of a single sticker on the seat tube and some triangle gunk outlines on the forks), and campy dropouts and fork ends.

Serial on the non drive side dropout is 1882774, stamp inside the driveside dropout is 64316.

http://i1134.photobucket.com/albums/...3/IMG_7244.jpg

http://i1134.photobucket.com/albums/...3/IMG_7205.jpg

http://i1134.photobucket.com/albums/...3/IMG_7208.jpg

http://i1134.photobucket.com/albums/...3/IMG_7224.jpg

http://i1134.photobucket.com/albums/...3/IMG_7212.jpg

http://i1134.photobucket.com/albums/...3/IMG_7230.jpg

The black paint is pristine but the clear coat on the silver has turned to dust which can be freely removed with a fingernail. Anyone have any tips on getting this off? I would like to make an attempt at getting it off and just trying to shine up and wax the underlying paint. Rubbing compound applied to the underlying paint makes it a couple shades darker and enhances the skin-diseased look, unfortunately. The disease can be seen in this pic the best.

http://i1134.photobucket.com/albums/...3/IMG_7221.jpg

Anyway, it rides great. If I can make the paint presentable I will get it serviced/rebuilt and on the road asap.

I've posted this before & in another recent Thread, but here 'tis once again...!

Took me a few years to nail down the year it was made, but thx to the Forum & the internet, I'm led to believe it's a '74 model. Serial # stamped on the BB is 3892415. I purchased it as a frame only, maybe in '78 or '79, as it was a new frame hanging in a shop & never built up. It did have a Stronglight BB & Headset already installed. I removed those & replaced the headset w/ an Edco Competition & later installed a Titanium BB spindle & a Campy Aluminum Freewheel. The stem's a 1-record & the handlebars bars are Cinelli Champione Del Mondo's. Mavic GP4 32 hole rims w/ Vittorio Tubulars. I did have to use a drop-bolt to for the rear brake & the front brake just makes it. I put the stitched leather bar wrap on & it's held-up all these years. Last month I did put a new Edco Comp headset in (I bought 4 or 5 of them, all black, when a LBS was closing them out years ago). The former one was pretty chewed-up from years of wrenching on it, but the races are actually still OK. Great Headsets! It's really a light bike & weighs less than 20 lbs & in exclt conditon...

The shop owner was a Frenchman & had been a racer back in the day. He was keen on Motobecane bikes at the time. Pierre was his name & he owned Velo Club Bike shop in San Carlos, CA (long gone). IIRC...I pd $275 for it. I took my time putting it together because I wanted to use all Campy Super Record parts. Yes, they were pricey back then. When done, I rode it for years all through the hills of Woodside, CA. Not necessarily a great hill climber, but what a comfortable cruising bike. I only fell from it once & that was at a stop sign because I couldn't get out of the toe-clips fast enough. No damage done. Still can't stand those things...:mad:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...ayParty009.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...eRearStays.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...randRecord.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...aneBarStem.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...ecaneBadge.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...GRecord007.jpg

:love: That's really a sweet looking ride, Lugnut!

Paint Formulation
 

To all on this thread with red-on-black mid-70's Motos:

Awesome bikes and now I want mine back...

I am in the midst of a total renovation of a mid-70s GR on which some time ago was I creamed and unfortunately need to repaint due to road rash. I stripped it year's ago in prep and never got around to it, which presents a problem that I hope someone one this thread can help with. Whereas black is pretty much black, has anyone done or is willing to do a spectrophotometric scan of the red so I can get a proper paint mix?

Also--and now I am stretching my luck with this thread--might anyone know where I could pick up a head badge for this vintage and does anyone have experience with the refabricated decals that are out there?

Thanks to all.

Depending on the year, you can get the decals from either Cyclomondo web site, or Velocals. As for the head badge, well...good luck. Which kind was it? Plastic? Metal? Foil?

Nice find. Great bike. Too bad about the clear coat. I'm working on an old Moto right now and the clear has yellowed some. I removed if from the chrome fork ends with citrus stripper. On the paint? Be careful and be sure to check it in an inconspicuous place like under the down tube, but I noticed that alcohol removed part of the clear coat on mine. You need the strong stuff. 90% rubbing alcohol, but try 70% first. May work. The problem will be around the decals, which were actually silk screened, not decals at all. You can't do those as the alchohol would probably remove them. A dilemma. Good luck. That's a cool bike.

BTW. That foil head badge is exactly the same as on the 74-75 Le Champions. I would think a 72 or so would probably have a plastic or metal head badge. But the script letter and painted seat stay caps certainly seem to indicate early 70's

Metal--destroyed in accident unfortunately. Looking through bike graveyards but no luck as of yet.

bravo on the photos, gentlemen.

i finished the facelift of my '76/'77. it's easily my best overall ride.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8041/7...86978b51_c.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8319/7...ccc52a65_c.jpg

^Nice!

I will get photos up of mine soon, 'done' as much as we're ever really done with these projects. It looks very much like yours, eschlwc: black Brooks Pro (Team), red bar tape, red cable housings, aero levers for comfort, though I went with the old reliable Tektro R200 as the newer style (R340?) didn't look quite right to me. It looks like you may have the MKS pedals modeled on the old Specialized platforms, and I just got a pair of the latter to try out.

At the recent North Shore Century, C&Ver Night Tiger had his GR, slightly earlier, similar silvery paint as seen in DSM Berg's bike, and in his case it didn't seem so much that the clearcoat was peeling as that the original paint was fading and cracking. It doesn't have that cool 'aged' look as YoKev's or FTW's though, maybe just because of the lighter color. He loves the bike though, and he has had plenty.

I have to laugh about the GR snobbery, what's with that? Nice Moto B's are uncommon, it appears nice owners might be rarer? Anyway my GJ has something few GR or GJ's will ever have. The original owner (me), purchased new from the Bike Stand in Olympia, Wa..1973. Ridden cross continent in '76 by me. Still ridden by me. Reynolds 531 3 main tubes. Has original bars (Pivo), original Saddle (Ideale), original brake levers (Weinmann), original derailleurs (Huret Jubilee), original crank (SL 49d & SL headset) shorter stem (TTT), and...for the really wild...MaFac cantilevers, Super Champion rims, Avocet hubs. Gorgeous red with black accent and gold pinstriped Nervex cutout lugs. Time Criterium pedals. A sweet smooth ride.

As I barely recall, in '73 a GR I looked at had all 531 DB, including front fork. My GJ was about $214 and the GR was well over $300 (like $375?) and Campy equipped. I also recall that the bottom bracket lugs were cutout on the GR but not on the GJ.

^ Well, as the guy who started this thread, I'd be glad to go root out any evidence of snobbery or 'not playing nicely with others' if it were pointed out to me. However I can't recall any, nor can I recall anyone saying anything at all negative, until today. :( Mostly we have been sharing info, complimenting each others' bikes and pictures, and some of have swapped some parts: the usual C&V camraderie.

Here it is before I swapped pedals and had the spokes changed out to DT stainless.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/61726328@N03/7769467304/

Original decals from Canada. The white one used to be the Canadian flag, all bleached out now. The rest are shiny ones (were) from provinces. Yeah, leaning against the garage, I just took a quick pick and forgot drive side protocol. Funny, I always considered the red far more eye catching than the silver GR in the bike "show room". If the GR had been red...yikes, would've had to sell my 350 SL Honda MC.

Jim

Ha! Ok. I'll dredge up a few pics. Here's a wild start: Princess Marguerite ferry from Seattle to Victoria WAS the start. It was all downhill from there. Well, that's totally true, we started from Winslow (is that old or what?). Took three ferries to leave, return to NA continent (in Canada). I had like $375 in cash to get across the continent. Out initial goal was Alaska but hmmmm, that was wishful thinking once spokes started breaking and tires flattened going up Yellowhead Highway.

No problem, I think the guy who posted that actually said later that he meant Mirage. And I'm glad you have posted further as you've got a nice bike with a great story! Actually I was surprised at your comment about the price difference between GJ And GR at the time, as I'd assumed they were near-equivalents, with the GR more race oriented and the GJ more for touring. eschlwc is right...you should start a GJ thread like this one, with pics of your bike and more about your tour!

Its a pat 71 rd which is how I ballparked the vintage with the script letters. I'm 90 pct done with a redo of this bike. It rides great, looks a bit different though! The paint and decals were trash so I reprinted and got decals from Cyclomondo, which are excellent.

Tonight I took a leisurely cruise through the searchable archives at bikelist.org, especially the classic rendezvous mailing list. Looking under 'Motobecane Grand Record' I came upon LOTS of posts referring to the bike as one that the posters owned, or used to own and missed, or wished they could afford when they were younger. The black/red/gold GR was frequently mentioned as a favorite or classic color scheme and model. And several compared the GR to the Peugeot PX-10; though the latter was full 531 while the GR was '3 Main Tubes' up to '76 or so, the GR was arguably better equipped with NR. There were also several comments that the Motobecanes had a better level of finish as far as paint, lug filing, etc than French makes like Peugeot and Gitane, which were much bigger names in the early years of the boom. There was at least one mention of an early 70s GR, a yellow one I think, having a problem with the clear coat deteriorating!

Apparently Motobecane entered the US market late; they were a much smaller outfit than Peugeot, which was an industrial powerhouse. The importer was Ben Lawee, who also imported Bianchi for some years, and Follis, and I think other lesser names. Lawee also developed some marques made for him in Italy and elsewhere, like Italvega. Later he turned to Japan with Univega. Several guys on the CR list had been in the bike industry at the time, one had even worked with Lawee I believe, and they attested to his genius for marketing, for choosing popular colors and graphics, and for mixing and matching components to hit just the right price points. For example the GR has Campy drive components but Weinmann brakes. I got the impression that it might have been Lawee who got Motobecane to start using Japanese components, as they were doing with Nitto bars as early as 1974.

By the way, this is probably obvious to everyone but me, but the Grand Record was named for the Record derailleurs...three guesses what the Grand Jubile was named for.

A restoration, but nonetheless...a red one!
Red Grand Record

^ Nice 'reverse' paint. You mention it being PC'd...obviously that didn't include the gold lug lining, but how about the black lugs, did you paint that over the PC?

I had nothing to do w/ it Al. I only pulled it off the net. Although, I prefer the orig Grand Record Blk/Red color combo & the all red refurb doesn't look that bad...mine's staying Silver as it came to me...!