70's Peugeot Mixte

[mitchj]

Today I bought my very first Peugeot. I haven't had a chance to try & date it yet, but I'm guessing mid to late 70's? I found it at a dump shop, it seems to be all original & in pretty good condition for it's age.(I also happen to be a big fan of mixte's too!) Here's a few pics-









As the photo's show, it's got all 4 "wing nut" style wheel nuts, Simplex derailer & shifter, Mafac centre-pull brakes & levers, original seat in really good condition, original bell, all badges & stickers in good nic, & good chrome on the guards. I recon the grips, bars, stem,cable outers, rims & alloy hubs will come up nice with a bit of work. The forks, pedals & guard struts look pretty bad, but a quick scrub with stool wool on a small patch revealed quite a bit of chrome under all that rust. I think a good soak in citric acid will do wonders. Front & rear lights, & the dynamo are there too. The only disappointing thing is the rear tail light lens is broken. If I cant find one (not very hopeful...) I will try & make one. So far, all I've done is to spray every nut & bolt (& pretty much everything else) with lots of RP7.
I do have one question though - it has one braze-on gear lever, but two chain rings. Was this normal i.e. they used the same chain ring set up for five & ten speed models? Anyway, I'm really looking forward to getting stuck into this one!

[bicyclepassion]

You may find a date code on the barrels of the Normandy hubs. This will give you a rough guide. I agree with your estimate: 1975/76.
I have not been able to locate tail light lenses. They are nearly always broken on these.

[mitchj]

Thanks mate, It will be interesting to see what's under the corrosion on the hubs! Do you know if Simplex derailers are dateable? There is something written on the back, but I haven't had a chance to have a good look yet. Do Peugeot's have any sort of understandable date code system on the fames ? (I obviously haven't done any of my own research yet !)

[WyvernRH]

I do have one question though - it has one braze-on gear lever, but two chain rings. Was this normal i.e. they used the same chain ring set up for five & ten speed models? Anyway, I'm really looking forward to getting stuck into this one!

Quick answer No...

Peugeot were however big fans of using one lever braze-on on the left and IF they went to ten speeds using a clamp-on fitting like this

to allow a second lever. I would guess the front derailleur broke, lever was removed and also the clamp-on fitting, leaving the one lever.
I would go with the mid 70's date as it does not have a Huret specific gear mount and all the components fit the period, as do the decals.

Richard

[mitchj]

G'day Richard,
Thanks for the suggestions mate, but just a couple of things, the lever braze-on is on the right side of this frame, & I cant see any sign at all (e.g. indents or scratches ) to suggest that there ever was a front derailer or a lever clamp there. The curious thing was that right next to this bike (at the dump shop), was another near identical blue Peugeot mixte, in a bit worse condition, which also had only 1 lever & 2 chain rings, & again, no sign of ever having a front derailer. Just thinking about it, I guess they may possibly have been removed by the bike shop at the new owners request when the bikes were originally purchased. Who knows? Oh well, a little bit of mystery just adds to the charm of the old girl I recon!

P.S. after a bit of cleaning, the Normandy hubs say "76", & the Rigida rims say "75", so I'm happy to go with 1976!

[Stuntman]

I got my first one on the weekend as well. I bought this one privately as it is in remarkably good condition. Unfortunately my taillight has a broken lense as well, but otherwise the bike - aside from the usual paint chips and scratches - is generally good. One damaged pedal, the bell is missing the top and the handlebar has been bent at some stage. My hubs and rims are stamped "77".



My one is a five speed as original so only a braze-on (of the three I have looked at recently all have been 5 speeds).

I am in two minds about stripping right back and repainting or polishing it all up and leaving the paint as is.

[mitchj]

G'day Stuntman,
Good score! That looks in really good condition. A lot less rust than mine! Looks like only one chain ring too.....
About re-painting it - like they say "it's only original once!"

[Stuntman]

Another possible hint to date your Peugeot - on dissembling the front set of brakes for buffing I found what is quite possibly a date stamp - "02 78" - suggesting Feb 78. Still to pull apart the rear set but cannot see a stamp. I suppose if the brakes were supplied as sets for a frame then there'd be reason to only stamp one set. Might be worth checking.

Yes only one chain ring.

I see your point in terms of being only original once. Two things I am trying/contemplating how to address - there's a few small spots of rust in the chrome on the forks but it is under the clear coating ( some of the clear has been abraded off in the typical contact points) . And what the best way to look after the frame if it's not repainted - the original decals are for the most part in pretty good condition but eh frame has a lot of chips and scratches.

[mitchj]

You could probably just give the frame a good polish with some auto polish. You can treat the rust with some rust converter (contains phosphoric acid), available at any auto parts shop. I guess if you wanted to, you could then touch it up, although I think sometimes, a few marks & scratches on an old bike just adds to the character of the old thing.
If the clear coat on the forks is pretty ordinary, you could take it all off with some steel wool, which would also remove the rust. Not sure on others opinion of this.
By the way, I see you are in Newcastle. If you haven't already, check outhttps://rustybikebell.wordpress.com/. This guy is a master when it comes to restoring old bicycles, & he just so happens to be in Newcastle......

[maccayak]

Chips and scratches are called patina . My opinion is that if there needs to be a minor touch up on a decent scratch or corrosion then it can still be deemed original. Pretty sure in old car circles 10% of the paint can be repaired to qualify for original status. At the end of the day its your bike. They both look great bikes. I suppose if you can keep the original finish, it will save you a bit of money.

Cheers geoff

[mitchj]

Yeah, I like my bikes to have that "old but looked after" feel after I've finished fixing them up, even though they look more like "old & neglected" when I get them! That's the kick I get out of it though - getting something that's one step from being scrap steel, & bringing it back to a nice, usable bicycle that can be enjoyed for many more years to come, scratches & all!

[bicyclepassion]

Even the Peugeots in really nice original condition seem to have rust under the clear coat on the forks and rear stays. Mask off the painted sections, and use paint stripper to get rid of the clear coat. Then polish up the chrome, preferably not using steel wool unless you really have to. For this application, I usually use plastic insulation tape rather than masking tape. The clear coat is no great loss, as it is usually at the end of its life anyway, after 40 odd years.

[maccayak]

If there was a "like" button I would click it for the last handy hint.

[maccayak]

Just finished working at a house where there was one of these exact bikes sitting down the side way. It was metallic green and the rear light was....smashed to bits.

[mitchj]

I will probably have a go at making one I think, I cant imagine they would be too easy to get!

[Stuntman]

I found a complete rear light on French eBay - only $75US - free postage though....

Also it looks like Peugoet used a couple of different brands that despite looking very similar, the mounting screw hole for the lense was is in a different location (soubitez and cibie are two of the common brands used - mine is marked seima)

Keen to see your approach to making a reflector. I was toying with the idea of fabricating a craft wood plug and vacforming one.

[Stuntman]

Thanks for the tip on the forks. The chrome is in really good nic'. Just a few little spots starting, but would like to nip it in the bud. Was going to buff the clear coat off with a fine cut then polish on the wheel - but maybe the paint stripper then polish would be easier.

[mitchj]

Stuntman, the "wooden plug/vacforming" is exactly what I was thinking. I made model airplane canopies this way years ago, & I still have my home-made vacforming gear in the shed. If I can come up with something half decent, I'll put up some pics.

[Thoglette]

Just finished working at a house where there was one of these exact bikes sitting down the side way. It was metallic green and the rear light was....smashed to bits.

did you ask if they'd likeone to take that old "junk" away?

For those who remember vac-forming, 3D printing is starting to get affordable for runs of 1 & 2 - especially if you can provide a 3D electronic model . O'wise you've got to amortise the cost of scanning/drafting.

My last project morphed into water jet cutting so I've not got recent prices/experiences.

[maccayak]

did you ask if they'd likeone to take that old "junk" away?

I would get shot by the better half if I bought another bike home. If the rear lens was good I would have made an effort for the guys above, it has been sitting outside for years.

[LG]

I've had around 7 or 8 of these bikes over the years with all but one having a broken rear light. I still have that one. The mudguards with intergral racks are great and I believe they are stainless steel rather than chromed so should last forever provided they don't get to badly dinged, the stays are chromed steel and pretty much always rusty. The dynamo lights are also still quite effective if you can find a tail light cover.

[Thoglette]

I came _that_ close to getting one in a hard rubbish collection. I saw it on the other side of the road while driving somewhere and thought "I'll grab that on the way back"

But in the time it took me to drive to my destination and return it had gone.

[Stuntman]

I came _that_ close to getting one in a hard rubbish collection. I saw it on the other side of the road while driving somewhere and thought "I'll grab that on the way back"

But in the time it took me to drive to my destination and return it had gone.

Hopefully it has gone to a good home. Another option could be to make a solid cover and modify a small inexpensive LED dyno powered light set to suit.

My one is now officially in bits on the garage floor getting cleaned, buffed, regreased, polished, etc. I am just about to start rebuilding the original wheels with stainless spoke as the original the chromed rims and alloy hubs are in excellent condition and have buffed up really nicely.

Need to source a brake lever (actually will probably replace both with some dia-compe all metal ones), a handlebar (original one is bent and creased) and some koolstop replacement brake pads for the Mafac's. Looks like an order to velo-orange is on the cards.

[Thoglette]

Looks like an order to velo-orange is on the cards.

There's some V-O stuff held in stock by a variety of stores in .au. Use your favourite search engine....

[mitchj]

I've got a couple of other projects to finish before I get properly stuck into my Peugeot, but I couldn't help myself - I've got the tail light off & in bits, & a 1 x 1 x 3 inch piece of balsa ready to have a go at making a mould for a new lens this weekend. I'm also waiting for a freewheel remover tool that I ordered, to take off the Maillard freewheel. I have started dealing with some of the more rusty parts too. Getting some really good results from soaking things in pure lemon juice for a couple of days. (It's a good way to use up a heap of lemons off the tree too!)