My 20 year old daughter is visiting for three weeks, and I'm considering getting this craigslist bike:
for her while she's here so we can ride together. I'd then sell it when she heads back to St. Louis for college.

He's sending me pictures momentarily and I will post them as soon as possible.

It's a little silly, since we're having a lot of rain, and there might not be much opportunity to ride.

I see dangers:

1. This would be the start of collecting bikes.
2. This would be the start of flipping bikes.
3. Daughter would want me to ship it to her (replace her department store mountain bike).

But if I think I can resell it at that price, I'll get it.

The most important thing is....Will it fit her?

Certainly worse things can happen than 1, 2 or 3.

Well I got it for $100, and here are the pictures. It is a perfect fit for her. It has Shimano 105 components. Biopace rings are on it, plus he gave me the regular round rings. Please tell me about this bike.

Looks like a 1988. Same basic decals as a 1987 but spec'd more like a 1989. Unfortunately, there isn't a 1988 USA brochure posted.


https://cyclespeugeot.com/Catalogs.html

Good catch, particularly at that price!

How deep is the rust?

Hey Al, looks like a very good bike and should serve you guys well. You have something to work with here. I see you are going to go with uncaged bearings ---- are the old ones pitted? if not repack them with new grease and keep the bike oem. Lp

Nice bike. By the Biopace chainrings and indexed downtube shifters it looks like middle to late 1980s. Shimano 105 is a fine sport drivetrain and it has a nice saddle, probably a Vetta or Avocet copy of the San Marco Concor. The frame has a classic sport geometry, though I can't tell you what's exactly in the tubes. It's quality but not exotic--seamless, possibly even butted, but not especially light or high modulus. A lot of newbies see a Reynolds decal with strange digits and think they found the metallurgical missing link. Demonstrate that you're above that nonsense by being assured that Reynolds never made a bad tube set, and their steel alloys are among the more corrosion resistant. The size looks fairly large--57 or 58 cm center-to-top. Unless your daughter is tall, you'll have to lower the seat and handlebar. At least the stem extension is short.

Inflate the tires, clean it up, and take it for a spin. If everything feels tight, the tubes hold air, and the brakes and shifters work, you have a keeper. If not, have your local bike shop work it over and you still have a keeper. Or have the bike shop work it over anyway and there will be no doubt that you have a very sweet $100 bike. Be sure to level the saddle. With a proper tuneup and fitting, and round chainrings, I wouldn't hesitate to take this bike on a 100-mile ride. This is a perfect "spare bike."

Al,
I have the 1987 version of that bike. It still had friction shifters and Sachs-Huret derailers. I have not ridden it much. With index shifting, it would easily sell for $150 around here. In 1987 it was in the top half of the Peugeot line-up, but not the top bike. Well worth what you paid for the bike.
BTW, I'm hoping for option 3, she makes you pay to ship it to her to replace her X-Mart bike.

Thanks for the great info. I must be lucky with bikes.

From the SN, it seems that it was made in February of 1988. The rust looks like just surface stuff, and the stuff on the steering tube is just dirt, but I'll know more later. Definitely less rust that on my Bottecchia or my wife's Ironman Centurion.

Don't know yet,but the brinnelling is pretty pronounced.

Hi Al! Nice bike. I think your daughter will like it. Coincidentally, I have one very similar to that, but a slightly different year I suspect. A former coworker gave me the frame several years ago and I've been slowly putting it back together. Still needs a good seat, and the cassette is worn out and needs to be replaced. I have pedals, they're just not on it.

- Gary

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Nice find. I bought one of those off the local CL for $150 and flipped on the same CL for $340.

They are very nice ridding bikes with geometry thats almost identicle to the top of the line PX/Y/Z models.

My 2cents worth on this project:

Clean and tune it up.
Replace the tires if needed.
Find a nice set of fenders for it since it has fender eyelets.
Ride around with her while she's visiting.
When she's ready to head back to school just let her know the bike will be there when she comes back for another visit.
Then store it away until she comes back again.

I suspect she'll be back in the dry months to get some more miles in on it.

Just my 2cents worth of a suggestion.

Here it is after cleanup. The bike is in great shape.

I always thought I had a 1988 Triathlon but it was a guess based on these facts with only Jim's catalogs from 1987 and 1989 to use as a guide.

Pre-1989 characteristics

1. The paint and decals look identical to the 1987 paint and decals
2. The frame and fork are Super Vitus 980 with lugs. The 1989 is Reynolds 501 without lugs.

Post-1987 characteristics

1. The brakes levers have the hidden cables like the 1989
2. The derailleurs and brakes are all Shimano
3. It is indexed shifting on the rear with friction on the front derailleur

The strange part is that the s/n looks like it begins B6... but it does not resemble a 1986 Triathon much. Interesting that the original posters bike may be 1988 but is Reynolds 501 without lugs. I bought this bike from the original owner for his asking price of $75. He said he replaced the pedals and might have replaced the freewheel but the freewheel is a Sachs unit so maybe he did not. I replaced the seat with the leather Perjohn NOS I picked up a few months ago.

I'm with Bobcat on the vintage and the quality. Can't guess at the size because all my bikes are 64cm or larger--it's smaller than that, for sure, but I have no eye for estimation in smaller frames. Could be too tall for her, but if it fits, it should serve her well.
I'd lube everything, including the cables, and square that saddle away so it sits level, then set it for her leg length. The reach to the bars looks kind of long to me. Replacement quill stems are cheap, but the one that's on there is already pretty short. Maybe rotate the bars up a bit and move the levers a half-inch higher on them? And if you have to replace tires, I'd consider seeing how big you can go. Doesn't look like there's much room under that front brake, but if you could go to 28s or possibly 32s, she could run less pressure and be more comfortable and stable.
I have a couple of bikes from about that same period that I couldn't pass up at garage sales (one was $4.99 with a Brooks Pro saddle on it). I'm always surprised how competent they are. I'd ride any of them anywhere, no hesitation.

For $100, this bike has potential.