"Why exactly do you advise against rethreading to Italian? There are plenty Italian thread BBs available today, options galore, without the detective work, sleuthing and waiting around your other options require. You don't say where you go to get these Japanese French thread BBs, but up here in BFE Idaho they are just not available. But I have found a shop that has experience rethreading to Italian, and the options opened up once that is done are breathtaking. Or is it just the cost of the operation for a mid range bike that's the problem?"

1) Re tapping to Italian is a PITA. I wouldn't trust most shops to do it. Then again, I wouldn't trust most shops to hold a wrench, let alone work on anything French. If you've got a good shop, fine, but there are no good ones here (the metro area is about 3/4 million). And I personally only have French and English taps, which, coupled with my hideous bias against the LBSs, may account for my irrational stance here. Also, as you point out, there is the cost problem. Frankly, the UO/UE8, though a great ride, is not worth sinking huge $$$ into. And rethreading a high end Frenchie, like a PX10 or a Mercier 300, just goes against my grain. It may not go against yours, though, so if it's your bike, go ahead. I'm a vintage weenie.

2) Sugino (or is it Sakae?) still makes the French thread cups. Your LBS should be able to order them from Quality Bicycle Products. Last time I looked (about a year ago), they carried them, although things may have changed, since Harris doesn't appear to have them now. About 55$. If you hold out a bit, NOS ones will show up on ebuy, and they are likely to be more in the 20$ range. Shimano a bit higher. Also, the YST BBs for stripped threads are available for about 20$ thru www.biketoolsetc.com. Phils obviously cost more, I don't want to cause cardiac arrest, so I won't quote prices.

3) It's a UO/UE8. Look, I love those frames. They're great rides. I use one as a beater fixie. It's set up with a Sugino BB and a Sakae crank. It's a very comfortable ride, but it's also the bike I ride when I go to the movies and have to leave the bike locked up outside for long periods of time. I probably wouldn't stick anything on this bike I didn't find real cheap. I think both weedeater and pacman are likely to get real nice rides out of these bikes, and believe me, if the geography worked, I'd have 'em over for a beer and we'd fix up these darn Peugeots in an afternoon. I'd even remove those @#$% cotter pins. But I wouldn't put much money into them, much as I love these bikes. I would sink $$$ into a PX conversion, because I have one (okay, three, but only one is a fixie) of those, and they just rock.

But heck, I'm old, cranky, Irish, and I'm drinking, so you can always ignore me.

One of these two frames is likely to be my next fixed gear project. In the front, I have a LeJeune Professional; behind that is a Gitane, either a Super Corsa or a Tour de France (haven't figured out which just yet).