Roddyc55

Hi all,

I have a 1981 Peugeot competition that I acquired in st John's, Newfoundland a couple of years ago. The rust spots and paint are not in great shape. I've tried using some derusting techniques (baking soda, rustcheck) and am considering getting it sand blasted and repainted.

​​​​​​I'm not sure of the exact model as it was a franken bike when acquired. It has a 3 tube 531 reyolds frame and likely original simplex derailleurs, weinman brakes. However the crankset, handlebar, peddles, seat, and rims were all replaced. It might have been a pkn, pk or ps model?

I can't upload photos here (but on my album) the model number is B0115760, and it's pearl white in colour with warm yellow decals and black outline.

I would greatly appreciate any thoughts on the model name, the appropriate colour of the replacement decals, and whether it would be worth trying to source close to replacement parts. Thanks very much!

Roddy

WGB 

@Roddyc55

You can load them by clicking on your name (left side). That will allow you to go to your profile. Once there, on the right side of the page you will see albums. You can add photos there.

After you have added photos, please an update here and someone will move the photos to this thread.

bikemig 

In addition to posting pics on your profile, Peugeot catalogs are available online:

https://www.bikeboompeugeot.com/Broc...re%20PKN10.jpg

3 tubes Reynolds likely makes this a PKN 10. Those were nice bikes. The simplex dropouts on this can accept most any rear derailleur since they are threaded and have a stop. The simplex RD that came on this is pretty nice but you will have options. These are nice bikes and worth restoring.

Roddyc55

Wonderful, thank you for the help! I believe I have uploaded the album now.

bertinjim 

Roddyc55-

The Competition is a nice bike to do a restoration on. I did a Course model which uses much of the same equipment and you may find this link helpful: https://peugeotcoursepb12.wordpress.com/tag/pb-12/

Roddyc55

Oh wonderful thank you Bertinjim that's an excellent comprehensive resource! I'm currently living in Peterborough Ontario, so nice to see the Canadian references. Would you guys have any advice about where to acquire replacement parts? I've been trying to find an appropriate stronglight crankset (in local shops) but no luck yet. Thanks everyone

Mr. 66

I would look for a volunteer run coop, a nonprofit used bike store, or a for profit used bike store. The big cities are more likely to have these organizations. One could also post wtb adds on local Craigslist or equivalent websites.

oneclick 

https://communitybikeshop.org/

(is in Peterborough)

pics are here:

https://www.bikeforums.net/g/picture/24934642

John E

These are really nice, very versatile bikes. I would not have given mine away to my son if it had been one size smaller.

John E

One cool feature of the 1980+ PKN-10s is LH threaded (Swiss, later ISO) BB cups. Peugeot belatedly got it right (left? ).

bertinjim 

Roddyc55-

One of the easiest and cheapest ways to get period parts is to buy a donor bike. For example, there is a Peugeot on Toronto Kijiji that would get you the derailleurs, crankset, wheels etc for $150.
https://www.kijiji.ca/v-road-bike/ci...ike/1611653721
Also, consider Bicycle Specialties/Mariposa in Toronto as well. They have a long involvement with premium French equipment.
https://mariposabicycles.ca/

Roddyc55

Wonderful thanks everyone! I have been in and out of bike in Peterborough recently, they have been great.

Bizarrely it's the crankset and handlebar/brake levers that have been a challenge to track down. That kijii link looks great, I will certainly look into that. I did track down a Peugeot branded crankset but not sure whether that would be a fit comparison (added a photo to my library).

The plastic simplex derailleur and weinmann brakes it came with are actually in decent condition. I have ordered a colour matcher from velocals and am thinking of getting the frame sprayed at flashfirecoatings. Is there any major considerations to make before going down that route?

Thanks everyone!

3alarmer 

...I have restored several of the 80's Super Comp's ( 1 up from yours in the hierarchy, but basically the same bike with a full Reynolds frame.So not much difference).
Not sure how "correct" you are trying to go with this, but the newer dropout, with a stop in the standard Campy position, opens up a wider world for components. Here's one with Campagnolo, which is often easier and cheaper to buy now than the better Simplex stuff (the all metal Super LJ components.) Likewise, you can go with an easier to find NR crank, or any one of another sorts, so if you find something that is less French, and it seems like a good deal pricewise, you might consider that.

It's very easy to get underwater in restoring a bike like this one. It's a swell bike, but in a rapidly shrinking collector's market, it's probably not going to command a premium resale price, if that's a possibility down the road.

...not sure what they do at flashfirecoatings, but I would try to avoid powdercoat, because it makes the restickering a bit more problematic. Not impossible, just more problematic. If it's paint, and they include some sort of urethane 2 part clear coat over the decals as part of the deal, it will be a very durable finish, and you will be happy with it. Also, it's easier to match the original color using paint, if that's your intention. I have gone both ways on color, original, or something entirely unique.


Not an original Peugeot color.

A nice blue they sold for a while.

tricky 

@Roddyc55
Check frame health before you go too far with rebuild and refinish. Check for bulges in the top and downtube behind the head tube. Check for cracks anywhere. You might even check frame alignment using the string method. Better to get it in alignment before you get it painted so that you don't crack new paint by aligning it after the fact.

Regarding recommendations for direction for your project: what's your goal? Are you wanting a period restoration? Are you building up a rider? Budget build? All of the above? I personally am partial to retromods for my riders. I fit brifters and upgrade components as needed to fit my personal reliability and aesthetic goals. You could frame saver and wax this bike as-is and build up a really fun and fast road bike that you don't need to worry about chipping up. It would also be great for commuter duty where you need to lean it against racks, etc. It even has eyelets for fenders!


Pic assist

John E

PKN-10s are great kiddie pullers. I liked the clearance for wider tires, something my Bianchi lacks.


My old PKN-10, now my son's kiddie-puller, although the boys are getting big for the trailer now.

My grandsons are now too big for the trailer, but it was fun while it lasted. My son really appreciated my 3x7 granny gearing conversion.

Roddyc55

That's some really good points to consider. I started down this route to reduce, and protect against rust spots and to find reasonable replacements for the cheapo parts that were on it. I can't entirely blame previous owners either as this was my go to method of transport for three years in st John's, NL. ! Easy to see how this could process could snowball.

Thanks for sharing the photos of the restorations they look grand, and I do like the flexibility of the frame. I was considering putting some chunkier tires on a second road bike for all of the great trails around here.

​​​​​I'm not tied to perfect matches on the components as long as they are reliable and don't look completely out of place. Either way I can always change it up again later!

Thank you for the advice re powdercoating. I haven't done anything like this before and like all of the other work on the bikes it's been a enjoyable experience to try and figure out. FlashFire were
​were recommended to me by lumpy bikes in peterborough, so I will check what they do with him. I will also make sure and check the frame health and alignment before getting any work done (that sounds like something you only learn after the fact without more experienced advice). I will buy the decals from velocall and will upload them and any future work. Thanks again everyone for all of the input, much appreciated!

markk900

Nice bike you have there! My sister is in Peterborough so I will ask her about local resources.

Now take this next statement for what it’s worth, but from the photos you have the bike is not in bad shape (sure a few scrapes and chips but not horrid). When I looked into painting and decalling one of my bikes, the cost was well over the value of the bike (some $600 for painting one colour only and figure at least $100 for decals). Are you sure you want to go through that? If you do find a decent painter in Peterborough that is not expensive post their contact info as I would still like to paint one of mine….

3alarmer 

...the best working, cheapest, and most reliable shifting stuff , at the time that bike was made and sold, was probably Suntour, but they never got indexed systems working well enough (on the whole), that I can enthusiastically recommend them. But if you're good with downtube friction shifting, or friction bar end shifters, look around for Suntour Cyclone, or Cyclone II, or some of the newer AR or ARx derailleurs. These are all over in the used parts stream, and they sold new at considerable discount from something like Campy.

If you want to go with indexing, look for Shimano 6 speed stuff, either the 600 level, or Dura Ace. But a lot of this depends on how much time you want to spend shopping around, and what pops up at the time you are looking.

I think I already said the Campy stuff of this era works OK, is durable, and can be found reasonably priced sometimes on e-bay, if you shop around, and are willing to maybe replace the pulley wheels.

Powdercoating is enthusiastically embraced by some in the restoration community, because most powdercoat places will strip, prep, and PC a frame in a single color for maybe $150. It's convenient, and usually bargain priced. It's a very durable finish, and I've used it a couple of times for stuff I wasn't sure I wanted to go to all the effort of stripping and painting myself. It's problematic for re-stickering because it's such a smooth surface, and while it's possible to apply the new vinyl decals you order directly to it, sometimes there are longer term adhesion issues. And while clear coating over the vinyl stickers would be the answer to this, there are also some things you can run into with clear coat (or any other paint) over powder coat.

But for what it sounds like you want to do, that might be your best option. Just take off everything of the remaining components (headset, bottom bracket, fixed cup, fork crown race, etc).Then drop it off at the powder place, make certain they know enough to mask off the threads in the BB shell, the fork crown race seat, and to plug the threaded holes anyplace else to prevent coating the threads. It's cheaper than getting someone to paint it, and you avoid stripping the old paint yourself, which can be tedious. And there are a lot of interesting colors available now. Make sure you go with something that will contrast well with your decal colors.

Then you can mark the spots where you will apply your vinyl decals with something like a crayon or removable marker, rough those spots a little with an abrasive paper (carefully staying within the lines), and then apply the decals using the wet method (instructions come with your stickers). If you order the ones from Velocals that have the UV coating included (a little more money), you should still have reasonable durability. But they will tear or peel if they run up against something sharp or metallic. Depending on how you store and handle the bike, this might not be an issue at all.

3alarmer 

.
...one option I haven't mentioned, which might be good for your particular project, is to mask off the main tubes of the frame, where the decals are now, and simply repaint the rear triangle (the chain and seat stays) yourself, using spray can primer, a reasonable color match in a spray can for your color coat, and some sort of 2 part urethane primer over everything, with the masking removed, after tyou have the stays repainted in the right color.

You don't really need to strip the stays, just thoroughly sand and rough them, paying attention to taking off any rust, and giving yourself a smooth overall surface of about the 220 grit level.

Then you spray them out with a self etching primer (Rustoleum at about 6 bucks a can), let it dry for a few hours. You'll have to look around for a match for the pearlescent white they used on that bike, but it's out there. I found something in smaller cans made by Testor's, when I was doing a Cinelli in that color. But look around, and I think you'll find something. The final clear coat urethane is sold either online at Amazon, or in auto paint stores. Spraymax 2K Clear Glamor...you need a respirator mask rated for it, and preferably some outside workspace. It's a very durable final finish, not unlike the various epoxy finishes used on cars. It dries to the touch in a few hours, but takes a few days to cure to maximum hardness. So before you work on reassembling your bicycle project, let it hang somewhere either in the back yard or the garage for a week or so.

You can avoid the cost of the new decals, which is 50 or 60 bucks, and you can get a reasonably good looking result. That blue project bike above was a partial repaint, done with a custom paint mix from the auto paint store near me. Total costs for paint are in the 50 dollar range. Needless to say it's still a lot of work.