Just got this build completed and I figured this was the place to show it. It's a Gitane Grand Sport de Luxe.



It's a total what-I've-got-in-the-parts-box build; the only thing I bought new were the cable, the single-speed freewheel and the stem. I got it as a bare frame (but with the crankset and bottom bracket); it was solid but the paint and most of the decals were shot (only the one on the seat tube was intact), and there was a little surface rust here and there. I removed the mangled decals, sanded the frame, and rattle-canned away (the frame was not Drewed in any way). It doesn't show up terribly well in the photo, but the head tube and the area surrounding the seat tube decal are white, while the rest of the bike is a sort of beige. I put together a set of wheels (the front was complete, the rear I had to build from bits lying around), drilled and tapped the inner chainring to fit directly on the spider (running 40-16), and threw a set of old pedals on it. It's only got a front brake right now - a ubiquitous Dia-Compe center-pull with a generic cruiser lever on the top of the bars - because I only had one (if anybody's got a matching center-pull they want to let go cheap for the rear, PM me). Taped up an old set of steel bars, tossed on an Avocet touring saddle, and it was good to go (extra bar tape as a protective wrap on the top tube). Just gave it a 15 mile shakedown: really quiet, smooth ride, lots of fun.