DaCox

Hey was going to buy this Peugeot Chorus but not really sure about the year. It seems to match the color of the 1988 us brochure model. Person sent pictures and from reading around, it seems like the 753 frames are good. It's close by so i can go and pick it up. What price should I get it for? I like the colors do think it will be a good ride? Was going to upload pictures too but they don't let you upload pictures until you post 10 times. Als0 what years did they make choruses to and from and was the color specific to that year? Silly question but looking through the brochures on bike boom peugeot .com for the usa i don't see the chorus listed in any other year than 1988. does this mean they only made this model for this year or did it go by a different name?

icemilkcoffee 

All 753 framed bikes are sought after by collectors! This is definitely a rare and desireable bike. Buy it before somebody else snaps it up!

T-Mar

The Peugeot Chorus was only marketed in the USA during the 1988 model year. This one has had most of the Campagnolo Chorus parts removed and has been retrofitted with pre-CPSC Campagnolo Record components that are at least a decade older than the frame. It looks, heavily used, neglected and even abused. The frame itself has condition issues with severe chipping, scratches, abrasion and some rust. Given the cosmetic issues, I'd be worried about mechanical condition of the components and dents in the tubing. This would have to be very cheap to interest me. There's a lot of money and work required to make it respectable. Selective photo assist...

DaCox

Thanks T-Mar. How did you get those photos. I tried to post them but it wouldn't let me. That's the exact one i was looking at. Also, what would you pay? Like 50$ cheap? or...

merziac

Yes

jdawginsc 

At $50 cheap you buy and leave with a smile. The crankset is worth twice that.

That said, when the ask is anywhere over a certain point unless the frame is in decent shape it becomes a more expensive parts bike.

If the frame is sound but rusty, you can always get rid of the harmful patina and touch up to prevent rust.

fabiofarelli

And keep in mind, Reynolds 753 is very thin and therefore very vulnerable!

Chombi1 

Yeah, you really have to watch it when you buy steel frames that looked like it might have been not well taken care of like this one. The rot might be deeper than what you can see at first glance.
Not sure if it's the case but it seems like I've seen more rusty 753 frames that others made with different tubing. I'm wondering....Would different steel alloys have different resistance to rusting??

T-Mar

This is the type of bicycle that I'm reluctant to assign a dollar value without an in-person inspection. It does not present well in the photos, so there's a good probability that there are further issues that will only reveal themselves by a physical examination.

As noted by other members, 753 is a very thin, lightweight steel. Consequently, it's more susceptible to dents and any corrosion compromises an already thin tubing wall. There are no apparent OEM parts, with the possible exception of the seat post. Even the headset has been replaced. So, why wasn't the seat post replaced with the other components? Maybe it's seized? Or maybe the donor bicycle had the incorrect size seat post? Frozen seat posts can beome a major project in even a lesser frame but extreme care would required to extract one from 753. A frozen post would elicit a hard pass from some members and a drastic price reduction from others, but you won't know unless you take some wrenchs and test its movement.

The bicycle has been neglected. So what is the condition of the bearings races, chain, chainrings, sprockets, etc.? Are the derailleur pivots sloppy? As noted, the crankarms can fetch a tidy sum, but many of the older design also suffer cracking.

So, while the frame and the older components are desirable, unless they have good service life remaining, the bicycle can quickly become a money pit, as replacement costs escalate with the level and age of the parts. For the most part, it's something you can't judge from the photos but the overall neglect suggests there will be other issues beyond what is apparent in the photos.

Is it worth $50? Yes. You could almost certainly get that out it, somehow. Many would be happy to pay that, even it turned out to be just a wall hanger. $50 is cheap admission to say you belong to the "753 Club". However, beyond that the attractivenss decreases depending on the issues and since there is a high probability for unseen issues, I don't have a reasonable confidence level in where the fair price point lies.

T-Mar

In my experince chromium-molybdenum has a higher corrosion resistance than manganese-molybdenum, which has a higher corrosion resistance than high tensile steels. Corrosion resistance of steels can be increased by the alloying agents and since chromium doesn't oxidze but manganese does, CrMo tubesets should be more corrosion resistant than MnMo tubesets.

The other thing that affects steel's corrosion resistance is the application of a coating/plating, such as a phosphate, prior to priming anf painting. These are common rust inhibitors on consumer grade models but are often omitted on pro level bicycles, where the expected life is relatively short. Being used almost exclusively on pro level, racing models, 753 would have a higher probablity of not having a rust inhibiting coating/plating, than a lower grade consumer model, made of something like 531.

The use of corrsion resistance coatings/platings are also highly dependent on the manufacturer. You're more likely to find it on models by a large, mass volume manufacturer, who can invest in the additional coating/plating equipment, whereas small volume manufacturers are more likely to omit it.

Overall, when you consider the combination of alloy, intended use and the manufacturers, there's a greater probality of finding higher rust rates on 753 frames, than other high grade tubesets.

merziac

You need 5 posts X 2 days for 10 to pose pics.

And welcome aboard, glad you found us, you're in the right place.

DaCox

Thanks for all the posts. the owner told me to "pound sand" over ebay messenger when i offered him 50$ and explained all the issues you guys presented . Lol. He's about 2 hr away from me so I don't think I'll be going to get it even if he offers a lower price. Don't really trust him at this point any more. He might just try to get me to travel out 2 hr and say f off again. I will say that it may be my fault for pitching such a low bid. He was asking 175. Thanks again though. I'm new to this so i might have made a mistake not buying this.

santa fe 2926 

I’m attempting to get a Peugeot Dolomites, Reynolds 531 Professional from France. If that chorus was my size, I would drive the two hours and inspect it for the price of $175. Any steel bike that is 40 years old is going to have scratches, and probably some rust. I would want to make sure the frame wasn’t in an accident that bent the forks, down tube, or top tube, close to the head tube. I’d check the seat and stem to see if they were stuck. If it passed, I’d say $175 would be quite a score for that model Peugeot, with campag, and I would assume English threading. Just my two cents.

DaCox

Thanks for the post. i guess i will. I don't mind spending the money.

jdawginsc 

I wouldn’t have been rude but I would have said the same. The crank, pedals, shifters and FD are worth 2-3 times that by themselves.

DaCox

I don't think many or any of the parts are original as T-Mar said in his first post with the pictures. I still can't post pictures or links until i post 10 times but looking at the picture in the brochure, the crank design looks total different from the one that's on the owners bike and the derailleur says Campagnolo Muovo Record. The brakes say Campagnolo BrevInter. don't know much about these parts. Any of them good?

Lattz

As T-Mar pointed out to you in his first answer, most if not all Chorus parts have been changed to earlier record models, BUT as others pointed out, they are also sought after, expensive parts based on condition to some extent, but also by default as they are Campagnolo. You can check ebay (but you might get better with local classifieds, as ebay often throws highly priced almost new condition ones) for Campagnolo Nuovo Record in your area to get a rough idea about values.

Lattz

DaCox

Oh ok. Didn't know. Thanks. Thought he was just talking about if it had original parts.

Lattz

I don't know the US prices, but over here, you can get a Chorus 1st gen. groupset without wheels or hubs for ~USD400, crank alone like 60-70, derailleur as well, (on average, you can find cheaper ones, but those are beaten). If you would go that way for originality, at least a quarter to a half of that you could cover by the current set. But keep your eyes peeled for local prices. Also ask members here in the "appraisals/what would it worth" section before you sell or buy, if unsure.

DaCox

Interesting. Well i bought the bike for 150$. Went to get it on Sunday.

DaCox

Well i bought the peugeot chorus on sunday for $150. This is from the guy that told me to "pound sand" when i offered him $50. He was originally asking 175. Going to post details after this post so i can upload pictures to as i only need one more post to be able to post pictures.

DaCox

So, after getting the bike I inspected it. There are some problems. The handlebar stem is frozen. I don't have any penetrating oil right now so I'm going to have to wait to get that. The front tube is popped. The derailleurs do not function correctly or I am using them wrong? I'm not sure, but the shifters won't stay in place when I try to shift. The shifters just go back to the top. Is there a special way to use these? The back left drop out is maybe slightly bent? Idk let me know. Does the rust in the seat tube look bad? Like, should I be concerned about it? The brakes actually work great and the rims are very true except for the back rim which is very slightly out of true. Let me know if you see any more problems or want me to post more pictures.







Seat tube

Bent?

Bent?

1simplexnut

Hiya ,

Looks like an all right deal for $150.00 !

There is probably something missing or loose in the shifter levers . That will make them return when changing .
Maybe pop them off and show us an exploded view of the parts you have ,
Better still locate and use some simplex retrofriction levers .
Work great and appropriate for a Peugeot .
How nasty is that scrape on the downtube by the levers ? Just paint or dent? ( please say no dent)

Go gentle as possible on the stuck stem . Brute force is not your friend ! Especially on 753 tube.

HAve fun with it !
Look forward to updates .

DaCox

I got a peugot monaco a week ago for $25 because the back tire was completely bent and destroyed . the frame looked completely fine and it was. I went down to the local bicycle co-op and was able to get a set of used 700c rims, tires and tubes for $90. I have been using it as a commuter for now. I got larger width tires because the roads around here are crap.

DaCox

Thanks man and I will. This is probably going be what I dump most of my money into try to fix and update. I will look into the simplex retrofriction levers and post some pics of the shifters dissembled. The scrape is just cosmetic. Just some paint scraped off. no dent. . I'll try to be gentle on the stem. Never fixed a frozen stem before but the local co-op has repair stations you can rent out for $5 an hour with like every park tool tool there is. I'm just going watch a ton of vids on it and most of the staff at the co-op are very helpful so hopefully it won't be a problem.