Classic & Vintage - 1960's, early 70's Mercier?

Hello,

I'm a fellow cyclist from México (I have been a lurker for a while) that finally decided to register. I came up with a Mercier about three weeks ago and bought it, however I have not been able to find information regarding Merciers from this era and I was hoping to see if anyone here could help sorth out what model I have. I am guessing it's most probably a 200 or 300 maybe?

I am guessing that the bike is all original except for the deraileurs since it doesnt have Simplex but rather shimano 600 which where upgraded in the 70's (I guess?) and the seat; the guy from whom I bought the bike refused to sell it to me with the brooks seat that it had because it was: "his main seat for many years" (sentimental value I'm guesing). Hence the reason why it has the seat that you can see in the pictures below (the brooks that I order should be arriving soon).

It has Mavic wheels and the rear sprocket is shimano but the hubs have no name tag, the stem is Pivo, cranks are Leclair, the brakes are Mafac racer and the brake calipers are Weinmann. The pedals seem to be the originals as well but I cannot seem to find a name tag on them, it has chrome Simplex dropouts and finally the color is Kelly green which seems to be in pretty good shape for a 40+ year old bike.

The serial number in the front badge is 260717 and it has the number 3 engraved on the surface of the bottom braket.

I am not looking forward to sell it or anything for that matter, the reason for this is because in the team where I ride we only use vintage 60's, 70's and 80's bikes, so more likely I am looking forward to learn a little bit more of this bicycle. I have already put around 50 to 60 miles on it as it is and it rides amazing.

In case you are wondering I payed $80 usd for this bike, don't know if you consider this a good deal or not.

Thank you very much in advance !!!

http://i1106.photobucket.com/albums/h379/racso5/Mercier13.jpg

http://i1106.photobucket.com/albums/h379/racso5/Mercier14.jpg

http://i1106.photobucket.com/albums/h379/racso5/Mercier02.jpg

http://i1106.photobucket.com/albums/h379/racso5/Mercier03.jpg

http://i1106.photobucket.com/albums/h379/racso5/Mercier05.jpg

http://i1106.photobucket.com/albums/h379/racso5/Mercier07.jpg

http://i1106.photobucket.com/albums/h379/racso5/Mercier09.jpg

http://i1106.photobucket.com/albums/h379/racso5/Mercier10.jpg

http://i1106.photobucket.com/albums/h379/racso5/Mercier11.jpg

http://i1106.photobucket.com/albums/h379/racso5/Mercier06.jpg

That's a beautiful bike, Rasco!

I went through a similar exercise as you are right now. I believe it's difficult to date a Mercier by its frame serial. 66625 was stamped on the bottom bracket of min, but there was not head badge.

You would probably have more luck by dating the components. Like yours, mine were Shimano 600 and various posters here reckoned the year might be 1972.

Judging by yours, particularly with the cottered crank and the RD, I'm guessing later 1960s.

Here's my thread on my bike from last year (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/689716-Question-about-vintage-Mercier-build)

http://i1022.photobucket.com/albums/af346/gervasegallant/bike%20project/IMG_1001.jpg

http://i1022.photobucket.com/albums/af346/gervasegallant/bike%20project/IMG_1002.jpg

http://i1022.photobucket.com/albums/af346/gervasegallant/bike%20project/IMG_1004.jpg

http://i1022.photobucket.com/albums/af346/gervasegallant/bike%20project/IMG_1003.jpg

My Mercier is pretty night, pretty light. 531 Reynolds.

aint pivo the "death stem" ?

AVA stems are the ones commonly referred to as "death stems", but I've seen Pivos with cracks at the top of the slots as well. Still, doesn't seem to happen often enough to be as big of a deal as people make it out to be.

I forget the model number, but it very closely resembles the one my sister got during her last year in high school (1971-72). They're probably a bit nicer than a Peugeot UO-8, and they originally had Huret Svelto or Simplex Prestige derailleurs. I believe I recognize Simplex levers on yours.

It looks like the previous owner knew how what he was doing. If there are no major problems, $80 was a fair price for this bike.

Make that 10 speed

Only purple. It came with wing nuts on the wheels and Huret Alvit derailers. Seat was Ideal. Handlebar tape was that plastic crap that unwinds if it breaks. Wheels were Maillard hubs, steel rims and 27 inch tires.

Hey everyone thanks for the replies :)

Gerv:
Hey thanks for the compliments on the bike and thanks for the info, your mercier looks very nice indeed. Did you put everything back together?
I cant tell if mine is made out of 531 reynolds because it´s missing some decals on the frame and the fork decals as well. Probably the shimano 600 components on mine where added on the 70's because it originally came with simplex, although so far it seems to work great with shimano.

dphi:
I have heard a lot of complains regarding french stems of that era but this one seems to be holding in place after 40+ years, I might try to put a Cinelli stem just in case and keep the pivo just in case I want to put it back some time in the future.

oldbobcat:
Yes mine is still running with Simplex levers, however I don't like them very much and I might change them for something else. The bike has no issues at all, actually I am a bit surprised because everything works very smooth and there are no signs of any sorth of damage on the bike.

Wulf:
Purple Mercier's are very beautiful, however this one came with Mavic 700c wheels which I like very much.

Thanks once again everybody !!!

Looks to me like a 200. I have a 300 in a similar color I'm finishing up. Simplex drivetrain, and an Ideale saddle would have come original to the bike.

Though the pictures are a bit of the dark side, the best candidate for the OP's bicycle is an early 1970s Mercier 200 (a.k.a Le Mans Club). It is not a model 300 by virtue of the brazed-on cable stops on the top tube. However, to be 100% confident, the OP would beed to measure the seat post diameter. A model 300 with Reynolds 531 DB frame would typically use a 26.4 or 26.6mm post.

The second indicator suggesting a model 200 are the steel, cottered cranks with half-step chainrings. A model 300 would typically have a cotterless crankset while the model 100 usually had wider range chainrings.

The other clue as to the original model would be the pad height in the brake calipers. This bicycle appears to have replacement 700c wheels as large flange hubs were common during the boom. The model 100 used 27" rims while the model 200 used 700C tubular rims. The rear pads look like they are sitting right in the middle on the height slot, indicating a 700C wheel is the correct fit. However, the front pads do look to be sitting a bit low, though maybe it is just an illusion caused by the camera angle? Or are the calipers replacements? They look like OEM MAFAC, yet the levers appears to be Weinmann?

I would also replace the Simplex levers, given that the OEM derailleurs are long gone. IMO, the levers were the weakest link in Simplex's shift system, due to excessive flex.

Hey T-mar thanks a lot for the information !!!

I was measuring the seatpost (it meassures 26.6 mm) and I found the number 73 engraved on the side of the top tube, I'm guessing it can probably state that it is a 1973 model?, The brake system is Mafac Racer and the levers are Wienmann as you mentioned. Yes I find the simplex levers to be the only thing that I do not like about this bicycle, everything is very smooth, I am going to upgrade them to Campagnolo in the upcoming weeks.

Seatbuilder:
Thanks for the information on the ideale seat, I'm going to see if I can get my hands on one of those so that I can have it as close as possible to what it was used back then.

Seatbuilder:
I contacted the previous owner and the seat I had stated came with the bike as a brooks in my first post is in reality a brown "Ideale", I guess I'll have to put the brooks that I ordered into my Raleigh and get a hold of an Ideale for the Mercier.

Once again thank you very much everybody for this information, all of this is helping me a lot to get to know this bike better and to get it back as close as possible to the way it was used back then :)

Did you put everything back together?
I cant tell if mine is made out of 531 reynolds because it´s missing some decals on the frame and the fork decals as well. Probably the shimano 600 components on mine where added on the 70's because it originally came with simplex, although so far it seems to work great with shimano.


Well, actually it's an ongoing process. I replaced the BB with a Velo Orange unit because I just couldn't seem to get the correct spindle (or more likely the correct cup).

It would be interesting to know what type of steel in your bike. Since it's 26.6, there a good chance it's 531. No sign of tube decals on the bike?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/poufthecascadeur/6099228516/in/set-72157616380669407

But this one doesn't seem to have any decal either.

It would be interesting to know what type of steel in your bike. Since it's 26.6, there a good chance it's 531. No sign of tube decals on the bike?


The chrome cover over the fork crown, the heavy lugs, the gappy clearances with 27" wheels, and components all indicate something considerably less than 531. I have hard time believing an owner would swap an original Stronglight 93 crank for steel cottered.

lt's a very cool bike, though, representing the peak of the period when French and English bikes were the ticket on campuses and AYH tours, before the Asian invasion. And I'd sure pick it out in a lineup of UO-8s and Raleigh Grand Prixs.

I think T-Mar has it pegged. I've had several Merciers - all tough to positively ID. The two 200's I've had (at least what we believe to be 200s) were a good match for what I can pick out from the dark photos.

...I was measuring the seatpost (it meassures 26.6 mm) and I found the number 73 engraved on the side of the top tube, I'm guessing it can probably state that it is a 1973 model?...

Well, lets get the easy one out of the way first. It's improbable that the 73 is a date code. More likely it's the tube angle. If it's actually stamped on the lug, as opposed to the tube, that's definitely what it is.

As for the seat post size, that is definitely the correct size for a Reynolds 531 DB frame. For a model 200, I would have expected something smaller. Still, the post size conflicts with the crankset and cable stops.

Another thing that I neglected to mention was the paint. The model 300 I've seen have all been single tone paint, while the model 200 (and 100) have been two tone, with contrasting head lugs and a contrasting triangular panel on the upper fork legs. Your scheme follows the typical model 200 livery.

Finally, while the Reynolds decals are notoriously fragile, Mercier typically applied them to both forks in addition to the seat tube, so it would be rare for there not be some remnants or at least an outline from the less weathered paint that was under the decal.

With the exception of the post size, all the evidence points towards a model 200, so I would suggest you try remeasuring the post. Make sure the jaws of the caliper are clean, as even a small spec of dirt can make a big difference. Make sure the calipers are zeroed. Take multiple measurements, in several different locations.

Edit: One additional upgrade I would suggest, if you really want to improve the shifting, is to install a HyperGlide compatible freewheel and chain. It looks like it's already been upgraded to 6 cogs, so for about $20 you can make an improvement that's bigger than buying the best derailleurs available.

Very nice bike. I am glad that you got some answers!

Thanks a lot for the info as it has been most interesting to learn all this things about Mercier bicycles of the era. Cool so I will stick to the idea that it is indeed a 200 model as everything seems to point towards that for the exception of the seatpost which I will meassure again during the weekend.

T-Mar:
Thanks for the tip on the HyperGlide compatible freewheel and chain, I will do that ASAP and put a couple of miles on it to see how it responds.

Thanks everybody !!!

Yes, externally the bicycle is certainly built along the lines of a model 200. I can think of a few explanations for the 26.6mm tube.

1. The previous owner reamed it out.
2. Mercier upgraded the specs.
3. Quality control issues (i.e. the wrong seat tube was installed).

The first scenario is the most unlikely. The second is more of a possibility. While I do know the build was Alleges tubing for 1971-1973, it may have changed later, though if it did, it was likely only in the main triangle and you'd think they would have also changed some other minor details. The third scenario seems most likely to me. When the boom struck many manufacturers were stretched to the limit, trying to meet the huge increase in sales. This is just the type of situation where quality control issues propogate.

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