Curious - not doubting you, so don't take this the wrong way, this is a learning experience for me - does your '74 PX10LE use the foil headbadge or plastic?

A lot of the popular Peugeot reference sites have the same catalog marked as "1974 North America", but the bikes inside it use the same decals found in the 1973 EU catalogs. I always wondered if (a) the common North America catalog on those sites is incorrectly labeled and it's actually the '72-'73 English catalog, or (b) maybe North America received leftover 1973 EU market frames for sale in 1974, which is why the English '74 catalog everyone seems to have shows bikes with EU 1973 decals.

I've never managed to find a bike with serial and decals intact that could prove/disprove it.

Foil headbadge.

Ok, now I see the confusion. In North America, every Reynolds-based model in 1974 had the 531 decal on the seat tube except the PX. So we're both essentially correct: Your PX would have it on the downtube in 1974, and in '75 they moved the Reynolds sticker to the downtube on all models (except the PX10 which already had it there).

I had to go back and reference on it - the '74 catalog is actually a '74 catalog. Date is clearly printed on cover at the BBP website at least, and you can see the dissimilarity in the 531 decal: Peugeot 1974 USA Brochure

I'll look at that when I get home. It's blocked here at work.

Most of the indicators are pointing towards a PR10/PK10. The crankset is PR10 spec. The fork is also PR10. It's definitely not a UO8 fork based on the rake and the PA10 fork didn't have chromed blade ends. However, both cranksets and forks can be replaced and it's hard to imagine why a seller would claim it as a PA10 if it is something higher. It could even be a non-American market mode, which further complicates matters. In the end, just follow John E's advise and measure the seat post diameter. That will tell you if the main tubes are Reynolds 531 or hi-tensile steel.

I withdraw the "lo end" crank crack -- the original picture looked like it had a one-piece spider and outer ring, which it clearly does not.

If the seatpost diameter is 26.4-26.6mm, then it is a PR/PKN-10, which I can vouch for as a delightful and versatile steed.

iYou're right, it looks like PR10 does have the Reynolds sticker on the seat tube.

By every Reynolds-based model besides the PX10 you mean the PR10? I don't think there were any others available here at that time. I've seen a European PX60.

Did you mean to say that the PA10's didn't have half chrome forks? I don't think I've seen one that didn't.

You don't really have to measure the seat post. The PA10 will have a seat lug that is cut straight off at 90° to the seat tube and the walls will be close to 1/8" thick.

I think they used Bocama lugs exclusively on the PA10. That bike does not appear to have Bocama lugs. I don't see anything about it that doesn't say PR10.

Well... not exactly... All of those forks used seamed blades but U08 forks had a 60mm+ fork rake plus stamped steel fork ends. By the early 70's the PA10 and PR10 fork rakes were about 50mm plus they had Simplex forged fork ends.

They all had the same stamped steel fork crowns plus the steerers were made of of sleeved straight gage tubes rather than a butted steerer.


In the 1960's PA10s, PR10s and PX10s came with Nervex Pro lugs which after ~1967 were usually painted black.

ARGH! Can't post photos yet!

Original 1967 PA10 with Nervex Professional lugs:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/rencooks/4001503475

Early 70's PA10 with somewhat fancy Bocama lugs:

https://forum.tontonvelo.com/download...5374&mode=view

Mid 70's PA10 frame with the same Bocama lugs. This frame is mislabeled as a PR10:

Vintage Peugeot PA10 Frame and Fork 55cm - Santucci Cycles


@francophile too

By the mid 70's many bike shops used work stands that gripped the seat tube. Working on bikes frequently caused bikes to twist in the stands which damaged or destroyed seat tube and tubing decals. Many European bike manufacturers moved the tubing decals to the down tube.... but after a 2 litre wine or 3 pint beer lunch there was no telling where the workers put the stickers.

To many of those employees tubing stickers meant very little. They were trying to throw bikes together, box them up and push them out the door as quickly as possible.

So while many mid 70's and later French bikes had Reynolds decals on the down tube some still came on the seat tubes!


@francophile back before the days of desktop publishing creating catalogs and literature was an expensive proposition done by layout artists using real "cut and paste" using Xacto knives and rubber cement. Making printing plates with graphics was even more expensive.

Bike makers didn't have big budgets for advertising so the frequently used the same graphic materials for a number of years.

Add to that, shortages in components and the slew of special models for specific markets:

"les spécifications sont sujettes à modification sans préavis" Specifications subject to change without notice!

So catalogs are just a starting point or guideline!

verktyg

Chas.

PA 10 with half chrome stays



From a 1974 PA10