I'm hearing crickets in the value section...

Can someone tell me what to look for to confirm that this is a Tour de France? Any guess on year with this paint scheme? I'm fairly certain that most parts are not original, what would the "correct" stem/bars be? I'm guessing Simplex/Stronglight parts?

My interest in this would be as a fast bike with fenders and possibly a rear rack - a replacement for my Raleigh intl. Will this fit 28c tires and fenders?

Finally - where did this fall in their model hierarchy?

https://www.mikebarakat.com/photograp...-France/gitane

Hi..Try this; https://www.gitaneusa.com/images/catalog/1970_pg5.jpg

Hi again...should of posted the whole deal; https://www.gitaneusa.com/catalogues01.asp

Thanks much - I was able to figure my way through from the first link. Looks real to me - clearly non-spec parts. Probably cost prohibitive to build up as original.

Seems like upper-mid range for them.

That's a TdF, and it was next to the top in Gitane's US lineup at the time. The components were all over the place, but you could find the Campy NR rd, the Racer brakes and the Sugino Super Mighty crankset as OE at one time or another over its history. But I've never seen them mixed in the configuration on one bike before. And where's the front derailleur?

The one thing seemingly out of place is the bar/stem combo, but I wouldn't say it's a negative.

Years '70-'74 most likely with that decal scheme. If the crank is original I'll go '74. May have been originally equipped with Simplex derailleurs and shifters that went "boom".

Aaron, why would you do this to yourself? Doesn't the Poprad do all of this better?

The Poprad doesn't really do French slot Over all, I'm sure you're right and I absolutely love that bike (though i haven't been using it much lately).

Also - it doesn't really do racks.

The Sugino crankset on the Gitane is a nice piece. It's obviously set up pretty poorly. Could have Campagnolo Tipo hubs, but they're probably Normandy. The clearances look tight. I say it'll fit 28mm tires, but not sure about fenders as well.

They're high flange campy hubs.

From the photos, I would say it is a TdF, based on the Simplex drops. The name usually appears on the fork blades just below the crown and on the down tube. I see the word Professional on the downtube, but the rest is hidden by the shifter. Typical TdF Stronglight 93 and BB, Stronglight headset, usually Pivo stem, Simplex derailleurs, Normandy Competition hubs and tubular rims, MAFAC brakes. There was a period when the Super Corsa (all Campag, Campag drops) was marketed as TdF as TdF had more recognition. Some TdF had Campag Tipo hubs as an upgrade. The SC could have either MAFAC or Campag sidepulls. If the former, there would be a brake stop bridge on the seat stays.

It's sounding like this might be worth playing with. If it doesn't work, it sounds like it might have some value and I can get my cash out. I wonder what's going on with that front derailleur (or lackthereof).

Looks great to me. I might be missing something but other than the lack of a front derailleur I see no need to change any of those components. I've owned two Gitanes and they were both great riders. I agree about the clearances though, I'd say fenders OR 28's, but not both.

Moot point - just got the "I was offered more money" email. Probably because of this thread (I thought I had a firm deal with seller, felt safe, oh well).

No huge loss...but it looked interesting.

Thanks for the help gang! If I see another, I'll know what to look for.

I wasn't suggesting any of the components be changed. By "set up poorly" I was referring to:

• Two chainrings and no FD
• Levers you can't use from the drops
• RD isn't adjusted near correctly. Check out the shifter.

Ahh, I see. You have a keener eye than I do.

Fenders will be tight on those frames, at least on mine. No room.

Justin,

I PM'ed Aaron the same thing, without the details. I always hesitate when I see something cobbled together. That was, and whomever bought it overpaid, IMO.

I had one as a flip. It was pretty crusty, but the frame only got me a whopping $50.00 after I cleaned it up. There not much to look at. Mine had brazing issues (lack of it) on the rear brake bridge and missing paint on the stays. You could see where they missed. Overall quailty sucked. Now the PX-10 I stole from you was another matter.....

The Gitane's I have had all rode real nice, the Super Corsa especially. They can have good resale, but like any French bike the audience is narrower. That said the most I ever sold a bike for was my Gitane Interclub with 531c frame. The Super Corsa was a close second.

They were cranking out those frames as fast as they could in the early 70's. Some of the workmanship was pretty sketchy. They're nice when you find a decent one.

I remember what you got on that...you should have left it for me, I could have given you that cut and still profited!

If I only knew......

The seat cluster of my Super Corsa was very crude. I saw low end frames that looked better.

Shame it's gone. Looked pretty good. Pretty clearly a TdF. I'd say it was a 1974.

The rear drop-outs would have been tapped and cut to use the Campy RD. The Sugino cranks were used when Peugeot ate up the supply of Stronglights during that period. So likely it was original.

Hubs are high-flange Campy Tipo. They were original. My '71 TdF came with them, too.

Bars and stem are replacements, but that's okay. The original stems were terrible.

Brakes were usually the Competition. Racers were used when Competitions were in short supply.

The thing about the Gitane TdF and SC is that they were often less than elegant, but they were/are VERY nice riders.

I have two and I see no reason I should ever, ever part with either of them.

Didn't see what the price was, but I'm glad it wasn't my size! ! !

It was initially $300...and seller and I agreed to that number with an extra derailleur. In fact, I even made a $20 down payment via paypal. He asked me for $500, which he said he had an offer for. I said no, he refunded the $20.