jimmuller 

I took this guy for about 30 miles this afternoon.

billnuke1 

billnuke1 

My new favorite "beater"! I love the "offset" M on the seat tube! I bought it for $50.00 from the original California owner! Actually his second Moto in a short amount of time. Son took bike #1 for a ride a and locked the bike to a post by the front wheel! Long story short...I have that wheel, too!

rootboy 

Crikey, Bill. Which one are you referring to? That's a heck of a Moto stash you have there.

Velocivixen

OK, so I posted my mid-'70's Grand Jubile earlier in this thread & didn't even get a nod. I had put on swept back bars, city brake levers, cork grips, Brooks B67....but honestly never liked the ride quality after all that change. So today I've reinstalled the original stem, handlebars, removed the '70's wheel reflectors and put on a black saddle with black bar tape. I removed the Shimano Sora derailleur & installed a SunTour Cyclone Mark II (may get either a V GT-Luxe or older Cyclone). So, is it better now? Thanks. Before on the left and current on the right. I have 1 bar end shifter on the right. Front is single chainring (that's a whole other can of worms!).

billnuke1 

I just finished a gold Mirage that resided in a basement un-ridden for 30 years! A Grand Sprint has been relegated to deep storage because of too many little problems. Only one work stand this time of year! Too many other projects! And I wanna ride! I would have brought my Grand Touring had I made the Spring Ride. Went campin' instead!

Chicago Al 

You tell us if it's better! Really, while we may be picky (just a bit ) about details, the most important thing is that the bike works for you when riding. So...anything goes. My wife has a mixte that I built up for her much like your previous build: 'North Road' bars and a Brooks B67. She loves it, but she does not put a lot of miles on, either. If this build feels better and will lead you to ride more, then it's great. I thought you'd written that you found the drop bars uncomfortable, but maybe that was someone else. I will say though that the bars look to be rotated up quite a lot--like you could not ride 'on the hoods' that way, at all.

The Grand Jubile looks great, of course, in the red/black. I happen to have a set of those same fenders I think (VO hammered) which I may put on my Grand Record. they look terrific on your bike.

jimmuller 

V-vixen, I like it! The upright version was pretty too but I like road bikes.

Don't feel bad that no one commented on your earlier post. There are so many good bicycles in C&V that we go blind quite often.

due ruote 

Beautiful, but the valve on your spare looks vulnerable. To what I'm not sure, but I'd fold the tire so it's protected.

Velocivixen

@ Chicago Al - it does look like the bars are rotated. I just checked the bike and in real life they don't look like that. I was kneeling down & at an angle. They hoods & top of bar are level with the stem. I like the responsiveness now that I've put the drops back on along with a narrower saddle. The bottom line is that this was my first ever CL buy and although the lugs are nice, etc. the bike is too big for me. I can ride it, but I think if I'm going to have drop bars, I need a slightly smaller bike. I'll likely sell it. I will keep my eyes open for a Moto in my size that has its original parts. I was so excited when I got this bike I went out and spent $$$$$ having wheels built, etc., etc. then when all was said and done I didn't like the ride any more and quit riding it. Hoping that now it's back to it's former self regarding bars & saddle It will be more fun. I had surgery 5 weeks ago and can't really ride for at least another 3 weeks. I did a brief ride around the neighborhood the other day & that's it.

billnuke1 

I love all of the Motobecane colors! I love the orangey quality of your bike! My Grand Jubile has the Simplex set up. I love the shifting.

Velocivixen

@jimmuller - thanks. Your bike is a gem! What year? Are you the original owner? It's sweet.

jimmuller 

Thanks for the tip. Truth be told, I have no experience folding a tubular. I'd like to fold it into a smaller package but the dang tire won't cooperate.

The bike is believed to be a '74 CT painted to look like an '82. Those lighter blue splotches on the frame were done by someone before me probably covering places where the paint was worn. They catch the sun occasionally and sparkle so I'm not rushing to correct the color.

This bike is light and sprightly. It requires a light touch on the handlebar too. But it does like to go fast. I'm liking the nice tires.

eschlwc

if you like it, yes.

drop bars give you more positions to avoid hand strain on long rides.

if i saw it on the street, i would definitely do a double-take.

i always like a brooks on a vintage moto, though. makes it that much classier. i ride with a padded shorts, so i like a hard saddle.

jimmuller 

As I wrote above, I believe it is a '74 Champion Team though the paint and hand painted or stenciled DT lettering matches the '82. I found the frame on ebay last year from a seller local to me. Apparently the uncertainty over its identity kept bidders away. I did a lot research on it, decided it was a '74 CT and definitely worth building. The seller also had the wheels which came with it. Then I found the '74 date code on the hubs, which more or less confirmed my guess as to its identity.

spencewine

You basically have the year, color, model of grand jubilee that I've been searching-for for the past 3 years. Love that lug-work.

Chicago Al 

@Velocivixen It looks like your GJ is a 52cm-ish frame size, same size as my Grand Record. The Motobecane catalogs from the 70s listed frame sizes in inches, and their 21" is evidently what we have. I took a quick look at the '74 and '75 catalogs, and unfortunately the Grand Jubile and Record did not come in a size smaller than that. The Le Champion and Team Champion did, surprisingly, but both are much rarer. And the midrange Grand Touring and lower-end Nomade did as well. Several of those catalogs can be found at bulgier.net or velopages.com.

Velocivixen

@ Chicago Al - Oh yes, I've got the 1974 & 1975 catalogs already downloaded. As I said I bought it sort of spur of the moment. I went to look at a Motobecane 19" mixte & ended up buying this instead. The mixte was one of their lower models and I sensed this one was better quality (it had already been modified by prior owner, so not all original). I think a 19" is best for me when it comes to drop bars.

billnuke1 

I have a number of Moto mixtes. Chocolate brown to fluorescent green. Upper and lower models. They all give a great ride! The girls bikes were usually taken better care of! The wife can't ride them as the top tubes are too high for her.

billnuke1 

I also have my eye on a Moto tandem. BB feels a little loose. Great price! Either a great buy or an expensive wall hanger! I'm excited!

due ruote 

I do like diabloscott shows here: https://plus.google.com/photos/10811...337?banner=pwa

eschlwc

sounds like a pretty weird restoration/repaint before you acquired it, considering how much more beautiful and coveted the early models are compared to everything after '78 or so.

fettsvenska 

How about this...

With Bags Added by FatSwede, on Flickr

jimmuller 

Agreed. One possibility is the owner may have raced it determinedly at one time and later wanted it to appear like a newer model but on a budget. The painting included removal of all traces of orange, leaving the original chrome intact (chrome which wasn't on the later models), adding the brazed-on the BB cable guides and right chainstay housing stop (none of which were on any of the models at that time). The TT had cable clips, not housing loops. The FW was a Regina Oro 5-speed. The wheels were '74, 36 spokes, but with the rear rim replaced and using plated, not SS, spokes, and with gauges 2.0-1.7-2.0mm just like the front. If someone wanted a newer/better bike to race he'd probably replace the wheels first. Since the frame itself was probably not much different between '74 and '82, the cheapest way to "upgrade" and intimidate your opponents would be to make your bike look newer. Or maybe the owner was a kid who thought newer was cooler.

Narwhale

Pretty much my first legitimate bicycle. There was a period of tough time figuring out and fixing up components--particularly the seat tube adjustment where the threading for the internal bolt seems to be stripped. I was able to get the proper fit by adding the hose-clamp. I'm going to continue maintaining the cycle. I absolutely love riding it.