Santa lives in Thunder Bay
 

Or at least one would be inclined to think so, judging by the box that arrived at the office this morning: :)

https://myalbum.com/photo/DJpTwUllTrHJ/1k0.jpg

Exactly two months ago it had been dropped off at the post office by @randyjawa, containing the cute Mercier Mixte that I'd spotted in the sales forum. I had fallen in love with it and had somehow managed to think up a rationalization for buying it and having it shipped back to Europe.

Anyway, it came packed as can be expected from the man who taught many of us How To Ship & Pack A Bicycle:

https://myalbum.com/photo/RVOkEnJ6qQYZ/1k0.jpg

Unboxing a bike is a great way to entertain a cat:

https://myalbum.com/photo/OEeVrTJU93DR/1k0.jpg

Also a great way to keep up with the news elsewhere in the world:

https://myalbum.com/photo/OgrqEgLKKIg5/1k0.jpg

After a quick once-over with a damp cloth and some light assembly it now looks like this:

https://myalbum.com/photo/lPLQCr6rWYDj/1k0.jpg

It is in terrific condition. "NOS with minor shop wear" would not be too bad a description. The size is perfect for mrs non-fixie, and when she first saw it (she arrived home right after I'd taken this picture) she said she liked it, so that's a good sign. :)

I'll be spending the holiday period mulling over the actual build, as I can see the Retroronde van Vlaanderen and Eroica Limburg in its future if I get it right. Minor upgrades probably, at least visually; I'd like to stay close the the original. Suggestions are welcome.

Thanks, Randy! I'm really happy with it. :thumb:

Atta boy, non-Fixie! Great choice for a bike for the Wife to ride. Will look forward to the change around- build.

Very nice!

Do you want a standard version? I have to clear space. Needs work and is far from NOS:

[IMG]http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/...psit0tvwdl.jpg[/IMG]

Pick up free or yours for shipping.

Wow that's maybe the nicest looking mixte I've seen. Great Mercian lugwork--and those chainstays!

Cool to see some cross-pollination happening across the forums.

Thunder Bay is a good spot for Santa, not all that far from the north pole. They know all about winter up there.

That's a sleeping beauty. Upgrades are limitless, SLJ gears, TA triple, retrofriction shifters, Rigida alloys, CLB2s, white SKS mudguards with the chrome strip down the centre. Or nothing at all.

I would try to find some alternate grips. I find those hard plastic units uncomfortable but maybe small hands fit better. Congrats, a lovely present for Ms non-fixie.

Glad the bike arrived in good shape. Nice and, yes, darn close to NOS, in my opinion also. And...

I am about to check this one out, perhaps later this evening as I would not mind having a bike to ride in Winnipeg when visiting one of my daughters and her family.

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/NDQ5WDgwMA...YPb7U/$_27.JPG

I have found that Santa works several months of the year. :) Two frames from Thunder Bay pleased the proprietor of my LBS this past spring.

Gorgeous Mercier!

Yeah, that's a better match condition-wise. Go for it!

Looks like a fine specimen to me regardless. :rolleyes:

This is a nice bike; it will move fast on SF CL. I like this.

What a beauty!! I'm sure your wife will love it! I do, anyway. I think this bike would look just perfect with some cream tires and a honey Brooks saddle. The paint is such a beautiful blue and that matching pump is aces! Great score. Mercier makes a fine bike all round. I have two and love them, the ride as well as the aesthetics and Art Deco graphics.

I am NOT a Mixte fan...but this bike is fantastic...cool one! Cannot wait to see what you do with it!

Hmm, dual chainrings and a mutli-speed freewhell but no derailleurs. I think Randy shortchanged you.:D

Seriously though, why was it two months in transit? That's an incredibly long time, even for overseas. Did Randy ship it via DSS?

Yes, there are a lot of very nice bikes that seem to come out of Thunder Bay. I regret not being faster to pull the trigger on this Marinoni touring bike.

http://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...condition.html

Ran right out of freewhells:-(

As for shipping time, thunder Bay is remote and I have been unable to find a cheaper way to ship. I derive no pleasure from asking people to pay high shipping costs and/or long waits. And to comment on what one buyer said I should do - lower prices to make up for high shipping costs - I always do.

Update!

Santa Found Stabbed to Death Outside Simpson Street Hotel;
Three Elves in Thunder Bay Health Sciences Centre Recovering from Fentanyl Overdoses

Thanks all, for the kind words. They really help in justifying the investment. :) And of course I shall post images of the bike when ready.

Thank you for the very kind offer! But as you may have seen in some of the pics above I have a bit of a space challenge of my own. That is my living room. More importantly, I already have my own high-ten Mercier. This is the European version of what would have been a 100 or 200 on your side of the pond.

https://myalbum.com/photo/zZYqrCIaGDYo/1k0.jpg

Ha, let me put the record straight, just in case anyone might actually wonder: I got exactly what was advertised in the original sales thread. I assembled it just enough to check if my guesstimate of the bike's measurements was correct and to be able to show something that actually looks like a bike to its new owner. (She doesn't get as excited over a bare frame as I do ;))

The bike came with Canada Post. The two months lead time was a result of groupage challenges along the route, I imagine. Anyway, I knew beforehand it was going to take that long to get here, and it's not like I don't have a bike, so that wasn't a problem at all.

As promised, an update on this project. Mrs non-fixie has just OK'd it for L'Eroica next month, so I guess it's done for now. :)

I'd been trying out a few things since I got the bike. Some either received a luke-warm reception from the owner (the fenders and racks) or were discarded by myself because I couldn't get it to work or look like I wanted (the chain guard, the gearing ratios):

https://myalbum.com/photo/Qhxi0eKG75WB/1k0.jpg

A couple of months ago I finally found a solution for the too tall gearing. Or so I thought:

https://myalbum.com/photo/Yjvdo0xn4rDz/1k0.jpg

It turned out the the 44/26 combo I'd found was made to be used with a 1/8 chain. Took me a while to find one that would play nicely with the whole ensemble, but in the end the SRAM PC-1 turned out to be just what I needed.

Version 1.0, with guidonnet brake levers, 32mm Paselas on 700C Weinmanns, Allvit derailleurs with DT shifters and a honey-colored Brooks:

https://myalbum.com/photo/HMfUPCjKFxgv/1k0.jpg

A first test was somewhat successful. No comments on down tube shifting, which was a pleasant surprise, but comfort didn't seem to be quite spot-on. So when I found an as-good-as-new Brooks B17S Imperial, I mounted that:

https://myalbum.com/photo/k1dedmtKsWqS/1k0.jpg

Beta testing was performed at La Savoureuse last week, a 60k ride in Wallonia with some real hills:

https://myalbum.com/photo/62HvnG9U0Tw5/1k0.jpg

The new saddle was a downright hit. Comments that remained were about the brake levers (too awkward for a longer ride), the brakes (kept rubbing a bit) and the absence of a water bottle cage. Putting the original ville levers back on solved the first problem and shortening the straddle cables the second one. The bottle cage was a bit more of a challenge, as I wanted to keep the pump in its original location on the down tube and the room on the seat tube is limited on a small mixte frame. I finally settled for the solution (or kludge if you will) I'd used on my first trip to L'Eroica.

Here it is as it will travel to Tuscany with us in a couple of weeks:

https://myalbum.com/photo/RLIPdWAtWpYk/1k0.jpg

The Allvit is actually a really nice piece of kit. So far I'm impressed by the aplomb with which it does its job, compared to its contemporaries. And it's wonderful to watch it shifting from behind during a ride.

https://myalbum.com/photo/y6cSfXHtNwqG/1k0.jpg

Another personal favorite of mine is the Philippe stem:

https://myalbum.com/photo/BPfXE85Ozr6E/1k0.jpg

More pics in October I hope, after L'Eroica. :)

Well done on the mixte! I was shocked when I learned that the bike would have to go back, across the big pond, to the new owner. But went it did and it looks really good to me. I am pretty sure I saw a picture of this at a ride just the other day. I should have commented then but was not sure. Now I am and for those who did not see what the bike looked like before its long journey to Europe, this is how it looked when I stumbled across it...

http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment...1&d=1472996175

What a beautiful job! End result is stunning. Happy to hear that about the Allvit as well, I've always thought it was pretty and now I know it works, too!

Wonderful! A well done mixte is quite romantic. you