mongol777

I think I had couple of threads open where you folks helped me with several issues I had (mainly rare RD hanger which requires specific type of RD, glued in/cemented washer in the crank, Campy spindle in the Tange BB, etc - it was one hell of a frankenbuild!).

I kind of gave up on the idea to gear it up (as I acquired couple of Bianchi's recently) and decided instead build it up as my nice sunny days SS. Having enough FG bikes in the stable I figured I'd enjoy going down country hills on this gorgeous machine in SS mode :-)
Last bit arrived in the mail today - FSA Gimondi crank and here she is (and no, frame was not drewed with in any way):

Frame - Bertin, model and year unknown, made in Belgium. Main triangle is Reynolds 531C, forks, chain and seat stays are Durifort
Wheelset - H+Son HB14 rims laced to Origin8 hubs (thank you Velomine)
Rubber - Ruffy Tuffy
Crankset - FSA Gimondi, 44T with Shimano sealed BB
Freewheel - White Industries 17T
Chain - KMC X8
Pedals - MKS Touring
Handlebar - Nitto Noodles, extra wide (48CM) with San Marco leather tape
Brakes - Tektro's long reach with Tektro TPR RRL levers (it takes time to get used to their looks but they are super comfy and this build is all around comfort) and Soma interrupter levers
Saddle - Brooks B17, my oldest, had to punch holes and lace it up as it started to flare
Headset, stem converter and threadless stem - VeloOrange
Bell :-) - Portland Design Works

Still looking for nice bottle mount, for now will be using big frame bag where I am going to keep all my goodies and tools for the ride.

Eclectic build, love how it came out, took it for a quick spin and it is super comfy and I like it a lot! And of course I have to share pictures of the finished product - enjoy :-)

Bianchigirll 

Great job looks nice!!

mongol777

Thank you! Heading out for first ride in about 30 min

mongol777

I will essentially replace the stem with nicer looking and more appropriate quill stem. I tried several combos using parts I had and current setup proved to be most comfy. That's the only part which does not look right to me but I can live with it

Pistard

Real nice looking, love these brakes

rootboy 

Pretty color.

gomango

Agreed.

Really sharp, for sure.

zukahn1 

Love the large bars with double brakes front and rear.

oberthecat

That is a nice combination of parts and looks like it will be quit fun. I may do something like that with an AD frame I have.

mongol777

Thank you everyone! Just came back from quick ride - very happy! Bike tracks nicely, fit feels great, very happy! Wheelset/tires combo feels great as well - combined with compliant steel frame gives very smooth ride.
And I figured out stem - I remember oddjob or wrk101 mentioned Sunlite two bolt stem (Sunlite Stem Quill Alloy 2BOLT 180x22 2X80SL | eBay) and I think it will give me exact same position and cleaner look. I bought VO stem and quill column for another project but fit turned out great so I kept it on Bertin.
So happy - it's been my longest project ever, I bought the bike last summer and it went through several iterations (none made me quite happy) and finally I like what came out.

Also hoping that someone may recognize the model, perhaps have catalogue scan, etc - this frame is in "never for sale" category for me and may be in several years I'll build it with original parts (which is terra incognita for now - I think bertinjim mentioned it is close/similar to C35 French model)

zukahn1 

Not sure of the model but that coluar paint was only offered in Canadian built bikes or Cars 77-79.

sloar 

Very nice, you did a great job.

mongol777

I figured it is 70s frame (I now forgot but there was some date looking stamping on the frame). Everything points to it's Belgium origin (standard English threading, decals style, etc).
And as I mentioned before - bertinjim and some other forum C&V experts noticed (if I am not mistaken) that based on tubing/probably manufacturing time its French sibling would be C35

northbend 

I like that, it looks like it will be alot of fun to ride. Nice job!

mongol777

Thank you very much! Yours and others praise means a lot to me and I mean it - I frequent many forums and there are only couple of them where I really enjoy to hang out. And C&V here is definitely one of them!

mongol777

I did ~10KM on it today and it was a blast!. I can't wait for long summer rides - metric century was one of the things I had in mind when building it, may be early fall I will be in shape good enough to take a crack at it.

Grand Bois

Great looking bike!

I set up my daughter's bike with Tektro brake levers and interrupters like that and, since we ride the same size, I discovered that I like them. I may set up one of mine like that. I kept the original MAFAC calipers on hers.

That Sunlite stem will save you some work!

mongol777

Thank you!

I used to have interrupter brakes on almost all of my drop bar bikes before but I found it works best with wider bars. I always had Tektro's but just could not resist shiny looks of Soma's


Yes, that's the idea - was not looking forward to removing tape, etc. Ordered sunlite stem today so hopefully will be here sometime next week.

Grand Bois

My thinking was just the opposite. I chose black because I didn't want them to be noticeable.



Now you've got me looking for Noodles for my Jeunet. I thought I was through buying bike parts.

mongol777

That's one gorgeous looking bike! Btw, Soma makes them in black as well

I love my Noodles! In general I am a big sucker for anything Nitto but I did not really "like like" their other drops. But once I got the Noodles - very happy with them.

rootboy 

Have you added pics of your bike on this site? I think it deserves to be there. It's a beauty.
Belgian Bertins Part 2: Not how Andre made them! | Bertin Classic Cycles

mongol777

I think I did at some point (may be how I got it or one of the interim builds). Once I get more appropriate stem - will post for sure.
And thank you for your compliment :-)

R3tired

very nice. enjoy!

mongol777

Stem is in and on - finally going for a ride today:

romperrr 

+1, I recently put 46cm noodles on my long distance/ comfort bike and love them. Fits my shoulders, comfortable, easy to maneuver. I liken it to ride a moose.