rootboy 

Real nice Moto Le Champion on ebay in the desirable Silver Lilac color and in a good size.
Anybody in So Cal. looking for one? No relation.

Vintage 1974 Motobecane Le Champion Campagnolo 58 5 Cm | eBay

due ruote 

That was just relisted. Went up to mid-300's iirc last time but didn't meet reserve.

verktyg 

A few months ago I sold a bare frame lilac 1974 Motobecane Le Champion for the eBay starting bid on the whole eBay bike... It was in mint condition, 9.5 out of 10.

So the $395 starting price is not out of line. The bike will probably go for at least $800.


BTW, from 1974 through 1976 the Le Champion frames were exactly the same as the Team Champion/Champion Team frames except for the 1/2 chrome fork and lilac or silver paint.

Most 1973 and early 1974 Team Champions had the chrome forks. 1974 catalog page:




Originally the bikes made for the US market were marked Team Champion on the top tube while the French market bikes said Champion Team.

BITD they were rare bikes in the US. In the 1970's I was only aware of two of them in the Southwest and Colorado area.

They're more common now than back in the 70's. I think that a lot of the ones seen here in the US were French market models marked Champion Team brought in from Europe in recent years.

I have 1978, 1980 and 1982 Team Champions but a 56cm BIC orange TC is still on my bucket list. I also have a number of Le Champions including a 1974 lilac one.

verktyg

Chas.

rootboy 

That surprises me. Like Chas sez, this should be an eight hundred dollar bike. IMO.
And a good deal if someone picked it up. Shipping might be a crap shoot as it looks like
the seller doesn't necessarily do many bikes.

I like the Lilac Le Champs.

OldsCOOL

It may go for more than 800. Very nice condition, very desireable and hard to find. It's a babe. And yes, someday I'll have one of these classy, elite Frenchies.

due ruote 

I agree they are beautiful bikes. College roommate had one and I always coveted it.

I looked up the previous auction, which ended at $330 with 15 bids. I don't know what the reserve was but presumably someone could have gotten a deal.
Vintage 1974 Motobecane Le Champion Campagnolo 58 5 Cm | eBay

noglider 

A memories. I can't believe I had one in that color and had it repainted a different color! I was young and foolish at the time. Now I guess I'm old and foolish.

badger_biker 

I always thought mine was a 1975 model based on old catalog scans specifying lilac for that year and have never been able to locate anything resembling a serial number on it. What is the difference if any between the 74 and 75 models?

verktyg 

Nice bike.

There was very little difference between the 1974, 75 and 76 frames. Same thing with the big sister Team Champion/Champion Team frames.

The 1974 and 75 bikes were lilac (the 1975 catalog calls it silver lilac). In 1976 the color was silver.

These were expensive bikes back then. I think I recall Team Champions selling for ~$800 USD. At the same time, you could by a VW Beetle for $1900 USD and a cheap full sized Chevrolet for $2300 USD!

What happened was the most popular sizes 54cm to 60cm sold the fastest. Smaller and larger frame sizes sat around at the factories, importers and bike shops for a longer time. For that reason, it's hard to pin an exact year of manufacture for bikes from that era.

The 1974 Le Champion had Universal Model 61 center pull brakes. The catalog lists them in 21", 23" 24" and 25" size frames.

In 1975 the brakes changed to Universal Model 68 side pull brakes. Bars and stem changed from 3TTT to Phillipe Professional, Saddles changed from Brooks Pro to Ideale 2001. 20" and 22" size frames were added.

1976 was the same as the 1975 except for the silver color.


Serial numbers are only good for the picking the Lotto....

There's not much logic to the number system plus there's little if any traceability for forty year old records.


You can find date codes on Campy NR derailleurs (1981 for this RD) and cranks. There's lots of info on the web to decipher the codes on the cranks.



HTH

verktyg

Chas.

SJX426 

I bought a '72 in '73 for $200. I remember distinctly looking at them in an LBS in 1972 with a price tag of $315. Unfortunately, mine was bent up in an accident in 2009. Here is a pic prior to the accident. I really didn't know as much as I do now so the bike looks a little off with the tires and poor selection of brake pads. All the parts are in a box with the fork and frame in storage.

[IMG]2008-06-01 15.25.53, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]2008-06-07 15.42.52, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]2008-06-07 15.40.51, on Flickr[/IMG]

[IMG]2008-06-14 08.03.51, on Flickr[/IMG]

plonz 

This has my attention, however I like this bike at $500 so the shipping becomes an issue. The Araya wheels are a BIG miss for me. Gotta account for getting some nice old hoops and re-lacing to a proper wheel.

rootboy 

Yeah. I suppose the bike originally came with tubulars, but I'm not sure which rims and too lazy to go down and dig out my catalog of the era.
Mine, above, showed up with Super Champion Gentleman clincher rims, laced to the original Record large flange hubs.

I wonder if there is a member in the San Diego region who could facilitate for a prospective buyer. I suppose one could enlist the folks at Cycle Art in Vista to help, but they may not be interested.

EDIT: My circa 1975 catalog lists the rims for the Le Champion only as Super Champion. No model listed. With "Gran Turismo" tubular tires. Paris-Roubaix tires listed for the Team Champion.

badger_biker 

Thanks Chas. Mine had been hacked with upright bars, a different stem and different brake levers when I got it. The wheels are also not OEM and the RD is newer. I'm assuming the brake calipers are original however and they are Campy and not Universal.

plonz 

Hmmm, now even more interesting seeing as how I happen to have a couple of Super Champion Gentleman clinchers and Campy hubs in the bin. Thanks for the info.

bakes1

Is the frame on that bike aluminum or steel?
I thought it was steel but seller listed it as aluminum.
It is also listed as 58.5 cm and 23"
Would that bike possibly fit me well at just over 6' 1" ?

SJX426 

@bakes1 Back then, many frames were identified by inches. The picture of the frame I posted is a 24" frame, it fit me well and I was 5' 11.5". Today I ride from a 58 min to 61 max. It might fit depending on your GBH dimension.

due ruote 

You are correct; it is steel. Seller appears to be an Ebay consignment shop and knows little about bikes I gather.

bakes1

Would my best bet be to ask the seller to measure from middle of BB to top of top tube in centimeters?

eschlwc

i would ask how he arrived at 58.5cm. it doesn't look that big based on pics of the head tube length.

it's hard to measure a bike. most measure from the center of the bb (crank dust cap), diagonally to the top of the seat tube where the seatpost meets the tube. but this is not correct. the measuring tape should be held parallel to the frame from the center of the crank dust cap. a diagonal measurement will result in a higher reading.

it normally doesn't matter whether it's c-c or c-t, as long as it's documented.

top tube length should also be measured (c-c of course).

due ruote 

If I understand what you are proposing, I have never heard of anyone measuring a frame that way. A quick google search reveals a widespread standard of measuring along the seat tube.

https://www.google.com/search?q=how+...w=1461&bih=746

eschlwc

when explaining how to measure a frame, just cue zeppelin's 'communication breakdown.'

The Thin Man 

The Lilac Ghost.

To this day, I would rank this among one of the very finest photo shoots I have seen on this site.

If you want a lilac Le Champion, this is a fine example to emulate if you have to do any cleaning up or restoration.

rootboy 

Thanks Thin Man. The graveyard provided a very nice backdrop for the bike. Which, by the way, sadly, is for sale.

ScottRyder 

I've seen that in person on our CCRT rides. Mouth watering.

Scott

satbuilder 

The bike or the graveyard?