Hi everyone. Just curious if anyone knows anything about this bike. I've been looking for an older steel frame for restoring a nice commuter bike. But I can't really figure this one out.. the only thing I can make out is the Terrot brand. It's pretty dirty and beat up but nothing beyond restoring. The question is.. I know that some of these parts are not original. But what's it worth? I can't find out much about Terrot. Any opinions?

https://oldbike.wordpress.com/1956-te...adies-bicycle/

Nice lugs!

If it fits you and it isn't bent, it would make a great 'round town bike.
Be aware that if the components need replacing, finding French stuff (where it is required) will be more interesting.
Right here on the ISO thread is your best source.

Looks like a pretty basic 70's French bike. Nicely lugged steel frame with some questionable components which was pretty much the norm for French bikes of this decade. This one definetly appears to have some potential although most of the components will need to be changed to make it into a nice daily commuter. I would start with changing the simplex shifters and stem it looks kinda iffy. Depending on your resources budget the steel wheels and cotter crank will likely need to be upgraded at some point.

Better read Sheldon about french bikes and subsequent articles on modernizing.
https://sheldonbrown.com/velos.html
https://sheldonbrown.com/kunich.html

Can't say I know much about the, neither. I believe it was a Pays Basque based producer as I've only ever seen them in Southern France, an I acquired the one i owned there, but may be wrong. They also produced motorcycles, perhaps other stuff too. At some time, probably the 50'ies, they must have merged with Peugeot, as some of their bikes were perfect rip-offs of UO8's except for "Terrot"-decals. Must have ceased production in the early 70'ies. I doubt that they ever produced anything high-end, but my Terrot "UO8" was a very nice bike - and your lugs look like they could be Nervex, so maybe the tubes are Reynolds 531. Interesting bike.

I think the luggage rack is a later addition. Stem looks original. Steel Rims?

Might not be the cheapest bike to restore for commuter use but really cool. I like the lugs and double box lining. Unless your just rolling a mile or so to the train, figure on replacing the the drivetrain, cables and brakepads. You'll have to invest a few $ but you'll have a cool French bike to talk about.

i dig this bike big time - ride the h3LL out of it!

Thanks for all the replies and links! Very helpful as always! I'm not too worried about restoring/upgrading it.. I know it's definitely not going to be the easiest or cheapest to restore.. but I like a challenge ;o)....and I've worked on quite a few bikes including an old french frame or two.

Does anyone have an idea what year this might be from? I was thinking 70's origonally but from what I've heard about Terrot and the Peugeot bikes with the Terrot brand label that's not possible? I know Terrot was bought over by Peugeot in 1958 and stopped branding the models 1961. I don't know if this is right though?

i woulda thought 70s also but it sounds like you are thinking earlier? which would be cool - basically - dating these bikes isnt easy - you might try to identify the components dates but then you probably wouldnt know if its all original to the bike? it looks 70ish to me - but let us know what you find out...

Some history.
https://www.ebykr.com/2006/05/terrot/

this link now generates an error message. does anyone know an updated link for this information?

thank you.

Try this Terrot site for information on the bicycles and the motorcycles.

From the graphics style and application technique I would say early 60's. Especially due to the box lining, this sort of hand work went away later, especially on the subordinate models.

The brake calipers may be original, I cannot tell what the stampings on the outer arm is, Dural Forge is before Racer even though they are the same basic casting, and brass bushings are before the plastic for example.

Many of the other parts look replaced as you mentioned.

Value? No telling, worth keeping the original paint? Yes, Worth investing some time and effort, Yes.

Looks beautiful to me. I'm going to give my same boring advice, clean and wax it and do a couple of minor things like lose the kickstand and put the seat clamp the right way round. I'm almost 100% sure it would have come with Mafac half hood levers, which would suit the bike more if you can grab a pair. Other than that re-grease everything and ride it for a few weeks to see if you like the ride and fit before investing anything major into it. It doesn't look at a glance that you need to replace much more than the cables and possibly the chain, but closer inspection will tell, I guess. Nice find!

That looks like a nice bike!
If i was you i would strip everything off of the frame and start again.
Without all of those crappy components (which most have been added later) cleaned and polished it would be a very nice base to build a bike.
To me it looks like a late 1950s early 1960s bike, the saddle might be as old as the late 1930s due to the shape.
If the bike is from that period i expect the brakes are Mafac Dural.
One strange thing though is that it has eyelets on the front for fenders and maybe a rack but no eyelets on the rear dropouts.

thanks very much bertinjim! ;^D

The Nervex lugs usually indicate high quality tubing, as do the chromed front and rear fork ends. Steel cottered cranks were used on high quality bikes until about the mid 1960's; on later bikes they tend to indicate a low-end model. I would guess yours is a nicer pre-1965 model, which is high on the coolness scale around here. Period-correct French parts for that frame are not hard to find but they can get expensive, and then you may be reluctant to expose them to the daily grind of commuting. A daily commuter is sort of a beater, so I would look for cheap and functional parts if I was going to use it that way. The frame itself is plenty tough and you should have no issues with it.