Merry Christmas to me! Motobecane Grand Jubile
 

At the end of the summer, I decided to "thin the herd" and sell a couple of bikes out of my modest collection. One that I sold was my Moto Jubilee Sport...and I regretted almost as soon as the buyer drove away...I really liked the bike, but had convinced myself I had too many bikes, blah, blah, blah.

Now that I've regained clarity...I've been on the lookout for a comparable Moto, and won this Grand Jubile last night. I've bought a couple of bikes via the bay, with good results...I hope everything works out with this one...I'll be nervous until the box gets to my house. It seems like it's worth the chance....(except for those handlebars!)

Here are some of the seller's photos:

[IMG]http://i1139.photobucket.com/albums/...onway/gj_1.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i1139.photobucket.com/albums/...onway/gj_2.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i1139.photobucket.com/albums/...way/gj_3-1.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i1139.photobucket.com/albums/...way/gj_4-1.jpg[/IMG]

Very nice. Frame looks to be in excellent shape, and those lugs are awesome. The paint has been preserved nicely.

Great score!

Congratulations on a great score. (I sure hope the seller does a better job packing than he did aligning his DUI bars for the picture. )

If you decide to have buyer's remorse let me know...that looks to be my size. ;)

Aaron :)

Thanks...I'm just worried about it making it to me safely...

Any idea on year...I was checking the catalog scans on Velobase, which are awesome...in '76, the GJ was spected with 531 tubing, in '78, (though the catalog is in French, I think the tubing had been switched to Vitus 172...but the scripting on the decals is different than '75, 76, etc....I'm guessing maybe '77...that catalog is missing, so I can't check for sure....

FWIW, my 78 GJ has Vitus 172 tubing.

Saddle also looks good.

Just curious. What was it that you like so much about this bike?

I was trying to think of a funny way to work "DUI bars" into my reply

nice looking. gotta love those 'garage queens'

Well, I've always liked Motos, and like I said above, really should have kept the Jubilee Sport I had...so....this one looks like it's in pretty good shape...so I thought it was worth taking a shot on....

According to the 1977 catalog the GJ had Vitus 172 and even shows that particular color scheme. It appears that was the first year for Vitus and the last year for Nervex Professional lugs on the GJ so dating it as a 1977 is a safe bet.

By the way, I love my '79 GJ so I have a feeling you're going to like yours :).

For $57 (if I remember right) you got a good deal. I checked in on that auction a bunch of times and thought about sending in a lowball snipe offer, but the shipping cost and a rare upwelling of common sense stayed my hand. If it had been local, though, I sure would have. Just curious, what was your high bid? (Not the price it actually sold for.) That's not a rude question, is it? I ask because it seems to me that a lot of old Motobcanes go very cheaply.
Enjoy it. You'll find that it's a great ride--kind of whippy, but I sort of like that, myself.

I think it was a little over $100....$102.98 or something like that...with the shipping being listed so high, I didn't want to go over much more than that....I'm sure the bike price would have gone a lot higher, but the shipping costs scared people away...I'm "working" with the seller to lower the shipping...it does include him taking it to a bike shop to have it packed, which makes me feel a little better...(just a little) and he's giving me the receipts for shipping/packing, etc....I'm not going to complain too much...the total cost of this bike is less than what I sold my Jubilee Sport for...so, I'm making out on the deal...(that's how I'll try to explain it to the wife...lol.)

Well, I'm glad I didn't bid. I was thinking of throwing out a bid in the $75-85 range--not enough to win, it turns out, but it would have cost you the difference between that and what you actually paid. I hope it makes its way to you in perfect condition--the added cost of having a bike shop do the packing is well worth it, IMO, especially if the seller isn't really a bike person, which seems to be the case here. Nice score!

Congrats, look exactly like the one I had. The Vitus 172 is the bomb.

Looks nice.

The Grand Jubile I have is probably a 1982 model as a point of reference. And, yes, I'm still working on it once in awhile. Too many other projects ....

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...e+grand+jubile

Gorgeous bike, I love old Motobecanes but I haven't managed to find one in my size yet.

i loved mine. i had the same model. I would have kept it forever had I now given it to my father. he really enjoys it now.

Thanks...beautiful bike...reminds me of my Jubliee Sport....those old Motos are beautiful...

I bought that model in '77 as my first quality bike when I was a freshman in college. I had been a bike nut since I was a kid and was working as a mechanic in a bike shop so I knew how to keep it in perfect condition. It lasted me well through grad school and only died during a bad head-on crash with a car. I saved all the parts and even cut the head tube away and saved it because the lug-work was so beautiful. I still have the head tube on a shelf and all the other parts put away. Mine had the red-and-black paint scheme which I thought looked really nice. I bought a 1984 Jubilee off Craigs a while back but it's just not the same. I think I'll fix it up and give it to my nephew.

Best luck putting that classic back on the road.
Joe

Hello. I just picked up a Motobecane jubilee Sport in really nice shape with tires that still have a couple of nubbs on the center of the tires. I think i would call the color lightest greenish blue. I wish to sell it or trage for something else. If interested please call me Kelly at 408-310-2186. I can take a few pictures and email them to you if you wish. Kelly