Motobecane Profil 3

hi, this is my second current project here.
it started when i purchased a pair of shimano 600 ax cranks from ebay years ago. they were nos, a good price and the guy could deliver them, so i got them.
i proceeded to collect the group over the next few years waiting for a frame to come up to bolt them all to.
then a motobecane profil 3 came up for sale here. i contacted @aron and had it sent over to melbourne.
i knew the condition and it was recieve exactly as described. there were a few scratches and no headbadge.

a french threaded shimano bb was included in the deal and so was the original plastic gipiemme bottle cage.
the frame has lots of little aero touches, and best of all it was originally equipped with the shimano 600 ax group.

there were a few scratches which i carefully touched up, and i also found the original gipiemme bottle on ebay. only to find one for half the price on flickr two days later!

so then the hunt for a headbadge begun.
i sent a few emails to people that had old auctions that never sold and a few bikes shops that had posted photos of the headbadge i needed with no luck.
i did a saved-search-ebay-send-me-an-email thing, then one night a headbadge was listed!
my max bid was stupid to guarantee i wouldnt miss it, then it came in the post.

i stuck it on with some silicone carefully and took a few more photos in my backyard.

here is the shimano 600 ax group for the profil too.

i have since sold the clamp on deraileur and replaced it with a braze on.

i have some mavic montherly rims for the hubs, then i need to get three wheelsets built to finish off three projects then i will update this thread and the shimazaki with some finished photos!
also, if anybody has or knows somebody that has a dark/royal blue motobecane saddle with the profil printed on the sides and the m logo on the back i want it!

This is awesome, freaking awesome. From the straps I guess you are going to put blue bartape and saddle (as the catalogue) aren't you?

thanks @breso , i have dark blue benotto tape to match the decals and a matching blue cheap concor saddle copy. it will do until/if i can ever find an original motobecane saddle.
my aim is to make it as close to the catalogue picture as possible. mavic speciale sport rims came with the bike originally, but i think the mavic monthlery pro i have are a little better and will suit the build just as well.

Would have been interesting to see it with something darker like mavic ma40, but it would be pretty different from the original.
It will be a wonderful bike, looking forward to the finished built!

adam this is amazing! I gonna buy profil 2 with adamas ax. in my opinion the early 80es shimano aero stuffs one of the nicest things of bicycle technical history.

post the final version!

Great project - a lot of work and £££ involved!

It would have been cheaper to start with a complete bike but that would not make much of a project...

I am looking for new hoods for the Shimano 600AX aero brakes but no luck so far...

Amazing!

@bellabici i really like the early 80's aero craze too. what colour is your profil 2?
@Vince it wasnt that much, i did collect the group over the space of a few years piece by piece, and i ama tight arse so it was all well priced. it is hard to find a complete profil in australia too. i bought some nos da ax hoods from ebay.co.uk about 6 months ago. they come up from time to time.
@Breso i did put some dark wheels on it last night, i build it up with some spares. it looks good but i want it be as og as possible.
@vello thanks!

so i couldnt really wait to get the wheels built. i recieved some motobecane bars 40 c-c from france, taped them up and built the bike up.


i will get the wheels built pronto, so stay tuned.

Sooooo good... And you convinced me that silver rims will look better than anodised.

Perfect build Adam, Can't wait to see it!!

Great build , dibs if you ever sell it !

Love that frame. And that's the perfect groupset for an 80's aero spaceship.

Quoting myself:

Amazing!

Oh my! This is exquisite! I saw one of these at Eroica Britannia and was lusting after the tubing and seatpost. It appears you have the right quantities of OCD-ness, money, patience and taste to ensure that bike builds look good.
You should be justifiably proud of this.

As mentioned via PM, I have a blue Motobecane Profil saddle fitted on a 1981 Motobecane Mirage Sport. The condition is far from NOS but it is original and the M Profil logos are good. I will clean it and take some photos tonight.

For information, Motobecane went bust in 1985 ish and was replace by MBK from 1986 onwards.

thanks for your help @vince , i never thought i would find a blue saddle ever.
the power of the internet!

also thanks everyone @Breso @beejay7575 @tpr @.gaz. @veLLo @7VEN for the positive feedback.

Interested to see the cable setup on the front mech. I just couldn't get this dialed on my Gazelle Monostay AX build.

leave it with me, i'll get a photo and put it up.

Dark red

hawt.