Classic & Vintage - what is my french road bike

the bike has no headbadge. it does have: nervex lugs (headtube and fork crown are chromed, bottom bracket stamped nervex), zeus dropouts, zeus 52/45 cranks, mafac competition and racer brakes, simplex downtube shift levers,simplex prestige derailleurs, chrome fork ends and 1/2s of top and bottom rear tubes, ideale #45 saddle, and possibly non-stock campy seatpost and cinelli stem. paint is non-original but was possibly gold.

I will tell you now, as will others, that WE NEED PHOTOS!
Until then, I can only speculate as to what it is. How do you know the bike is French? Does it have a French-threaded bottom bracket shell?

Are there holes where a metal headbadge would have been attached? Can you find any serial numbers around bottom bracket casting, on seat lug or head tube? Gitane (might have had a foil stick-on headbadge)? Motobecane? Peugeot? Sounds like a good find, whatever it is.

Description sounds like a late 60s Raleigh Competition. What makes you think French? Doesn't ring any French bells for me, especially Zeus dropouts.

Description sounds like a late 60s Raleigh Competition. What makes you think French? Doesn't ring any French bells for me, especially Zeus dropouts.

I was thinking the same thing (but early 70s); however, the Mafac brakes throw a wrinkle in that theory--but given the lack of pictures, lack of further description, I'm going to say the bike was manufactured in Upper Mongolia.

Neal

i guess it's not french (those mafacs and simplexes). it look like a late 60's (69?- ser.# D****) raleigh international. but everything i can find about it or similar models says campy gruppo and dropouts. all of the braze-on locations match the international.

oh yeah. eyelets on the dropouts and three rivets on the headtube inside an ovalesque, paintless spot.

"Ovalesque" may be one of those years that Raleigh had the oval head badge. But Zeus dropouts? A Spanish bike?

Could be a Raleigh based on the rivet pattern on the headtube. Is it camera shy?

Neal

i have no idea how to upload pics. i's ilitterit. looks like it's a 1969 competition. it has this bronzy effect under the non original paint (bronze green). but zeus, weird.

52-45 is a distinctly French chainring combo. Ideal saddles are distinctly French -- self-respecting British frame builders used Wrights or Brooks.

Can you read something like either 35x1 or 1.375x24 on the bottom bracket cups? This would settle the French-English debate instantly.

sugino 1.37x24 (english).

sugino 1.37x24 (english).

!!!!!!!!!

Definitely, a mix of after-market parts on that thing.

One way to post pics is to click on "Manage Attachments," which shows up under the reply box when you reply. You can then upload photos no bigger than 100kb in size. Another way is to use a photo hosting service.

Neal

sounding more like a Raleigh with oval badge or a Carlton/Raleigh...but could be some other British make. Zeus dropouts were not so rare on British bikes, as Ron Kit had the exclusive importation of them for many years and supplied loads of parts to many builders. Besides appearing on some Raleigh/Carltons, I own a Merlin made by Bob Jackson that has all 4 Zeus ends.

i have no idea how to upload pics. i's ilitterit. looks like it's a 1969 competition. it has this bronzy effect under the non original paint (bronze green). but zeus, weird.

www.photobucket.com
make an account
upload photos (self explanatory once you are on there)
there is an "IMG" code right below the picture thumbnail
copy and paste that into your post

:D

www.photobucket.com
make an account
upload photos (self explanatory once you are on there)
there is an "IMG" code right below the picture thumbnail
copy and paste that into your post

:D

Made a picture tutorial on how to do this:

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg201/jacktaylor-timmy/Registering/1.png

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg201/jacktaylor-timmy/Registering/2.png

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg201/jacktaylor-timmy/Registering/3.png

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg201/jacktaylor-timmy/Registering/4.png

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg201/jacktaylor-timmy/Registering/5.png

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg201/jacktaylor-timmy/Registering/6.png

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg201/jacktaylor-timmy/Registering/7.png

Hope this helps
JT

i have no idea how to upload pics. i's ilitterit. looks like it's a 1969 competition. it has this bronzy effect under the non original paint (bronze green). but zeus, weird.

Bronzy? Is the original paint, indeed, Bronze Green?

-Kurt