I just picked up a 1985 Bridgestone 300 mixte in absolutely perfect condition -- it looks like it's never even been taken on the road. It wasn't exactly a steal, but I think I paid a fair price; it was still a lot less than any of the new mixtes I've looked at! It is light, quick, and just a blast to ride. All of the original components work beautifully. Here are the specs some helpful soul scanned from the 1985 Bridgestone catalog and posted Sheldon Brown's website (mine's the mixte model in the upper left corner):

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/bridgest...stone-300.html

I guess my question for you all is, I feel like a few upgrades would take this bike from "decent" to "awesome," but I'm not sure where to start. I had planned on buying an old mixte, riding it through the autumn, and spending the winter working on it. I have read that, as far as Bridgestones go, the 300 was an entry-level model and not exactly collectible. For me, this was part of the appeal; I don't have to feel bad about taking it apart!

I was thinking the first steps would be to swap the 27" wheels for 700c, replace the stainless steel seat post with something lighter, take off all the reflectors, and trade in the foam handlebar covers for sleeker grip tape. I'm planning on using this as my main bike and I'd eventually like to get brifters and also try to make it as light as possible. I'm going to be using it mainly for 30-40 miles of commuting a week and some light touring. The single-speed beater bike I'm working on will also be getting upgrades as I replace its components with the leftovers from the Bridgestone, but that's a different story.

Am I on the right track? What would be a good starting point for updating this great old bike? Other than sandblasting the thing and getting rid of all traces of that "dynasty pink" paint job... :shudder: