spiltmilk

Hey guys,

Decently new here...

I recently purchased an approx. 1981 - 1984 Gitane Grand Sport de luxe. The wheels on the bike are Weinmann 27 x 1.25 rims with Mallard 700 hubs. In the past two weeks, the hubs have gone out twice. My local bike shop recommended that I should replace the wheels for better reliability. So my question is... where should I look to replace/upgrade my wheels? It is a ten speed btw...

Here are some pictures if that may help...
https://img83.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dscn0288gn4.jpg
https://img231.imageshack.us/my.php?i...scn0289wx3.jpg

This is my first vintage bike so any help would be amazing! Thanks

spider-man

What do you mean by the "hubs have gone out," and what was the remedy the first time they did so?

spiltmilk

The cap at the end has popped off allowing the bearings to move from where they should. When I took it to the shop they said the ball bearings were rolling onto the cone in the hub. The first time, one ball bearing was actually visible.

unworthy1

hmmm...this does not compute: if it's the dustcap that's popped out of the shell, that should not have any bearing (hah) on whether the balls stay in the cups. Properly adjusted and with the correct size and number of balls, the cones will trap the balls in place with or without a dustcap. But it sounds like you may have other issues (show us a close-up pic of the hub) or may just need to find a LBS that plays well with vintage hubs. If you have to resort to new wheels you'll need to stick to 27" or replace your Weinmann CP brakes with longer-reach CPs or modern dual-pivot sidepulls to work with 700c rims. Try your local Craigslist, first.

Grand Bois

I agree with unworthy1. Get a second opinion. Those Maillard 700's are very good hubs and are worth saving, if possible. Do they have plastic dust caps? Mine do. I think it will be very difficult to find replacement caps, but you never know. Somebody here may have some spares.

spider-man

I concur. Sounds like the shop 1) may not know what they're doing; and 2) wants to extract more money from you.

Ex Pres 

FYI - the foil HT and DT decals place your Gitane solidly in the 1971-1974 time frame, ten years older than you were told, although I don't recognize some of the components. Check https://www.gitaneusa.com/catalogues01.asp for some catalogs of the era

Grand Bois

I believe that the foil decals were last used in 1973.