Chombi1 

Not that familiar with Motobecanes, but didn't they lean more towards Huret/TA components and not the Spidel/Stronglight/Simplex/Mafac components I see on that Team Champion??

satbuilder 

That one's been up there for a while.

If I had some extra money, I'd grab the blue one. All it looks like it needs is a good cleaning. Too many other projects now.

due ruote 

Most Team bikes came with Campy groups. Not sure about later ones like the OP's bike.

CV-6 

Later models were Simplex and Maillard.

repechage

I have to really inspect mine again after reading this thread.
I thought '77, tired original paint, Huret rear drops, chain hangar, nutted rear brake, metric tubing, bike had a 26.6 seat post but the seat lug ears were quite pinched. 26.8 or even 27.0 ( that would be Thin!) I need to test.
Columbus cross section fork blades, Campagnolo ends. Recessed brake fixing... a mismatch to the front.

Need to search for faint tubing stamps. I have learned to have an open mind regarding the actual tubing spec on French bikes.

due ruote 

As I said below, it's been my understanding from reading the specs in catalogs, that Huret dropouts should signify 1978 only. I bought my bike in 4/79 but the RD is a 78 and the rest fits, other than the fact that according to the spec there should be cable guide braze-ons on the BB and there are none.

My fork tips are also Huret and the front and rear brakes are both nutted, so I would agree that yours sounds like a mismatch.

Also, I believe 77 was the year they used 753.

T-Mar

+1, the Huret dropouts with the integral cable stop was introduced by Huret for the 1978 model year and used on that year's Team Champion. The 1979 team Champion was spec'd with Campagnolo dropouts. The presence of the Huret dropouts indcates that the OP's bicycle is a 1978 model. Good eyes due route!

rootboy 

Let's see s'more pics of these fine bikes.

repechage

Ok, out with the magnifying light. Reynolds downtube. Which works with metric tubing. 26.8 post is a bit loose, don't have access to a 27.0 right away. Columbus steerer, and as the "shoe" fits, assume Columbus blades.
Bike does have all 77 date coded parts, hubs, cranks, rear mech., and a seat post with no limit mark. ( yes, I am one to caution against the date code implication often) anyway, a slightly curious bike.
I should take it fully apart and see if the overall bare frame weight is at all helpful.
Be really curious if it was a 753 bike in disguise with a Columbus fork.

merziac

+1+1+1!

How can we drill down this hard without lots more pic's ?!

Kactus

Well, since you insist.

dadoflam

According the catalogue from 1983 catalogue the standard Team Champion bikes were equipped same way as the La Redoute Team Champion bikes - Weinmann Carrera brakes, Stronglight cranks, Spidel pedals and hubs and Simplex derailleurs - many with Motobecane badging on them. I will have photos shortly.

dadoflam

merziac

So according to this a fully french equipped Team Champion is 1.8Lb's lighter than a full Campy equipped Le Champion.

That's embarrassing, IMHO

WolfRyder

The OP's Blue TC seems easy enough to nail down with that 83 catalog, dead ringer pretty much. The grey area (no pun intended with the blue ones, seems to come after the Orange MOTO's for a few years or so.

dadoflam

Haven't weighed mine but it feels noticeably lighter than say my '83 Columbus SL De Rosa Professional equipped with Super Record.

El Chaba

It's interesting that while Peugeot had a similar spec of parts in the early 80's, theirs were usually branded under the "spidel" label....and this was never the case a La Redoute. La Redoute also went with Weinmann brakes a year or so than Peugeot who stuck with Mafac to the end (of Mafac)

satbuilder 

OK.

Salamandrine 

By 83 Motobecane was nearly out of business. I worked in a Motobecane shop at the time, and I think we had dropped Moto by then. Perhaps we had one or two in the shop that year. I remember that they had gone back to all French components, in defiance of the trend for people to buy Japanese made bikes. It seemed kind of desperate. It was the wrong move at the wrong time, and did nothing for them. Anyhow, it would appear that that 83 TC had been considerably down-spec'd compared to previous models.

In my mind at least, the late 70s Team Champions with Columbus tubing and all campy components are the real ones.

crank_addict

That is significant. Another for comparing is the lower Motobecane line with Vitus 888 frame being lighter than the full R-531 / Campy dropouts Le Champion. Different story with the forks.

crank_addict

Any conclusion why they offered both a Team Champion and Champion Team?

Also noted they had a Tour de France model, in the same color orange, Campagnolo equipped. It had the 3 main tubes in Reynolds 531.

rootboy 

I've heard it said, no idea if it's true or not, that the early ones badged Champion Team were mostly intended for the European market, but then they started exporting them to the US.
I like the earlier name. It seems to connote a slightly different emphasis than the later name.

rootboy 

Luis Ocana riding what was reputed to be a Gemini, painted like a Moto TC.

crank_addict

The above is the TdF model. Vaguely able to read the top tube, but look close or zoom in.

1974 Tour de France model. (Though the pic of Ocana riding is a complete different bike.)

[IMG]1974-Motobecane-Brochure-p2 by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

rootboy 

Hugh Thornton's (?) bike
1973 Motobecane Bic Team Racing Bicycle