shuru421

Alright guys, pretty straight forward, I recently bought a new project, Rossin Prestige with Mavic group. I don't know much about the components (model number etc) other than its French? I'm considering to go more 'heritage' correct (didn't really know the term loll..) route like Campagnolo to finish it off. Butttttttt before I do go and swap everything out, I was hoping to get more insight and/or information on this bike and this particular build itself, and if the Mavic components are actually worth overhauling and reusing. The bike has rust and scuffs and the parts have scuffs as well, hence 'project'..but this is the best part (besides putting the bike back together) of the project because I can configure it in different ways and pretty much clean everything and bring it back to life. Well enough jibber-jabber, all opinions are much appreciated! Thank you!

Drillium Dude 

My opinion is pics are needed so we can help answer your questions

DD

obrentharris 

I agree with DD. Post some pictures so we can know what we're talking about. There are some of us here who are quite keen on Mavic components and might be willing to offer some sort of trade if your desire is to switch to Campagnolo.
Brent

bikemig 

I'm a fan of mavic stuff as well and agree with the others that we can give you a better idea with pics.

mapleleafs-13 

yea this is such a tease, it's like saying i have playboy mag infront of me, lots of awesome stuff in it. What should i do.

Chombi1 

Nothing wrong with mixing and matching French and Italian......and Swiss.....:

Lucho Herrera thought the same when he won the Alp d'Huez stage in the 1985 TDF:

shuru421

I will post pictures soon.

+1 motivation on keeping it the way it is.

Bianchigirll 

T-Mar

The Rossin Prestige was introduced circa 1990. It is a somewhat futuristic and chunky looking at the same time, with the faceted tubes, blocky shell, dropout collars and stay cap collars.

For me, it would come down to which Mavic series you have. ZAP would be perfect, followed by followed by the mid-1990s, Shimano clones. I'm not so sure about the earlier groups.

I believe former member Gary Fountain also has one.

shuru421

Ok so now this has become PIC HEAVY!!

Chombi1 

Yup!, at least better get off that broken Photobucket wagon and totally switch over to a different and better photo hosting site like Flickr or Imgur. first thing that greets viewers in you PB album is really irritating ads that forces you to rotate your phone just to be greeted by an m&m candy ad......
Tried to get to your pics after that, just to be bombarded with more ads........I gave up.....
Photobucket is just Sad and Bad these days!:..... so glad to be rid of them!

jetboy 

yeah- you should keep the mavic. Or send it to me because I have a Look that would love it!!

but turn around your drop out adjuster screws - the top will get all damaged if its put in that way.

T-Mar

I think it looks fine, with the exception of the starfish crankset, which I personally don't think looks good on anything without a disc wheel. This is the first Prestige I've seen in this colour.

Drillium Dude 

While the Prestige isn't really my cup of tea when it comes to Rossins, this one looks in very nice shape. Not being as conversant with Mavic as, say, Campagnolo, I'm not sure about the component ages - but I bet @Chombi1 could tell you.

And I agree with @T-Mar about the crank, except in my case I don't think they look good on anything

Lovely color, great score. Would look awesome with Super or C-Record.

DD

T-Mar

The rear derailleur is the Mavic 840, introduced circa 1993, so it is era appropriate. It's the Shimano clone mentioned in my earlier post, as my 2nd Mavic choice.

Bianchigirll 

Great looking bike. I agree keep the Mavic.

howellhandmade

My vote is keep the starfish. It belongs. The stem and bars, on the other hand, unless you're actually built so that they're comfy, those could change.

Chombi1 

The stem and bars seem to be period correct if you are building towards a first half to mid 90's bike.......but they they are a bit wanting on the looks department....
There were still better looking forged aluminum stems from that time that you can fall back on, but the bars were all pretty much in the "ergo" style like you have, by that time. They only started making bars with traditional bends again during the present retro bike movement.
I have always been on the fence with the starfish crankset. I tend to think the look best on a bike with a mostly aero theme...... on other bikes, they seem to look unnecessarily massive. Mavics seems to have agreed,as they made a second version with less area at the spider. Not sure if the one on the pic is the first or second version....

shuru421

I really appreciate all the comments and info in regards to the Rossin.

Ill definitely reuse the Mavic Components after a complete overhaul. The starfish crankset is questionable in the looks department, but if its correct, don't see the reason to change it. The seatpost/stem/handlebar however will be replaced. The stem and handlebar particularly. The seatpost bolt also says Sugino, could anyone recall if Rossin did in fact come with Sugino seatpost bolt or something else? Id replace that as well if its not correct.

The frame itself leads to few more questions..

To rid the rust, I was thinking of dunking the entire frame into a small pool of Evapo-Rust for a day or so and rinse the inside of the tubes and scrub off the outer rust. Or...just take it into a paint shop and have them professionally remove the paint and rust themselves? Suggestions?

Chrome has scrapes/scuffs, how should I treat this?

Paint color..?

Chombi1 

Just take off any rust that might have already started at the areas where the chrome was scratched or scuffed exposing the steel. An oxalic acid dip treatment should be able to take it all off. Regular cleaning and waxing should help keep the moisture from causing more rust.

shuru421

*UPDATE*
JUST received the bike and from inspecting the bike in general, Id rate the condition maybe like 6/10. The bike has its rusty scuffs, the components are entirely Mavic, the hubs are marked Mavic 571, the brake levers and maybe the brake calipers feel rather cheap/flimsy, front hub is smooth, rear needs overhaul, pedals are generic pedals with plastic toe-clips, the rim is pretty heavily worn, might upgrade that department first, the cable housings even Mavic, Sugino seat binder bolt, Profile handlebar, Shimano 600 seatpost almost like an aero design. All in all, the color is something I can't get over...its awesome. Its a very distinct metallic green when looking dead-on, but in certain angles, the light transforms the color to a blue'ish metallic washing out to the original green. I don't think I'm going to repaint the frame. Im going to carefully try and remove the rust without hurting the paint. Im not sure if ill ever come close to this type of paint from another painter and I rather not risk the chance. Love the paint and the tubes. PICS TO COME!

Road Fan

The frame has a lot of unique and quirky features, from the main tubes to the dropouts and the BB. I would say the quirkiness of the Mavic parts is a good match!

I think it's worthwhile to find out about the frame. I think it is very interesting.

Road Fan

There are certainly threads about spot rust removal, but they might be hard to find. Maybe check out Randy Jawa's site.

Bikerider007

Good call on keeping the Mavic. I like Record and Super but they are more common. Wouldn't mind having another Tout Mavic bike myself.

Gary Fountain

T-Mar is always on the money but I'm not quite a former member, just a member who has a lot on his plate at the moment.

I do have a Rossin Prestige which fits me perfectly. As a result, I absolutely love riding this bike. Being stiff at the bottom bracket, it just seems to do everything well from sprinting, to descending, to climbing, to the long ride, etc.. I also happen to be in love with Colnago's kitted out with Campy components. I have to say that my Rossin compares very favourably with my Colnago's and quite possibly a little nicer to ride (but that could be a day to day thing).

I'm sure you will discover the positive ride qualities of your Rossin Prestige frame.

As for your Mavic components, I would stick with them. I have never had a bike featuring Mavic components but I do wish I had. I have always had Mavic rims and even Mavic hubs but never the full component group. I run mainly Campagnolo on my bikes as this is another love of mine but, in this case, the Mavis gruppo is probably the original gruppo fitted to the frame, Another consideration is the fact that the frame is constructed of Tange Prestige tubing which is a little rare for an Italian builder to use even in 1990. I think the fact that the frame construction is a bit 'special' the Mavic gruppo suite the build and is a little rare too, befitting the frame.

I think many Rossin Prestige frame colours resemble colours you might find on a luxury car such as a Rolls Royce or Jaguar. I can imaging a classic Rolls Royce sporting your frame's colour.

I have built my Rossin Prestige with a Campy C-Record components of roughly the same era as the frame. Shamals are there for the fun of it. Here's a photo of mine to help you imaging a possible build for your frame: