Classic & Vintage - Another Mixte Question

Hi again,

So I finally have photos of the Raleigh Supercourse that I may buy but please correct me if I'm wrong but is the SC more of a bike built for speed as opposed to distance and leisure?

If so can someone point out some Mixte to look for that are more made for more of a touring bike ...

Hopefully this makes sense and I thank you for your assistance

Japanese mixtes

The men's Super Course is a wonderful all around design. I assume the mixte has the same design goals. I don't consider it a speed bike. I could spend all day on it.

Do you have pictures of the bike you might buy? It's one of the best mixtes you can get, since very few were made of 531. My Super Course might be my favorite bike, and it's not the "finest" one. The balance of nimbleness and comfort and predictable handling is astonishing. I can be comfortable riding it slowly, and if I ride it hard, it responds. I can take tight turns, but it's not twitchy.

Can you tell I love mine?

Univega made a beautiful Gran Turismo mixte (actually, Univega didn't make a single bike, but that is another topic). Good luck finding one, I have seen one in three years. Miyata made a 210 based mixte as well. If the price is decent on the Raleigh, I would pick it up regardless and enjoy it while looking for an elusive touring mixte. Super Course mixtes are pretty hard to find as well. And as Tom pointed out, its hard to find a 531 mixte.

Early 210s were pretty so so. Later ones are pretty nice. Here's a link to the 1985 Miyata 210M. Cromoly triple butted tubing, canti brakes, it would be on my short list of possible keeper mixtes. They continued to make it in later years, and it got better and better. The 1987 Miyata 215M is particularly nice (I have the standard bike version of this year). I would pay pretty serious money for the 1987 version, if I ever found one.

The 1985 Miyata

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_whtVpXkKwlQ/R1oeSeqjNDI/AAAAAAAAAN8/J9oVCM-8rt0/s1600-h/img086.jpg


And the 1987 215M

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_whtVpXkKwlQ/R1wyGDQppTI/AAAAAAAAAT8/vgwLSEI8j7I/s1600-h/img134.jpg


Mixtes are hot in the market right now, RED HOT!

I had a Super Course MKII Mixte for a while and it was a joy to ride. I see no reason why you could not spend some serious time on one.

The men's Super Course is a wonderful all around design. I assume the mixte has the same design goals. I don't consider it a speed bike. I could spend all day on it.

Do you have pictures of the bike you might buy? It's one of the best mixtes you can get, since very few were made of 531. My Super Course might be my favorite bike, and it's not the "finest" one. The balance of nimbleness and comfort and predictable handling is astonishing. I can be comfortable riding it slowly, and if I ride it hard, it responds. I can take tight turns, but it's not twitchy.

Can you tell I love mine?

Here is a picture of the Raleigh
162448


If I do buy it I'll be swapping out the drop bars for Nitto Dove Bars (http://www.rivbike.com/products/show/nitto-dove-bar/16-123) which means I'll have to replace the brake levers and also the shifters are stem shifters so I'll have to see how I can change that to something easier and more familiar for me to use.

I can't tell, but that looks like the Merida-built Raleigh, made in Taiwan. That was a good line of bikes but different from the English made Raleighs. The one you show looks like another all-purpose bike, definitely not build for high speed.

I'm sure the Dove bars are nice, but they seem highly overpriced to me. You can get these bars (http://www.niagaracycle.com/product_info.php?products_id=11135) much more cheaply. The picture is terrible, making them look lousy, but they're not. I had them on my Super Course until recently.

I think you'll find stem shifters to be fine, especially those long shifters.

I can't tell, but that looks like the Merida-built Raleigh, made in Taiwan. That was a good line of bikes but different from the English made Raleighs. The one you show looks like another all-purpose bike, definitely not build for high speed.

I'm sure the Dove bars are nice, but they seem highly overpriced to me. You can get these bars (http://www.niagaracycle.com/product_info.php?products_id=11135) much more cheaply. The picture is terrible, making them look lousy, but they're not. I had them on my Super Course until recently.

I think you'll find stem shifters to be fine, especially those long shifters.

When I go and look at the bike how do I tell if its English or made in Taiwan?? Also is 200$ if its made in Taiwan overpriced or not.

Thanks:)

This is from the era when Taiwan started making good bikes, so it's not a strike against the bike at all. In fact, they were better than the English made bikes that Raleigh made immediately before Huffy bought the Raleigh name for use in the US. I don't know what the story in Canada was.

I don't know about your local market. $200 is exactly the price I asked for the Raleigh Olympian (Taiwan made Merida) I sold about a year ago. It's probably similar to the Super Course. So it sounds about right to me. Also, mixtes command much higher prices, so again, it sounds good. I get $225 for Plain Jane mixtes here, and they sell quickly. I should ask for more.

Hi - I am certainly the farthest thing from a Raliegh mixte or vintage bike expert, but I agree with noglider that does not look like an English SC. I believe they had down tube shifters as opposed to stem shifters. They also would have came from the factory with a Brooks saddle although it could have been replaced. You should see a made in "Nottingham England" on the head badge if it were from England.

Speculation here: It seems like this is a common feature the separates high end mixtes from low end ones. Probably a better way to say it is.... many of the 531 mixtes I have seen pictures of all have down tube shifters. Someone chime in if I am way of base on my down tube shifters = higher end.

Still, the one terraskye is looking at is a very worthy bike. And good mixtes are hard to come by, so I think she should snatch it up now. If something better comes along, she could upgrade.

How many bikes pass through Edmonton, after all? You look so isolated on the map!

Still, the one terraskye is looking at is a very worthy bike. And good mixtes are hard to come by, so I think she should snatch it up now. If something better comes along, she could upgrade.

How many bikes pass through Edmonton, after all? You look so isolated on the map!

Sounds like good advice to me!

[QUOTE=noglider;11206393
I'm sure the Dove bars are nice, but they seem highly overpriced to me. You can get these bars (http://www.niagaracycle.com/product_info.php?products_id=11135) much more cheaply. The picture is terrible, making them look lousy, but they're not. I had them on my Super Course until recently.

I think you'll find stem shifters to be fine, especially those long shifters.[/QUOTE]

No Glider is so right about both points. The Nitto handle bar is way overpriced. I purchased one of the Sunlite Northroad handlebars and it looks almost like a copy of the Nitto Dove bar. I also felt the alloy use for the Sunlite was of good quality (very light also) with a nice finish. I concur the picture they use doesn't make justice (see the one below.)

In regard to the stem shifters, I have them on my own Nishiki mixte and they work just great. Stem shifters are so easy to reach when you have an upright position on the saddle compared to downtube shifters. If the derailleur is a Suntour and has been kept in good shape, you should be quite pleased with the overall shifting performance of this bike.
162484
http://www.bikeforums.net/images/misc/pencil.png

E_merlin is on the right path I think. DT shifters = a higher end bike, and from what I have seen in a year of looking hard at mixtes that turn up for sale on eBay, CL, or elsewhere, a very small percentage of mixtes are at that level. That is, for a given maker, the mixte frame was offered on the entry level bikes, which were the most popular, and also maybe on a mid level model, but in much smaller numbers.

But even a 'garden variety' mixte can be a perfectly good bike, depending on your use. My daughter's Miyata One Hundred from 1987 is a great little bike, and there are lots of other examples in the mixtie sticky here. In this market we see good quality mixtes from Shogun, Nishiki, Miyata, Fuji, Panasonic pretty regularly, priced from $100-200. Peugeots, Gitanes, and Motobecanes turn up pretty regularly as well, though that can get more complicated as far as parts and maintenance.

To Terraskye's question: a mixte is by definition going to be a bike for leisure riding rather than speed, and with the better ones, distance riding. Take a look at the Miyata catalogs (www.miyatacatalogs.com (http://www.bikeforums.net/www.miyatacatalogs.com)) from the 80s to see what that company offered: mixtes came in the entry level 100 and 110 model, also in the 210/215, an entry-level touring rig with cantilever brakes, a 40-spoke rear wheel, fender and rack eyelets, etc. There were two higher touring models in the Miyata lineup but the 210/215 is nothing to sneeze at, especially as they are very rare. It seems to have disappeared from the Miyata lineup in 1988 or 89, along with all the entry level road bikes. As wrk101 notes, it was an awfully nice bike, probably as good as a production mixte gets.

(edit to remove even more redundancy/agreement with Thrifty Bill)

Which reminds me to send an email about the 215 that was for sale in the Chicago suburbs recently! I have reason to believe it didn't sell as the seller got greedy and now may be more flexible. But if I buy that one (for the wife), another bike will have to go, and worse yet I'll have to come up with a convincing argument for why this one is 'better.'

FWIW $200 sounds a bit high for a basic model like that Raleigh. If it's early Taiwan production it may be heavier and cruder than the 80s Japanese bikes, with knockoff components. But it sounds like there may not be that many options in Edmonton.

A bike in your own garage is worth two or three on CL in some distant city...or that people are yapping about on C&V!

Personally, $200 for that Taiwan Raleigh is high. The wheels appear to be steel (chrome), turkey levers, stem shifters. I would like to see the spec on the frame construction. And then you want it configured differently anyway (different handlebars means different brake levers as well, along with the shifters you want changed. If you pay someone to do all of this work, you will have quite a bit into this mixte.

Univega made a beautiful Gran Turismo mixte (actually, Univega didn't make a single bike, but that is another topic). Good luck finding one, I have seen one in three years.

wrk101,
Like this?

http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/bik/1872716060.html

Vintage Univega Gran Turismo Mixte road bike $200
10 speed
--> 20" seat post height <--
this thing is near mint
looks like it was road once or twice, then put in storage
(in a barn or shop, covered (http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/bik/1872716060.html#) in sawdust)

guess you'd call the color a dark champaign
made in japan

http://images.craigslist.org/3nf3pd3ob5Y15T25W1a7u8d0789f792e41a59.jpg

Already have 3 1/2 mixte's otherwise....

That would be it :-)

I imagine it will be sold soon. @ mike what are your other 3.5s......?

2 Moto's,a Puggle and a junk Columbia

Post #707

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?227038-Show-us-your-mixte-(mhendricks-new-happy-place)/page24

Personally, $200 for that Taiwan Raleigh is high. The wheels appear to be steel (chrome), turkey levers, stem shifters. I would like to see the spec on the frame construction. And then you want it configured differently anyway (different handlebars means different brake levers as well, along with the shifters you want changed. If you pay someone to do all of this work, you will have quite a bit into this mixte.

Bill, you may not have noticed, but Sixty Fiver is her bike mechanic. She couldn't be in better hands!

Here is a wonderful page (http://themixtegallery.wordpress.com/2010/06/28/mrs-ds-1983-raleigh-super-course-mixte/) about this model. It was made by Bridgestone in Japan. This was one of the best years for Japanese made bikes. So while it would have been fine if I had been right about it being made in Taiwan, this is even better news.

If the wheels are original, it has Araya aluminum rims.

terraskye, I think you better hurry up and buy the bike today. It would be a shame if you miss the opportunity. And don't dicker on the price.

Thank you to everyone for your comments:)

Upon further reflection I think I'm going to pass on the Raleigh...In the end its really just didn't grab my attention since my dream Mixte is really a Motobecane in blue. Sooo if anyone is interested the Raleigh and doesn't mind paying the shipping I can pass along your info to the seller:)

Thanks again

Fiona

[QUOTE=noglider;11206538]Still, the one terraskye is looking at is a very worthy bike. And good mixtes are hard to come by, so I think she should snatch it up now. If something better comes along, she could upgrade.

I rescued a "Built In Japan" Raleigh Mixte from the dump. Very nicely made and it came with the Raleigh branded SR/SunTour/ Dia Compe components. I have only felt the need to upgrade the wheels to a set with alloy rims. The Sun Tour derailleurs are better made and more reliable than the ubiquitous Simplex crap or kludgy Huret Alvit that turned up on most entry or mid level Raleighs, back in the day. If you are looking at a similar bike, I'd snap it up instantly! These bikes may not have the cache of a Carlton- made Super Course, but I 'd bet the manufacturing was way more consistent! Also, it won't have any of the Raleigh Proprietary threading issues- everything is standard JIS. It will be alot easier to keep well maintained.

Here is a picture of the Raleigh
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If I do buy it I'll be swapping out the drop bars for Nitto Dove Bars (http://www.rivbike.com/products/show/nitto-dove-bar/16-123) which means I'll have to replace the brake levers and also the shifters are stem shifters so I'll have to see how I can change that to something easier and more familiar for me to use.

I own a '83 Super Course mixte. I am experimenting with various forms. Currently it is set up as my commuting errand bike with a B-67 saddle (I just replaced the seatpost with a newer Kalloy post with more set back) and Albatross bars. Mine has 700c aluminum wheels and I replaced the 25mm tires with 32s. I also own a Bianchi Eros and replaced the veloce triple with a compact double the triple went on the mixte. I really like the bike. I originally got it for my wife to use. While she thinks it's comfortable she is just not that interested in riding. Not wanting a bike to go to waste I set it up for me as a commuter and really like it. It is not a light bike but is a nice road bike. It is faster than cruisers, mountain bikes or hybrids but is not for racing (obviously). As it's set up, it has a nice upright ride, yet blows by the cruisers/mtn. bikes. I am considering the possibility of converting it to 650B wheels and noodle bars and using my B-17 saddle to convert it to a country bike as well. I'd go for it if it's in good shape. It's a nice frame and good bones to work with.

By the way I rather like the stem shifters. It means if I decide to switch out the handle bars all I need to switch is the brake levers. Your other choice would be bar end shifters.

Bill, you may not have noticed, but Sixty Fiver is her bike mechanic. She couldn't be in better hands!

Here is a wonderful page (http://themixtegallery.wordpress.com/2010/06/28/mrs-ds-1983-raleigh-super-course-mixte/) about this model. It was made by Bridgestone in Japan. This was one of the best years for Japanese made bikes. So while it would have been fine if I had been right about it being made in Taiwan, this is even better news.

If the wheels are original, it has Araya aluminum rims.

terraskye, I think you better hurry up and buy the bike today. It would be a shame if you miss the opportunity. And don't dicker on the price.

It's neat to find out more about my bike. That is mine to a tee. Same frame color, wheels etc. I hope she gets it.

This is the one I want:

http://classicrendezvous.com/Austria/AD_V_Noir.htm

I just got done switching the bars and saddle on my mixte:

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f223/BigPolishJimmy/Fuji%20Allegro%20Mixte/fuji_allegro_front.jpg

Not high-end, but still a pretty bike, much more so with these bars and saddle that go with the color of the frame. Terraskye, if you were closer I'd try to sell it to you, but I bet you can do equally well close to home. Keep looking for that Motobecane in blue, once you find it, it will make you happy.

I just got done switching the bars and saddle on my mixte:

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f223/BigPolishJimmy/Fuji%20Allegro%20Mixte/fuji_allegro_front.jpg

Not high-end, but still a pretty bike, much more so with these bars and saddle that go with the color of the frame. Terraskye, if you were closer I'd try to sell it to you, but I bet you can do equally well close to home. Keep looking for that Motobecane in blue, once you find it, it will make you happy.

From your lips to the Bike Gods ears:D Thanks....It may take me a year or two but I'm going to learn patience....luckily I still have lots of things do do with the DL-1 to keep me occupied.

My wife's Fuji:

http://inlinethumb16.webshots.com/9551/2475851430068014369S600x600Q85.jpg (http://rides.webshots.com/photo/2475851430068014369FcEUrU)
http://inlinethumb52.webshots.com/11763/2414855690068014369S600x600Q85.jpg (http://rides.webshots.com/photo/2414855690068014369CRiJPB)

With new Panaracer Paselas and a Zefal bag:

http://inlinethumb41.webshots.com/28776/2855590860068014369S600x600Q85.jpg (http://sports.webshots.com/photo/2855590860068014369CyWGhO)

Oh Dear!!

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/bik/1883304998.html


Why can`t I be in SF right now...Anyone on here in SF want to help me get this bike if its still available at the end of the month? lol I should have never opened the link in my email

The men's Super Course is a wonderful all around design. Dead right.

Oh Dear!!

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/bik/1883304998.html


Why can`t I be in SF right now...Anyone on here in SF want to help me get this bike if its still available at the end of the month? lol I should have never opened the link in my email

I'll be in SF for about one day on Sept 20. If the seller is willing to bring it to the airport, I can put it on a plane for you. Does that help? You could send him the money today, maybe by paypal.

Mind you, Cupertino is about 50 miles south of SF, and I don't think I'll be renting a car.

I'll be in SF for about one day on Sept 20. If the seller is willing to bring it to the airport, I can put it on a plane for you. Does that help? You could send him the money today, maybe by paypal.

Mind you, Cupertino is about 50 miles south of SF, and I don't think I'll be renting a car.


thanks for the offer Tom!! I promised my husband though I wouldn't buy anymore bikes until I start working again on the 16th.....I may email the seller to keep me updated if its still available around that time:) slim chance though I'm thinking lol

Maybe if you write to him and somehow give him the idea that you really want to buy it and are not a flake, he'll hold it. Maybe send him a deposit?

And you should put "mixte site:craigslist.org/bik" in a google alert (http://www.google.com/alerts). It will scour craigslist for you once a day and email you the results.

Maybe if you write to him and somehow give him the idea that you really want to buy it and are not a flake, he'll hold it. Maybe send him a deposit?

And you should put "mixte site:craigslist.org/bik" in a google alert (http://www.google.com/alerts). It will scour craigslist for you once a day and email you the results.

I will email him today...and LOL that is how I found the mixte...through google alerts:) best open secret ever!!

Kinda related: Best way to ship a bike up from California to Canada?:innocent:

Also: Tom I may be PM'ing you "just in case" unless anyone else here lives in the SF/Cupertino area

Mind you, I'm on the east coast, far from California. We'll be visiting my daughter in SF that week, immediately after dropping off my other daughter in Olympia, WA. They'll both be going to school on the west coast!

Mind you, I'm on the east coast, far from California. We'll be visiting my daughter in SF that week, immediately after dropping off my other daughter in Olympia, WA. They'll both be going to school on the west coast!


I'll remember...hopefully I can con errr bribe hmmm....find someone to help if the bike is still available and you are busy with daughter school&visit stuff:)

Now I'm hoping the seller will able to tell me exactly which Motobecane Mixte it is as i cant see any identifiers from the pictures

Oh Dear!!

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/bik/1883304998.html


Why can`t I be in SF right now...Anyone on here in SF want to help me get this bike if its still available at the end of the month? lol I should have never opened the link in my email

I'm not familiar with the CA mixte market, but $200 is too much for that particular bike, IMHO. It has good looking paint, but other than that I see nothing particularly special about it.

Oh, I could tell you that. I'll lay 90% odds that it's a Mirage, with 10% odds it's a Super Mirage. I believe the difference is the rims. The one in the picture has all European components except for Suntour derailleurs and shifters. The Super Mirage had aluminum rims. Of course, there's a chance it started out as a Mirage and has been upgraded with aluminum rims. I hope so.

The frame is garden variety 1020 carbon steel. Handling is fairly nice. I had a Mirage, many years ago. It handled BETTER when I put weight on the front. As you may know, it's a French tradition to put your cargo there, so they designed the bikes for it. The steering is such that you turn the handlebars more and lean less than with other bikes. But it's subtle, and not everyone even notices this difference.

ColonelJLloyd, I get $225 for any garden variety mixte here, with any kind of low-end equipment. Mixtes are hot!

I'm not familiar with the CA mixte market, but $200 is too much for that particular bike, IMHO. It has good looking paint, but other than that I see nothing particularly special about it.

I'd probably say not special to a keen eye or someone more familiar with vintage bikes or Mixtes than I am however I've wanted a Motobecane for a year now after first hearing about Mixte Bikes and while the Raleigh SC mixte that is for sale closer to may even be a better bike it didn't have the same appeal to me that this one does.

Oh, I could tell you that. I'll lay 90% odds that it's a Mirage, with 10% odds it's a Super Mirage. I believe the difference is the rims. The one in the picture has all European components except for Suntour derailleurs and shifters. The Super Mirage had aluminum rims. Of course, there's a chance it started out as a Mirage and has been upgraded with aluminum rims. I hope so.

The frame is garden variety 1020 carbon steel. Handling is fairly nice. I had a Mirage, many years ago. It handled BETTER when I put weight on the front. As you may know, it's a French tradition to put your cargo there, so they designed the bikes for it. The steering is such that you turn the handlebars more and lean less than with other bikes. But it's subtle, and not everyone even notices this difference.

ColonelJLloyd, I get $225 for any garden variety mixte here, with any kind of low-end equipment. Mixtes are hot!


I thought it may have been a Mirage but wasn't comfortable making a guess. and thanks about the mention about front cargo..maybe a Bates Crate would be in order too:)

ColonelJLloyd, I get $225 for any garden variety mixte here, with any kind of low-end equipment. Mixtes are hot!

True that. But for $225 are you selling a bike that has been serviced? That bike is $200 and I'm sure needs all the bearings overhauled. Plus it's not going to get packed and shipped anywhere for under $50. I'm just certain there are better deals out there when you consider the cottered crank and steel rims on the Moto. I just bought my wife a mid 80s Bridgestone 300 mixte for $100 shipped. On the other hand, I'm more than making up for that good fortune by throwing money at her Peugeot mixte build (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?663875-Need-Help-With-Peugeot-IGH-Build)! It's all relative, I suppose.


I thought it may have been a Mirage but wasn't comfortable making a guess. and thanks about the mention about front cargo..maybe a Bates Crate would be in order too:)

My wife's aforementioned Peugeot mixte has the same Weinmann brakes as the Moto. I'm going to mount this (http://www.velo-orange.com/grenemi.html) as she won't be hauling too much around. That's my job!

My wife's aforementioned Peugeot mixte has the same Weinmann brakes as the Moto. I'm going to mount this (http://www.velo-orange.com/grenemi.html) as she won't be hauling too much around. That's my job!


That is a nice front rack!! We're carfree so any extra storage spots on the bike will go far. I have a super bike mechanic too so I'm sure if the bearings need overhauled he will be up to the task:D :::nudges Sixty-Fiver::: I just have a feeling that finding "my" dream bike will be harder to locate up here in Canada

Colonel, you're right. I sell only bikes that have been completely serviced and brought into perfect running order. (I'm not so great on fixing up the æsthetics.) So yes, it's high, but then again, a good old mixte is hard to find. I actually wouldn't jump on that deal, but I don't know how hard it is to find in Edmonton.

I lie in waiting, like a predator, waiting for prey to walk by.

Colonel, you're right. I sell only bikes that have been completely serviced and brought into perfect running order. (I'm not so great on fixing up the æsthetics.) So yes, it's high, but then again, a good old mixte is hard to find. I actually wouldn't jump on that deal, but I don't know how hard it is to find in Edmonton.

I lie in waiting, like a predator, waiting for prey to walk by.

Tom, The seller just emailed me back and mentioned he couldn't find any identifies on the bike to see if it was a Mirage or not.

Is there any other way he could confirm?

TiA

It's definitely either a Mirage or a Super Mirage. As I said, 90% chance it's a Mirage. If it has aluminum rims, then good. Ask him to put a magnet to the rims. I can see the rest from here and can confirm that it's a Mirage frame.

It's definitely either a Mirage or a Super Mirage. As I said, 90% chance it's a Mirage. If it has aluminum rims, then good. Ask him to put a magnet to the rims. I can see the rest from here and can confirm that it's a Mirage frame.

Cottered steel cranks, stem shifters, turkey levers, claw derailleur hanger = steel rims (unless a prior owner replaced them).

Dirty bike, I would assume it has mechanical issues. Probably nothing serious, but will need a full service: bearings, grease, cables, housings, etc.

Tires recently replaced, and they don't even match??

Price is OK for San Fran, any regular market, no way.

Appeal of a french bike from that era? It will have the typical French bike issues: French bottom bracket, French headset, oddball french thread pedals. While I have owned several french bikes from that era, I really prefer the mid 80s or newer when they migrated to standard sizing.

My Mirage ('75 0r '76)has no Model markings what so ever but, it does have english threading on the BB which made it simpler to upgrade the cranks.

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc219/walkingfloor198/motomixte004.jpg

Cottered steel cranks, stem shifters, turkey levers, claw derailleur hanger = steel rims (unless a prior owner replaced them).

Dirty bike, I would assume it has mechanical issues. Probably nothing serious, but will need a full service: bearings, grease, cables, housings, etc.

Tires recently replaced, and they don't even match??

Price is OK for San Fran, any regular market, no way.

Appeal of a french bike from that era? It will have the typical French bike issues: French bottom bracket, French headset, oddball french thread pedals. While I have owned several french bikes from that era, I really prefer the mid 80s or newer when they migrated to standard sizing.

LOL I just noticed the non matching tires...oh my....Should I just put a general C&V shout out for a Blue Motobecane Mixte and hope someone comes through??:) PLEASSEEEEEE:)

It's definitely either a Mirage or a Super Mirage. As I said, 90% chance it's a Mirage. If it has aluminum rims, then good. Ask him to put a magnet to the rims. I can see the rest from here and can confirm that it's a Mirage frame.

Magnet stuck to the rims:)

Before I put my wife on that bike, I'd upgrade everything but the brakes, levers and stem. You have other bikes. It's my advice to bide your time. Motobecane produced plenty of mixtes.