markk900

I'd read it as "for how little you paid it will ride really well", which is far better than "for how much I spent it sure rides like sh#t". I like mine (but nothing magical - just nice!)

Sixty Fiver

Newb.

jimmuller 

I'm with Ilb23, don't let all that discourage you. You might like it very much, and I'm not lying. What you don't get is light weight compared to bike which are or were much more expensive. Other than that, they really are quite nice. With alloy components they can be made lighter too.

uncle uncle

I just want everyone to know that I am not really disappointed that the "for the money" caveat wasn't revealed to me. The price I paid for my uo-8 will be cheap admission to experience firsthand about this much ballyhooed steed. I enjoy the kidding and needling each other (usually) and all the help and comments. Hope to have the bike and pictures soon.

And, oh yeah, I still think the purple ones are the fastest.

jimmuller 

Well, after all that backing and forthing it will be good to hear your impressions once the bike is on the road. We old-timers have our opinions which benefit from a reset every so often.

As for ride qualities, there is magic and there is magic, if you take my meanin'. Bikes are like guitars, they're all a bit different. The more hours and miles you ride and the more different bikes you ride, the more discerning you become. It isn't necessarily a matter of better or worse, but of applicability to your preferred riding and your typical roads. A sport ride of 30-50 miles is different from a century from a short tour from a long tour from a commute from an errand. Two of my bikes are serious super-bikes. I've become a bike snob lately for which I blame them. I still ride the others a lot and I'm always re-impressed by the UO8 when its turn comes. I love the super-bikes for commuting, but they are rather inappropriate. When I started bike commuting on my previous job I rode the UO8 exclusively and covered 1000 miles. It isn't my choice for a century but that's only because I have options.

So do ride it and do tell what you think!

But you are wrong about the purple thing. It has been proven that red bikes are the fastest. Blue bikes are the most comfortable, so purple falls in between. Orange is just a yellowish variety of red, so it's easy to see how people might be confused.

auchencrow

Lots of wisdom here. The guitar analogy is particularly apt. Your Les Paul is not suited for playing Foggy Mountain Breakdown, nor your Martin D28 for Smoke on the Water.
Still, both can put a smile on your face.

redscampi

Dredging up this old thread because I joined the Pug owners today! Got this for a very nice price off the local Craigslist. I bought it even though it needs lots of love for a couple of reasons: 1. It's purple! 2. It's a Peugeot! 3. I think I can save it! It looks to have all original equipment. I think the Simplex stuff will probably all go in the interest of safety. Does anyone have an idea how to date this old girl?

noglider 

@redscampi, I think it's from around 1971 to 1975. I agree with your reasons to get the bike. I love the color, and it will ride well. You can probably get it going well, though it's not clear how much work it will take. The steel rims can get dented, and you need to get the cotters out to service the BB. With a little luck, it will go well. The derailleurs don't look so great, so yes, do replace them. The shifters are in sorry shape, too, and they weren't good shifters to begin with, so replace them, too. The brakes are the best components on the bike. You may or may not need new pads. It takes work to get those brakes working right, but once you do, they are top notch. Too bad your right pedal lost its dust cap, because I like those pedals, too. The dust cap will cost as much as a pedal. If it were my bike, I might just keep the pedals going with frequent oiling.

SkyDog75

I'm generally not into dating old girls, but I'll make an exception in this case. ;-)

The decals look to be early-to-mid 1970s. To get more specific than that, look for date stamps on components. You might (or might not) find them on the hubs or rims. On my UO-8 of similar vintage, I found a date code on the inboard side of the rear derailleur's cage, right between the two pulleys.

jimmuller 

What is the tape on the stem? Surely it isn't cracked and that is someone's idea of how to hold it together.

redscampi

Thank you very much for the informed opinion! I agree with your assessment, the shifters and derailleurs are toast and have to go. I saw a thread recently that talked about dealing with the lug for the levers on the right side of the down tube that I need to find again. I may have a dust cap in the bin that will fit, or possibly I can cobble something up to keep dirt out. Either way the pedals stay i think.

noglider 

I had a UO-8 from that period. My mother found it in the street with pretty much nothing installed on it and brought it to me. Thanks, Mom! I built it into a commuter bike. (Uh oh. I might have told this story a few pages back.) The frame was bent from a head-on collision, so I did my best to straighten it. I pried off the shifter boss with a vise-grip. I bolted the replacement on tight, since there was no stop to prevent it from slipping down the down tube.

Years later, when the crank started giving me more trouble than I wanted to face, I decided the bike didn't owe me anything. I stripped it down and gave the frameset to another BF member. I lost touch with him, but it might be a bike once again.

redscampi

Bingo! The code on my RD is 3 72. I assume this means March 1972? So in theory the bike is a 72 model.

I wondered after I typed the old girl comment if anyone would bite - then I realized where I was.

redscampi

Thankfully, the tape was just there. No cracks in evidence. It may have been to hold some doodad or another to the stem.

gbalke

Nice find. I have three in my collection, you can see them here if you so desire: https://www.flickr.com/photos/stl914/sets

Everything you wanted to know about Peugeots can be found at these two web sites:

Home.html and https://retropeugeot.com/

If you do decide to replace the original Simplex components, I might be interested in them. Just PM me.

Gary

redscampi

Sadly, a lot of the catalog links on retropeugeot are 404'd. Hope the owner will bring the site back up eventually.
Nice bikes you have there! Do you have restoration plans? I have no plans for the Simplex components, send me a PM and I'll send them to you for the cost of shipping. Really though, they're basically useful only for parts - if that.

Thanks Gary - from another Gary.

LesE

That's a great color on your UO-8. The brake hoods also look to be in very good condition.

Have you looked at the serial number on the underside of the BB? It should be a seven digit number with the first digit indicating the year of the frame. My 1972 has a derailleur date code of 4-71 and a frame date code of 2. Being the original owner, I know for certain that my UO-8 is from the first half of 1972. The 1972 model also was equipped with a 36T alpine chainring and the straight lever skewers with black plastic wing nuts. I believe they used a 40T small ring after 1972 which is what you appear to have. Although it is possible that this change actually took place later in the 1972 model year.

Les.

redscampi

No, I hadn't looked yet...but I have now! S/N is 2638421, makes it a '72, correct? Mine does indeed have the 40t small chain ring though, coupled with a 52t big ring. The skewers are M.M. Atom straight lever. I can't say for certain but this bike does appear to be all original. The brake half-hoods are indeed in nice condition, still soft and pliable. The brake lever covers are really nice too. Thanks for your interesting observations!

LesE

That's excellent information. Your SN certainly adds to the evidence indicating that you have a 72. I've long suspected that 1972 was a transition year with the early ones using some parts from 1971 while later examples using parts that are seen on 73-74 models.

Les.

Sixty Fiver

Those mature ladies can teach you a few things...

jimmuller 

I think I believe I remember I bought mine in '72 also. It came with a 36T small ring, and the catalog for that year (which I saw after buying the bike) described it as having the 36T. But mine did not have black plastic on the skewers, just chrome acorns and straight levers.

gbalke

Gary,

I do plan on restoring the green and white bikes, but that will take time. The blue mixte spent about 30 years in a storage vault and is in like New condition. A $30 Craigslist find.

I'll PM you later about the Simplex parts.

GARY

redscampi

I believe I remember someone here has a signature that says, "Don't believe everything you think."

noglider 

They say that as we get older, the memory is the second thing to go.

LesE

That's interesting. Considering the demand for these bikes at the time, I suppose it should come as no surprise that Peugeot emptied out the bins containing older parts before moving on. That's likely why mine has the older style open cam Simplex skewers which you see on the '71 and older models. What I've always thought interesting about your UO-8 is that it originally had stem mounted shifters.

Les.