One of my professors knows I play around with bikes and asked me to fix up her old Gitane. She says she bought it in 1974 brand new. It isn't a collector's item or anything, but she loves it. I got it all apart and have been cleaning and polishing all the parts.

My problem is this: The paint and stickers are in real bad condition. There are some rust spots on the frame as well. I want to repaint it but I'm going to have to replace the stickers. How would I go about this without damaging my wallet? It was easy enough to redesign them in Photoshop, I just need a way to make stickers out of them.

http://www.naputi.com/stuft/pic/gitane.jpg

Is this woman your major professor? If so, you may want to do a detailed web search for replacements. A standard way of replacing decals is to buy some clear waterslide decal paper and print them off on your printer...works okay for dark decals on light bikes, but not the other way around. There are a lot of ins and outs about this as well. This guy has a good approach - look at

http://www.nonlintec.com/carlton/

for some detail. Inkjet ink has a reputation for fading as well...although the latest Epson photo inks seem to be pretty resistant. If you can find a pigment printer (like, say, in the art department at your school) you'll get a lot better results.

mswantak may be able to make you up the decals you need. I haven't seen him around lately (vacation maybe?) I was very happy with the decals he made for me and the price couldn't be beat for what you get.

Geezzz, the male version of that bike is sitting in Cape Cod waiting for me to re-hab it in the spring (foolishly told by brother-in-law I would after several Rolling Rocks....)
Did you swap out the cranks or keep the cotters?
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Here's a link to his site:
http://home.comcast.net/~velographic/VGhome.htm

She wants it original, so the cranks will stay. Besides, I polished the bejesus out of them so they're looking real purdy.

Thanks for the responses. I'll have to check this stuff out.

Hah -- as if! You buggers have been keeping me too busy to loll around here chewing the fat. :p

I had a '71 Gitane mixte last summer, and the stickers that thing had on it don't even deserve to be called decals -- they were pretty crude. I've seen the replacements mirona created, and if they don't get him a good grade, nothing will; the boy's got mad skills.

c'mon. It's "mad skillz". :D

Sorry, my 133t-speak is teh suck.