Touring - peugot frame for touring?

i am new to this game of bikes, and as it states: is a peugot frame which is somewhat old and not steel suitable to tour with in regards to load bearing? it seems to have good integrity with no visible signs of cracks, it does have eyelets for a rear rack, and fits my height. any feedback or questions to get me thinking are appreciated.. thanx tim

i am new to this game of bikes, and as it states: is a peugot frame which is somewhat old and not steel suitable to tour with in regards to load bearing? it seems to have good integrity with no visible signs of cracks, it does have eyelets for a rear rack, and fits my height. any feedback or questions to get me thinking are appreciated.. thanx tim


Somewhat old and not steel? I'm thinking that you have a 1980s vintage bicycle (?), if so, chances are it is steel.

Peugot was a very popular brand of frame from 1970 up to the mid 1980s, although their origins go back further. I know that they are no longer sold in Canada, but perhaps in France, their original homeland, they MAY still be made and sold. http://www.classicrendezvous.com/France/Peugeot_home.htm

This is a good quality frame. Many Tour du France riders used these frames back in the 70s and 80s and was considered a 'top line' frame.

I recently had converted my brothers old 1985 Raleigh Super Grand Prix to a light duty touring bike. Most likely you will have the same encounters that I had. Below are some things that I have found with this old bike rebuild:

Chances are it has horizontal dropouts, rather than the more recent vertical dropouts. This will make it a 'tad' more difficult for mounting a rear wheel, but no huge disadvantage. The only thing is with the horizontals you had to 'centre' the rearwheel in them so the wheel would track straight.

My Raleigh did not have anywhere to mount or bolt on a rear derailler, so I had to get a hanger for it. I also bought a second hanger for thee other dropout. That way i did not have to centre the wheel in the dropouts, just push the wheel in until the axyle touched the inner side of both hangers. No centering required. If you want a picture I'd be happy to take one and send it to you, as this is a llittle hard to describe.

The seat tube was a tad smaller than the more recent road bikes, so that meant I had to find an old seat post. All I could find was the older types that had bolts on either side for monting a seat, rather than the single hex bolt on the underside of the seat mount. I'd rather the single bolt, but once your seat is set...how often will you need to remove it? Not much.

Chances are this bike had a 6 speed freewheel. I wanted to upgrade mine to an 8 speed freehub which meant I had to get my LBS to spread the rear triangle to fit the wider rear wheel.

It was almost impossible to get a headset to fit my Raleigh. I had to settle for a unsealed Shimano cheapo. Which means I have to repack and regrease often.

The bottom bracket was a bit of an ordeal. I was getting differant reports from the same LBS on whether or not I could use a sealed cartridge BB. One guy said yes, another said no, I had to use the old type of cup and cone. I was, in the end, able to use a cartridge BB tho. WHEW!

Apparantly, the front wheel axyle was smaller than those of today. Because in order to mount my front wheel now, I have to spread the forks apart slightly to fit them down over the locknuts. Not a problem, and I don't have to worry about my front wheel coming off! :D

I switched from the original DTs to bar end shifters, which meant a slight cable rerouting. I recommend bar ends for touring, but they are *my* choice. You could go with STIs which I have on my racing bike, but for touring bar ends or DTs are a better choice.....not as finicky we'll say and easier to adjust.

Originally this bike had 27" wheels. I wanted to go with 700c wheels. That's a 7-8mm difference (700c are smaller). BUT it meant that I had to buy Tektro long reach brakes in order for the pads to sit properly on the rim. It was ok for the front, but the rear still would not reach. I had to make a dropbolt.
I got some 1 inch wide by 1/8 inch thick steel stock. I cut the stock long enough to sit on both seat stays, and then drilled two holes above one another. Top hole was to mount to the bike. Bottom hole was to mount the brake on. Again I can send pictures if you need clarification. But see this website about dropbolts. http://www.sheldonbrown.com/home-drop.html

That's about it for the list of difficulties. But it was fun solving the problems and making things to fit the bike to todays components.

Here is a picture of the bike I rebuilt: http://www.accesswave.ca/~elvisbird/tour2.htm

Oh and with regard to load bearing on your Peugot, that MAY be a problem depending on just how much you plan to load on it. I say it could take the load, but what about handling tho? Are the chainstays too short or the frame angles not suitable for heavy loads?

Hope this helps.

Digger

Digger, man. Great post. Sheesh.


The only thing I'd add is that horizontal rear dropouts are good for a touring bike in that if something goes helterskelter with that rear wheel that you just can't quite true out, you can re-angle it enough to get you to help. A small detail for sure, but being able to do ten wobbly miles at 6 mph might save you a big headache one day.


Cheers...


Matt B.

Digger, man. Great post. Sheesh.

Matt B.


You should feel privileged! I hardly ever open my mouth....or fingers in this case..... :p