Looked a mess.Cleaned up well. All original mechanical parts tip top condition. light sanding on black paint,rims..cleaned,regressed..no gear adjustments needed. original wheels ran true.
Frame:
Mixte...Vitus..3- tube double butted 172 (French decals)
Fork/Headset:
Motobecane/ Stronglight Competition -"V". Vitus 172 fork (French decals) chrome 1/4 socks and Heuret DO's.
Crankset/Bottom Bracket:
SR APEX crank arms, SR BB 8DSS, center cap chrome w/ "M" Motobecane logo and flat screw off center hole..
Pedals:
Cast Alloy Block and rubber w/ Cateye yellow reflectors.
Drivetrain/Cog/Chainring/Chain:
SR SAKAE 52/40 ft. chain rings w/ SR Sakae Japan chrome bolts. CHAIN (see photo mid stage of cleaning) is a 1st Gen. Dura-Ace UNIGLIDE pro model. Had to soak multiple times in gasoline,mineral spirts and rust remover to have a clue what it was....
Derailleurs/Shifters:
All 1st Gen. SunTour Cyclone and shiftier fixings! Rear derailleur: SunTour Cyclone GT.
Saddle/Seatpost:
SMP Selle *PLUS*-leather. 180mm SR CUSTOM 26.2
Padded plastc covered "M" logo saddle came with bike. with same seat post as in photo but seat rail clamps are inverted....making seat 1" lower (had to be a factory mistake...awfull).
Brakes:
Wienmann Vaq. 999 red center pull adjustable release....aftermarket levers
Original red brake cable covers.
Front Wheel/Hub/Tire:
Rims: original RIGIDA AL1320 27" (blue labels). Hubs are large flange Normany alloy quick release. stamped 28 and 78 (date). Front/rear axle skewers have black plastic ends.
Rear Wheel/Hub/Tire:
See above. Has new 27 1/4" x 32 mm width, tan gum wall tires. They just fit with the brake pads released.
Accessories:
Cateye reflectors ft/rear; rear rack. Light weight aluminum bolt on kick stand.
More Info:
A truly nice ride that just fits me. Light, rolls fast, smooth with new 27 1/4" X 32mm tires +- 80 psi.. Shifting is spectacular.
Bike History
Click a link below to see past stages of this bike.
Current Stage Info:
From :velovintagagogo >>"Vitus 172 tube first appeared in the United States in the early 1970s. I did not see any bikes made with Vitus 172 until the late 1970s when Motobécane started making several top end models using that the tube.
Vitus 172 tube has been crimped and made the same way as Durifort except that it uses same fork blades as the stronger super Vitus tubesets. It was also made of a low alloy Durifort steel stronger than what was 5-10% of the strength of Reynolds and Columbus tube.
The wall thickness of Vitus 172 was the same as the Durifort shrunken tube, except for the fork blades which are 1.2mm thick. These are the same fork blades as used on the Super Vitus 971 premium tubesets. The rest of the tubes had the same wall thickness as Columbus SP tube and Reynolds 531 1.0 / 0.7mm tubes.
A correction to the Vitus CR article link above concerns Vitus 171 which was introduced much later than Vitus 172. I have not seen any technical information on Vitus 171. "
Added by 1970_Gitane. Last updated over 3 years ago.
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