Vintage Peugeot conversion help and tips please

I think it looks nicer with both levers, but that's just my view. Whatever you do, it's got a neat look.
My sister had one just like it; Peugeot 103 carbolite in tasteful green; 2x6 simplex gears; probably rusting away in an attic/cellar/garage somewhere.

Here's what I had at the time:

PGN10-GS (gold special) from 1986, 3 501 tubes, chromoly forks and gaspipe rear triangle, 2x6 simplex gears (godawful), Helicomatic hub (ditto) and tightly curved downtube levers that you couldn't get a good grip on. I loved it.
I saw another one in this thread that had kept most of the gold trim. Not so mine.
I changed the forks to 531 (silver not gold unfortunately) after crashing into a parked car that suddenly appeared in front of me ; the stronglight gold cranks got swapped out for some Shimano 600EX; the simplex gears (and Helicomatic) went away to make room for a Shimano 600 ultegra 7 (gasp) speed drivetrain including indexed (wow!) downtube shifters.
Somewhere along the line, I ditched the brake levers for some SLR ones (shimano 600 ultegra found in a clearance sale parts bin - this was STI days, no one wanted regular brake levers any more) and it remained pretty much in that state till the last tooth on the 7-speed uniglide cassette wore off.

This is what happened next. At the time I was commuting on an MTB and getting seriously fed up with cleaning the gunk off the drivetrain every so often and shelling out for chains, cassettes and derailleur pullies, etc..
Bye-bye derailleurs, shifters, cables and cassette and hello pair of Miche Xpress beginnners wheels with 16T cog, new 1/8 chain and, well that's it really.
Oh yes, new handlebar tape to get rid of the embarrassing rainbow splash one that I had put on in a fit of dementia.

Believe it or not, that's my favorite ride now.

2 Attachments

Can anyone help me figure out how to remove this stem? My first thought was to bash it with a hammer in case it was stuck but I don't want to do anything reckless.

1 Attachment

Very tidy, may need to sort out the brake levers angle.

thanks, yeah I'll probably sort it out at some point, I'll take off the back lever as well.

With classic bend bars, the easiest way I have found to get the levers in the right position (and symmetrical) is to put the bars on a flat surface like a table top, then position the levers with the tips just touching the table.

Can anyone help me figure out how to remove this stem? My first thought was to bash it with a hammer in case it was stuck but I don't want to do anything reckless.

Turn the bike upside down and chuck a load of your preferred anti-sieze product through the fork crown (Plus Gas, WD-40 or Coke etc).

Leave it over night then screw the expander bolt back in so that it only projects a couple of centimetres above the stem.

Then whack the bolt.

A paviour's rubber mallet is the best tool for the job, but a lump hammer and a piece of wood will suffice.

Hi,

Loving this thread!

I'm overhauling a ~1990 Peugeot Europa (http://velospace.org/node/18221) and am lacking the original pedals. What pedals would most likely of been on this bike originally? Any ideas where I can find some, or some good modern replacements.

Thanks.

Maillard. Ebay is the only place that springs to mind.

I have this pair, which came off a 1989 Peugeot Camargue, you can have.

I've left you a message on your profile, as you won't be able to PM yet.

A quick pic of the peugeot I'm doing up (1990 Europa) with new, decathlon bought, seat post in place. Maillard CXC pedals coming soon :)

Lovely colour; good call on the seatpost; the Pug the pedals came off, had the same decals so will be spot on.

New Maillard CXC pedals in place...

Nice!

Keep an eye out for Christophe cages if you want to run with straps.

Herne Hill Jumble Sales will have something like that, or a Campag one might fit.

Here's my fixie conversion. I'm using a Surly track sprocket (19T x 3/32") and lockring, with a Halo AeroRage rear wheel. Replaced the BB with a 110mm Shimano BB-UN55. I'm using the original 52T outer chainring and the 3/32 SRAM chain that was on the bike when I bought it as a 10 speed, years ago. Decathlon 23.4m seat post.

1 Attachment

my pug has a funny size [small] seat post.

well it should have one, somebody has just cut a big slit up the existing post and given it a squeeze!

anyone got any idea what size it's likely to be if i want to get a proper sized one?

it may be 23.4 or something ridiculous, if I remember correctly. rare as rocking horse shit.

my pug has a funny size [small] seat post.

well it should have one, somebody has just cut a big slit up the existing post and given it a squeeze!

anyone got any idea what size it's likely to be if i want to get a proper sized one?
Unless you fancy paying £50, then this is the preferred option; you may need to cut the shim down (from top to bottom) depending on what size you need.

BTW here's my conversion.

Awesome! Currently looking for similar bull bars for my Pug, my current bars (of course) have a weird size: 24 mm. Does anyone know where to get bull bars in this size? Or do I need to cut my drop bars?

Current looks of mine:

Are you sure? It's only the seatposts that are odd sizes afaik.

Bet you ten pints they are 25.4mm or 26mm at the clamp: you are measuring at the clamp and not anywhere else on the bar, which will be thinner?

Are you sure? It's only the seatposts that are odd sizes afaik.

Bet you ten pints they are 25.4mm or 26mm at the clamp: you are measuring at the clamp and not anywhere else on the bar, which will be thinner?

Haha lmao, I think I did.. feeling kinda silly right now haha. Thanks!

No problem, easily done.

Looks really nice btw; what are the cranks and tyres?

No problem, easily done.

Looks really nice btw; what are the cranks and tyres?

Thanks! Crank is a cheapie from RPM and tyres are 23-622 (700x23C), Vredestein Ricorso in the back and Schwalbe Blizzard Sport on the front. I'm gonna change both tyres for black ones in the near future.

The gumwalls look class imho...

Glad to find this thread! Just been given an old peugeot, although sadly the frame is just about the only useable part. My plan is to convert it to a fixie, as I already have an old french 10 speed, so will be scouring these posts for valuable info!

The gumwalls look class imho...

Gumwalls could look good! But these are actually bright yellow, haha.

Glad to find this thread! Just been given an old peugeot, although sadly the frame is just about the only useable part. My plan is to convert it to a fixie, as I already have an old french 10 speed, so will be scouring these posts for valuable info!

If you still have your seat post, don't throw it away! It has a weird size and they're difficult to find.

If you still have your seat post, don't throw it away! It has a weird size and they're difficult to find.

I won't do, although it's unusually short- it doesn't look as though it's been chopped, were peugeot stock seat posts know for being short?

For my conversion I've been considering getting an aero rear wheel and using a mavic front wheel that I've already got handy. Any suggestions for reasonable price/good quality aero wheels- I don't mind going down the used/second-hand route..?

nah, just old traditional geometry frame tend to have little seatpost showing as oppose to modern compact that have a lots of seatpost showing.