Good point, GB. That plastic is mighty old by now and could be brittle. There are some things to consider, CityTraveler. Not to throw even a little cold water on this but.... A word or two about the rear derailleur might be helpful too. I don't know for sure but it looks like this could be the Simplex Delrin, plastic, rear derailleur. They get a lot of flack, deservedly so for some reasons, but they worked OK when new. It's not new anymore and some of them didn't age well. Make sure it isn't cracked and that the pulleys on it are not cracked either. The front derailleur was likely changed out because its body was cracked. It happens. This plastic is forty years old. For good reliability, and safety reasons, you might ask the dealer about these issues.