Just curious as to whether or not a full complete Mavic equipped bike enhances value compared to Campy or Shimano. Is a full Mavic group really a valuable thing or not? Brakes- 440, RD- 841, hubs- 550, crankset- 631, headset - 305, FD- 860, brake levers- 440, not sure about the downtube shifters or the BB but everything is Mavic and in very good condition. Thanks for any info!

I think it really needs to be on the right bike... for me that would be a make one of the pro teams so equipped would have used the group with.

Mavic components work best on French bikes.....in terms of most "value enhancing" effect.....

My long-term goal is to set up my Vutus 979 with full Mavic.

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Mavic is odd - as parts, it has value because there's not much of it and there are people who want to try it some day. On bikes, it doesn't seem to bring the cache or prices that campy, or even DA, would. I think in that regard it's similar to Suntour.

I had a nearly complete group on my Merlin ti and sold the parts close to Campagnolo Chorus would sell as a group.

HI Everyone,
This is Zack with Mavic. It's the 125th anniversary of our company, and we have some activity coming this spring to commemorate the occasion. We might be interested to buy or borrow some of your vintage Mavic components, if you are at all agreeable. This would be for display at events, and etc. Please send me a message if you are interested in helping us out! Best regards - zack

Ummm no offense, but shouldn't you guys have a pile of display pieces etc?

I wouldn't think a company would store/hold old product for display...why would you think they would?

Most companies I've worked with that have products spanning a range of decades tend to have display models, prototypes etc laying around... admittedly it wasn't the bike world but I'd assume good practice is still knowing what you've done and being able to refer to it moving forward. Feel free to lambaste me if this is pure idiocy.

I don't think it's idiocy and I certainly won't lambaste you, but I wouldn't expect a company with rapidly changing technologies or products to keep demos of their historic product lines. I don't have any special (or any) knowledge of the practice, and you could very well be right. I could certainly be wrong, but it's not something I'D assume.

I just tacked on the end since I realized I don't know the bike industry like I do some others Not that I don't want to.. but that'd be a far fetched career change.

Limited fixed numbers out there , plus the collectors competing for that limited number at auction sites.

it is what it is ..

My personal thoughts on Mavic C&V component groups.....
Personally I always loved the 851/801 groups since I first saw them in the mid 80's, as the drivetrain groups looked so unique and refreshing compared to anything else available, despite their actually very simple (old) straight parallelogram design.
Frankly, I was not that impressed with what came after them later, The "starfish" styled cranksets just never looked good for many and were just too heavy compared to other cranks at that time. Their seemingly unshakable habit of using re-branded components (Italian! Modolos and Japanese Dia Compes) like brakesets and their first clipless pedals to complete their groups was what disappointed me most as I would think that a company like Mavic who must have had enough engineering "horsepower" can design their own brakesets and clipless pedals....They did seem to give it a good try to keep up or stay ahead with their indexed and Mektronic drivetrains.
I think despite Mavic seeming to get a second breath when they started to develop their indexed and Mektronik drivetrains, they seem to have just lost steam in the middle of it and let "Shimagnolo" take over the world of high line bicycle component business for good.... Instead of a second breath, it turned out to be a very disappointing last gasp.....
In a way, this kinda taints the values of Mavic C&V groups, as they pretty much just faded away from the market and eventually maybe even considered as just oddball component groups from the past, and unfortunately, it seems like that's what is now attracting C&Vers to their component groups, but I guess we cannot blame ourselves as Mavic chose to cut their time in the component business so short before it could really even build up a real following, so there's no continuing heritage like Campy and Shimano components have, which is a big thing when it comes to desirability and value.
As for present value? Who really knows, as the asking prices for NOS Mavic C&V stuff had been fluctuating seemingly, exponentially and mostly upwards in the past four or so years. Just four years ago, Mavic NOS handlebars (model 350 and 351) can be bought for something like 60 bucks NOS, now they average over 200 bucks NOS. I was able to buy multiple sets (RD and FD) of NOS SSC derailleurs for just below 100 bucks a set. Now, most NOS 851 SSC RDs alone are priced from double to even three times that while FD's are going for at least around 80 bucks. Not bad for keeping up with Campy, Shimano or Suntour counterparts.....but then I also noticed that these now hyper priced Mavic C&V components hardly sell at those very high asking prices, so they just mostly sit for a long time at the auction sites when they can be more useful being installed on project C&V bikes.... Hyper price sellers who seem to have popped up in the last three or so years sure aren't helping with the situation......

The Mavic road parts are arguably much rarer -maybe apart from the hubs, which were more common- than contemporary Campa or Shimano parts and work well. For some of these, high prices are asked, comparable to very good Superrecord or even above.

The MTB groups are even rarer and may fetch high prices for their curiosity value alone.

This disappoints me greatly since I put some weight behind your opinion, I've kind've lusted after Mavic with all the love it seems to get around here and have always kind of dreamed of putting together a group of it at some point as one of my finishing touches.. but that pretty much grounded that idea. I might as well just go campy if the returns are really all in the looks (PERSONAL OPINION), although I'm often disappointed with how the market works it tends to play in my favor as I tend to prefer function over form.. IE Suntour over Campy, Shimano over Simplex or Huret.. etc etc etc

Mavic stuff is beautifully made. There was no good--better--best. Mavic only made one line at a time, it was their best, pro-level, product. It was terribly expensive in the day - look up list prices of Mavic bits from 30 years ago, it is staggering.

In the 1980s and even into the early 1990s, a bike in the pro peleton was as likely to have Mavic components as Campagnolo. For example, I looked at Greg LeMond's bikes from his three TDFs and two WC when they were on display in New York. Half the bits were Mavic, half were Campagnolo. No, ahem, Shimano.

I think Mavic components go well on any pro road race bike from 1980 or earlier, through the mid-1990s. Doesn't go so well on a lower level road bike or tourers. I'm referring there to the components other than rims. The Mavic rims go well on any bike, from road to mountain.

My understanding is that Mavic indexed is compatible w/ Shimano 8 speed which should mean it is compatible w/ Campagnolo 10 speed brifters. I plan to try that on a Mavic-equipped bike soon.

I guess I'm kind of weird (well I KNOW I'm kind of weird), but I don't understand comparing the function of dated groups, none of which work as well as the modern stuff for most applications (there are exceptions). Mavic vs. DA vs. c-record vs. Superbe? A modern Centaur group is cheaper and better performing than any of it. The gap between the best of those groups and centaur is FAR greater than the gap between those groups.


To me once you're riding with 7400, this gen of Mavic, C-record or whatever, you're making a fashion statement, doing so out of nostalgia or you're a collector. What Chombi said is very consistent with my memories of the prevailing wisdom of the period and with what happened on the market, but if my primary concern was weight or function, I wouldn't use any of this stuff. I do think he's almost definitely right about everything he said. It's different if it's completely non-functional or actively interferes with the enjoyment of a ride ( like a Duopar, or 7400 levers, or IGH).


To me Mavic looks cool, is somewhat unusual and I'd love to try it out as an eccentric, kind of unique gruppo. I have no doubt that the crank is too heavy, but it's so INTERESTING! It also looks like it could double as a weapon in a pinch. I don't know what it is about Mavic, but I like the brand. I like their rims, logos, fonts...I just like Mavic. I even like saying Mavic.

Friends named their son Mavic.

It's much better than Sachs!

Atom would be a good name...

The starfish crank comes in two versions, 631/1 and 631/2. The /2 has shorter "arms" and more relieving. The /2 crank is lighter, I forget by how much but it is worth looking for a /2 if you're getting a starfish. I also think someone handy w/ a Dremel could further relieve the backside of the crank.

Your son will kill you for sure when he grows up if you name him "Lyotard"!!
"Delrin's" not too bad for a handsome young man's name....?
Although you might have to be ready to send your child away to a looney bin if you choose "Simplex"
"Maillard" is just for dogs....
"Sedis" sounds cute enough for a girl..
And who wouldn't want to name a future Olympian "Stronglight"!

Speaking of which, what is the proper pronunciation? I've been saying Mah-veek in my head; there are no bike nerds around to actually talk with about such things.

I say it pretty close to that mahh-veek with a slight ae sound. Maehhh- veek.

Be warned - I'm the KING of mispronunciation, especially with football players.

Chombi - how about Benelux?

My youngest daughter has a classic English puritan name, but she knows she's really my Favorit.