thryn

Here's my nothin' special but beloved first roadie project bike, a 1985 Raleigh Sportif.

This was right after I got the bike ...




... and here she is this morning. Replaced so far: Both wheels (the rear due to the most epic rim damage I've ever seen from a tire blowout); tires; bar tape (my first ever bar tape job; not bad IMO for half-drunk at 5 a.m.); brake pads; cables and cable housing. I think I'm done for now, though I may still replace the pedals because I have yet to get good at getting my toe into a cage while trying to cross/merge into traffic ...



Less bs artsy, more straightforward ...

Doohickie

I'll throw this one into the mix... my '94 Nishiki Sport XRS, on my commute today.

RobbieTunes

And it is awesome.

Here's my latest, a 1995 Hot Tubes. These are the workout wheels, I have some HED's that are just as old, but didn't want to risk them on workouts, until I get used the the TT position. Came OEM (custom) with Shimano 600 tricolor, but with a L DT shifter and a R friction bar end. I managed to find some 6480 8-sp bar ends and then dress it up a little. It is dead silent in any gear, so I must have adjusted it right. That stem is a quill, fabricated to the Vision-style bars. And yes, that's a Shimano 600 aero seatpost.

byhsu

Nice RobbieTunes, seems like a very aggressive position and the front ring is BIG. Are you going to show us your white Centurion?

RobbieTunes

Yes

byhsu

Nice, one of these days i have to get a black stem for my Centurion.

Mariner Fan

My Trek 520.

dvsjes28

^Niceee

Lascauxcaveman 

Ooooh... that one's just my size & I love the color scheme. Please let me know if you ever leave you garage door unlocked; specific dates would be nice

Looks like you put a MegaRange freewheel on, just like I did on my Tempo (I hate it, with the huge jump from 34 to 26 teeth - I'm gonna get rid of it soon as I find a nice 32-12 freewheel to replace it with)

Just out of curiosity, what's that bit of silver on the rear brake cable housing between those two cable housing guides?

Gravity Aided

Very beautiful, indeed.

dvsjes28

1982 Trek 613

Gravity Aided

Wow!

AlanG

Here is my ALAN bike. I wanted fairly modern shifters so it is not a true period build. I think the pantograph stem is quite unusual as I haven't seen another one like it.

Italuminium

Welcome to the forums! that's a really nice ALAN build and it's indeed a very unique stem. have you respaced the rear end to 130 mm?

AlanG

Thanks. I purposely bought older Campy wheels for the narrow spacing. This restricted me to 7 speed freewheels. But I also tried on a set of 130mm axle wheels with an 8 speed cassette and they fit on very easily. So I could have gone fully modern with 10 or 11 speeds. It seems that the aluminum is flexible enough that nothing further needs to be done besides gently pulling them apart slightly when sliding in the wheel. Someone suggested that this would put some strain on the screws on the metal spacer that is further up the rear triangle, but I doubt that would be a big problem. I am happy with 7 or 8 speeds and mostly wanted the older silver Campy look for this along with my preference of brifters for usability.

Here are a few more photos. I had to make my own cable guides as these were missing on my frame. I have seen the original ones on Ebay but think I'll just keep using the ones I made. I later added the in-line brake handles because using the standard ones and the delta brakes required a lot of pressure and cramped my hands sometimes. And I have switched to different brake pads and some other minor changes since these photos were taken. (E.g. I had some cheap red pedals on it in some shots until I could get Campy ones. And I changed the way the cables went through the guides and just ran a single piece of housing directly through them.) I've built and restored a few other bikes in the past but don't know how many more I will do in the near future. Since my name is Alan, I had to get an ALAN bike of some kind.

PugRider

My circa-1987 Peugeot Paris Express:

I bought it from my LBS in May when I decided to get back on a bike for the first time since I was about 14. It's a tank, and I love it. I have scoured the far corners of the Internet looking for info on it; even those catalog sites don't really mention it too much. From what I gather it's a 1987; it was the last year they were actually made in France. It came with Wienmann cantilever brakes with Lee Chi levers; I broke one of the front ones trying to tighten a new pad, so I replaced the fronts with some Shimano hand-me-downs from a cycling nut I work with. Other than that, I replaced the chain and the front brake wire holder (although I have since straightened out the nice old one, so I'll be putting it back on soon). It has a Sachs-Huret front and rear derailleur (it's a 10-speed), a maillard cassette, Stronglight cranks (I think), Lyotard pedals, and (I think) an SKF (?) bottom bracket.

I don't take it off-road much other than the park near my house, but I'm sort of glad I went with a mountain bike, because the roads here in Worcester, Mass., are pretty rough on cars, nevermind bikes. I am in the process of ordering new cables, new Shimano levers, and new friction thumb shifters, just to spruce it up a bit. In the spring I plan on switching to slick MTB tires. Maybe fenders at some point, maybe drop bars down the road.

I have seen occasional discussion in these forums about Peugeot MTB's, and it seems like people either don't know much about them or don't think much of them (the old "just because it's rare, doesn't mean it's valuable" adage). My last bike before the Peugeot was a 1980s Kent BMX bike, so what do I know, but I have been impressed with the Peugeot's ride comfort, durability, and general lack of fussiness. So far it has been a busted chain and a busted brake (my fault, really), which I would say is not bad for a 26-year-old MTB. It is also dead silent--I see people ride by on these squeaky, creaky bikes and I think it must be annoying after a while.

I have to admit I have been perusing the road bike section quite a bit lately, and the other day I made a run at a 1970s Peugeot road bike on CL (unsuccessful). I figure if they did such a great job with my MTB, I can only imagine the quality of the bikes they are more well-known for making.

Anyhoo, I really enjoy perusing these forums, and I hope to post updates as I fool around with my bike. Wish me luck!

irvri

The weekend project. Craigslist find:
1981 3rensho 52cm (Finally in my perfect size!) now stripped down and ready for my Super Record group that's been sitting in a box forever.

Zas

My Van Hout. I've used it as a road bike but only now noticed that a 30mm cross tire fits fine in the back, and a 35 in the front. Sweet!!

The bike and the frame are fantastic, campagnolo all over with Universal Super 68 brakes, GB brake levers, gipiemme front der., Zeus headset, Cinelli stem and bars, SR seat post and a repro Turbo saddle.

Wheels are quite average old clinchers, but good for the winter. Building up a fine tubular set for the summer if the small budjet allows.
Right now I really need to find a 5/6speed freewheel with a 28t cog, the smallest gear 45-22 is a bit too hard on the legs in the snow..

smontanaro 

Wow! I would love to have a 3Rensho. Great find!

bro

agreeed!

David Laird

And here is my 1986 Trek 520 (pretty similar, no?)

David Laird

i just finished reburbishing my 1974 Raleigh International. I installed my beloved Brooks B-15 saddle (from my old Super Course), exchanged the Campy NR drivetrain for a TA Triple, swapped out the Campy NR for a wide-range SunTour rear derailleur, and added SunTour bar end shifters. The rims are new Sun Ringyo CR18s to go with the Campy Record High Flange hubs.

Sixty Fiver

My catch of the year... just have to swap the stem and bars.

Sixty Fiver

Mmmmmm !!!

Mariner Fan

You have good taste!