CV-6 

Add to the Tour de France the Super Champion. I have seen them identical to TC, just marked Super Champion. Believe the SC was an across the pond model designation.

rootboy 

Good add, Lynn.
So many questions on these bikes.

Here's one old thread on a red one, owned by a guy in New Zealand.
https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...-champion.html

And another thread with a nice blue one, with a very unusual head badge.

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...-champion.html

due ruote 

This is a pretty good representation of the color on mine, a metallic that M called "brilliant blue." Is that what yours looks like? The 753 bikes I have seen (only in photos) have been what appears to be closer to a robin's egg blue and non-metallic, as shown in the second photo (borrowed from Vertyg). Also, I don't know if the engraved stay caps are unique to the 753 bikes, but mine does not have them.
(Edit) Also note that my '78 has tt cable guides whereas the '77 753 bike does not.
The catalogs show '76 as still being an orange year, then the "Team blue" 753 bike in '77, then the brilliant blue like mine for '78 through '81. After that they went to the darker blue of the OP's bike.

Btw the seatpost on my bike is 26.6.

dadoflam

The only thing I am not certain about between my bike and the catalogue is the gear cable routing - on my bike the cables run over the BB whilst in the catalogue the cables appear to run under the BB.
I get the impression from various images that the '82 and '83 model bikes were near identical with the rerouting of cables being a detail change.


I am curious as to whether the Team Champion bikes were conceived mainly as bikes to be supplied to professional riders and made available to the public, like the SBDU Team TI Raleigh bikes, which might account for their relative rarity, or whether they were simply the highest end bike in the range that was supplied to Pro Teams as required?


Also when to the Team Champion/Champion Team models first appear - is it as a pro team bike ridden by Ocana's team or beforehand?

CV-6 

Going back to the Team Champion vs Champion Team question. It seems to me the bikes were marked Champion Team at least through 77, but referred to as Team Champion in the catalog. After 77 is when the bike are marked Team Champion. I am looking at a 753 bike marked Champion Team as I write this. I have never seen an orange marked Team Champion. Now that I have written that, someone is sure to find one for me. LOL

Kactus

Vertyg said he has seen orange ones marked Team Champion.

El Chaba

Both. They are very similar to the Peugeot "Prestige Shop" bikes and I agree with you that there was some segment of the buying public that didn't differentiate what the product was or didn't care. To me what makes them so desirable is that Motobecane didn't offer them as a "looks just like the team bike" affair but made them exactly as if they were for a team rider (save for the custom geometry)...right down to the ssc rims....The shop where I worked part time and hung around full time as a teenager/young adult sold several...and a couple of them were even team replicas in the sense that they came with Clement Strada 66's instead of Criteriums as per the catalog. On the several occasions that I had back in the day to see some of the LaRedoute bikes prior to a race, every one had Strada 66's. It is details like that that lead me to believe that they were made in exactly the same way as the team bikes and the parts were picked from the same inventory.....

merziac

Plenty of orange Team Champion's by my research which I have always thought were the norm but have seen pic's of many Champion Teams as well. It seems to me the TC's have it maybe 60/40 or better, several of both can be found.
Chas has alluded to thinking many came from across the pond and that may have something to do with it. All I know is I am thrilled to have gotten Obrent's big one that will actually fit me.

crank_addict

Excellent reference and additional:
Early 1980s Motobecane team Champion Racing Bicycle

More of his commentary from CR.
Motobecane supplied orange bikes to the Bic team through 1973 and then didn't supply top tier teams with bikes until the La Redoute team in 1979.

The La Redoute bikes in 1979 were made with Columbus tubes and were fitted with French components, including Huret gears - the ones with the titanium bits. Colour photographs all seem to show a colour shift, so I am not sure whether the bikes were pale olive green or pale gold. The decals were of the "watermark" type. I do not know for sure what the decals were like on the team bikes exactly, but on top tier frames sold to the public in Europe they were a bit fancier with metallic substrate and differently sized from those on run of the mill machines.

In 1980 the bikes turned dark blue and had full chrome stays and forks and Huret gears were dumped (I think at the same time) in favour of Simplex. The top tier bikes were "Equipe Pro"and I think some had La Redoute stickers in place of Team Pro. These were green stickers on the top tube.

In Europe, the Team Champion was no longer the top tier bike. Here is one I used to have:
Early 1980s Motobecane team Champion Racing Bicycle

It doesn't have the chrome rear stays, and the rear derailleur is downgraded from SLJ.


And a little nostalgia from the 1970's
[IMG]motobecane paris 1973 by carrera247, on Flickr[/IMG]

crank_addict

In reference to the above Hugh's T.'s 198x Team Champion, it notes Columbus tubing and fork blades but nothing more specific.

Internal cable routing on the top tube -underside-, includes two braze-ons for the sheath.

Also for a higher end model, I find it odd they used molded integrated brake hoods / handlebar wrap by Hutchinson. First I've noticed the Hutchinson wrap in all white.

dadoflam

From looking at the Team Rider collector's cards for La Redoute the 1979 team bikes were the metallic champagne colour - reverting to dark blue in 1980.
Around this time the TC bikes appear to be available in either metallic champagne of the metallic blue as per due route's example above.
The Team Champion appears consistently in English Language catalogues as the top model in the range sold to the public from late 70's to 1984 - not sure if these are UK or US
The Equipe Pro bikes I have seen are close to the La Redoute team bikes but don't appear to have braze-on front derailleurs or the embossed M fork crown.

rootboy 

Here's another interesting link, just sent to me, as Hugh added it to the discussion of the bike on the CR list.
A really nice example of the Tour de France model.

Circa 1971 Motobecane Tour de France Racing Bike

And another nice example of the 1980's blue bike with French components.

https://classiclightweights.net/198x-...team-champion/

Vintage jon

Great thread here with some lovely bikes. I have what I believe to be a 79 team frame, it has 79 on the cinelli bottom bracket, a number hanger and lugs identical to a c4 that I had. I have had it painted to a French met green from the Renault colour chart of the time. I am struggling to find any good side photos of team riders, so I'm not too sure of the decal colours or style. I'd be grateful if anyone has good pics showing the decals and colours. The code on the bottom bracket has C.H.1 on it which I presume was a riders initials. It had a sealed titanium bottom bracket and alloy dura ace head set. I think it will be pretty unique once finished and I may well use a super record group on it as the French bits are hard to find. I have some tied and soldered gp4 rims on Spidale hubs which would be good period wheels but I'll probably use some ma40 clinchers as tubs are a pest with country lanes and hawthorn hedges being cut frequently!
Any help would be fantastic!

merziac

Nothing wrong with it, but this is a zombie thread, welcome aboard. Get your posts up to 10 and then post some pics of what you have, that will get you some traction.

juvela

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TC fans might like to see this Daniel Rebour rendering of the BIC team machine produced for Luis Ocana -



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Vintage jon

Ok merzaic I'll see what else is of interest here, I have some Gitane pro stuff too.
Zombie thread has come back to life I hope!

merziac

No worries, post up, make it so.

due ruote 

I assume you have seen this 1979 catalog page?

https://bulgier.net/pics/bike/catalogs/motobecane/79/12_team_champion_79.jpg

Specs:

https://bulgier.net/pics/bike/catalogs/motobecane/79/15_specs_2_79.jpg

(Edit) can someone tell me why my links don’t work?

Bianchigirll 

bulgier.net - /pics/bike/catalogs/Motobecane/79/

Vintage jon

Thanks, the frame I have is on the cards I have seen on French eBay, no chrome, number boss, cinelli bottom bracket shell. They had French high end bits on them with Weismann brakes. I'll pop some pics up when I have enough posts.

Cheers

romanlotus

Here's my TC