My 1975 Peugeot PX-10 LE, custom with bar-end shifters.
 

http://i.imgur.com/ucb84h.jpg


This Peugeot was bought in 1975 by my father for $350, originally had down tube shifters that my father modified into bar-ends.

When I dug this out of storage last week it was in pretty rough shape, the original wheels were very non-true, the brake hoods were dried out and flaking apart, and the bar tape had taken a beating, and the Brooks saddle was so dried out (having never seen a leather saddle before) that I thought the bike had a wooden seat.

I began by rubbing nearly a full can of proofide underneath the saddle over the course of the week to start rehydrating it. I replaced the wheels (originally sew ups) with some 27" alloy quick release clinchers I was able to find on Craigslist. Ran new brake cables and installed new black brake hoods (I looked for tan like the originals, but was unable to find any) and wrapped new tape on the bars (The original was black, but I like the white quite a bit.) Lastly put some tan wall tires on it to keep the vintage feel and installed a modern bike computer to show that even though the bike is approaching 40 years old, it still has plenty of life in it today.

Handsome bike, looks in great condition. Happy with the ride?

It's great! It's my first road bike so I wasn't sure what to expect, but I couldn't be happier. The Brooks is breaking in nicely already (I've logged about 150 miles on the bike since I got it's new wheels on Friday) and I definitely am looking forward to it becoming ever more comfortable as time goes on.

Looks like a great setup bet it rides great. I for one would not have not considered Barends on this bike and went with classic DT'd like ever other guy building up a nicer French bike. I like it very nicely done it's nice to see a well done build that goes against the norm.

Nice, what do you plan on doing with the original wheelset?

I can't take credit for it. My dad is the one who did it, hand worked back in 1975.

Not sure, right now it's just sitting in my room hanging out. I might get them trued up eventually and learn how to deal with sew ups, but that's not something that'll happen too soon.

EDIT: The freewheel and cassette are new with the new wheels, I have heard that the French parts were threaded differently. The original is still chilling on the original wheel.

Nice bike! I'm sure that it's a blast to ride.

If you haven't already done so, you should clean, grease, and possibly replace the bearings in the hubs, bottom bracket, and headset. And, replace the derailleur cables. It will make the bike run much better, and riding on old grease will cause permanent damage to the bearing races, which will be very expensive to remedy.

West Town Bikes (in Humboldt Park) has great "Build a Bike" classes that can teach you how to do all of your own repairs. Or, if you know how, you can just use their tools during their open workshop hours. Good folks.

Also, you might want to consider angling the nose of your saddle up a bit. Saddle position is subjective, but most people would find that the current position puts too much weight on their hands.

A lot of the fixters angle their saddles down because they think that it looks good, but it's pretty silly, generally speaking.

Best of luck. There's a lot of Chicago area folks on the Forum. Let us know if you need anything...

There isn't anything wrong with barends on that bike. It appears the ones on there are period-correct. I've got a similar set of Suntour barends for my 86 Peugeot. Having too much fun riding it to make the change.

I have a 1967(ish) px 10 and it has bar ends. The bike bike was campagnolified in the early 70s and the bar ends are campy. I like them. I have seen pic posted here of Merckx riding with bar ends in the late sixties for team peugeot.

Pb

Indeed, the Cannibal rode on the team alongside Tommy Simpson and with bar-ends!

I doubt that this bike is a 1975 model. Those lugs were however common earlier PX10's from the 72-73 era.

The model name is, I believe, PX10E.
The LE models started in 1974, and had different graphics, different brake calipers and wildly-steeper frame angles.

As far as the bearing servicing goes, it might depend on your usage. If you can get everything spinning smoothly with plain old oil, then I think you have some time to consider the level of servicing to apply before winter gets here.
You can more-easily verify the smoothness of the bottom bracket bearings and the rear hub bearings by holding the chain away from the rotating parts. The headset bearings can be oiled from the downward-facing gap, which is fine for moderate use, but grease them with waterproof grease if you'll be riding on wet roads.
I do some serious miles on bikes that get oiled this way. I pay particular attention to any bearing that might be over-tight however, or which may not be turning freely from grease caked in the bearings. Everything including the derailer pulleys should spin without noticeable resistance.

LHoT10820, that is such an awesome post for someone new to this forum!
Nice old Pug, and I like the way you're approaching it. :thumb:

Be careful with that leather saddle you are trying to "re-hydrate". The thing with leather saddles is that they sometimes reach a point of no return when they dry up. Yes, the leather might start looking and feeling like it's "alive" again after treatment with Proofide or other leather treatments, but much of the fibral strengnth in the leather might be too far gone and if you are not careful with tensioning or just riding it, the leather might tear at the rivet points at the worst time during a ride.

Chombi

I'd raise the brake levers until the tips are even with the bottom of the drops, rotate the bars forward a bit, put both brake cables behind the bars, and tip the saddle back some. All of this is for purely aesthetic reasons. It's more important that it's comfortable for you.

I agree that it's not a 1975 PX10LE. It's definitely pre-1974 based on the location of the Reynolds decal on the seat tube.

Those hoods are not correct for it. They would have been the funky half hoods. I wouldn't change them, though.

If you don't plan to carry a pump, those top tube clips can net you some bucks on eBay if they're original.

Is that a Simplex rear derailer?

Nice bike from dad! Looks like he updated the derailleurs, and maybe even the handlebars, which don't look like the original shape.
Very nice ride. Yeah, keep the wheels and clean them up and true them. You'll like tubulars some day.

Talking to my Dad again, he said he bought it when he was 17. Born in '56, 17 years later would put it at 1973. Good catch!

Thanks! :D

Duly noted. I've done about 200 miles on it as of yet. Today was a 10 mile warm up on my rollers and a 50 mile ride outside and it's holding up fine so far, at this point I'm just crossing my fingers and hoping for the best.

Yeah, I actually had to move the brakes down from their original position because I couldn't reach them when I was riding drop. Where they are right now is prefect for me to make a grab for them safely after upshifting while coming to a stop.

As mentioned above in this post, it turns out it's a 73 PX-10 E.

It is not. My Dad replaced the original Dura-ace rear derailleur upon purchase with one by Crane. It was actually giving me some issues today while riding, so I'm going to be adjusting the limiters again, if it keeps presenting to be problematic do you know of a modern one I could replace it with without losing the vintage look of the bike?

Handlebars are original with modifications to accommodate the bar-end shifters. From what I've heard tubulars sound pretty great after you get past the pain in the ass of learning how to actually install them properly. 120 psi sounds like you could roll forever.

Installing/removing tubulars is no a PIA!
But fixing a flat is!

Just to clarify, "Shimano Crane" was the imprinted name on the earliest Dura-Ace rear derailer.

The original derailers on these early-1970's Peugeot bikes were always Simplex, and made largely of black Delrin plastic.

Your dad has excellent taste, nice bike. Bar end shifters are my favorite and those look great on there.

I'll take a picture of the derailleur in just a minute and upload it. Something tells me you guys will have a better idea than I will.

http://i.imgur.com/Wxj7D.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/21hG1.jpg

If anyone could shed any more light on what equipment I'm working with that'd be awesome.

One last note, what's the best way to clean up the rust on there?

That's a very strange way to mount the rear derailer! The Crane is one of the few that will work on a Simplex hanger. Run a 10mm through the hanger (unless it's been cut off) and you can eliminate that claw.

Gasp, I am thinking that the original hanger may have been chopped(?). If so, investigate, then get a rope.

Like you said, a tap could have been run thru to affix the Crane, since the tab washer rertains spring tension to the B pivot.

OK, as one who has learned to live in harmony with claw hangers, it's not the end of the world. But man, if we just could have traveled the bike-shop circuit waving ropes around back then...

This is true but I have seen few if any that still have the stock Simplex stuff. A lot of these had the DR's changed out as early as at the original dealer.

Welcome to the forum! Very cool bike! I have to give another plug for West Town Bikes, their classes and staff are first rate!

Cheers,
Chris