A little over a month ago I picked up a 1975 Peugeot UO-8 10 speed to compliment my big-box store purchased Schwinn Hybrid 7 speeds.

The Peugeot was a gorgeous, original and quite clean and complete model UO-8, as if it had rarely been ridden. It did need some work but that got me into trouble with my LBS--the old guy who owns my nearest shop used to sell these things new and doesn't think the world of them. And when asked to upgrade the bike (e.g. new rims) he insists that it's not worth it and will mess with the classic look. I have never understood this--they sold millions of these back in the seventies so I am not the protector of a rare bike--I just want something nice and unique to ride that will cost less than a low-end big manufacturer's new bike but still perform well and be eye catching and cool.

MegaRange
Well, the only solution for my Schwinn Meridian is apparently to melt it down and try to recycle it into beer cans. Instead I put a new Shimano MF-TZ31 Tourney Freewheel (14-34T Mega 7 Speed) and a new chain and adjusted the existing Shimano Tourney-TX derailleur and now I am king of the mountain! But I digress.

Anyway this forced me to learn to wrench and I have enjoyed it. I have seen several posts on upgrading old French bikes but nothing with prescriptive step by steps detailing how to modernize the drive train and specific solutions and parts.

Front Derailleur 
The first thing I did, 5 minutes into my first ride, was to bend the front Simplex derailleur and crack it. The official Simplex moto back in the day was "Failure: it's coming for all of us eventually."

I put a new-old-stock 28mm seat tube (French and smaller than the common 28.7 mm size) clamp-on Shimano RSX front der on but it needed an extra clamp-on cable stop (the original Simplex has it integrated) that I couldn't find in that French size so I shimmed a 28.7 mm model with a piece of inner tube.  I am hoping that works--so far so good. The der works well, but due to maxed out adjusters there is a little play in the front shifter, but it works with consistency so I am good with it.

6 Speeds and New Derailleur 
The Shimano 6 speed freewheel and cheap aluminum rim slipped right into the chain stays (none of Sheldon Brown's so-called cold setting to bend them), but it was too wide for the rear derailleur. I bought an early Shimano Tourney TY SIS rear derailleur that supports 6 speed and indexings. It works great with the Simplex friction shifters. Next thing to do is install the Shimano SL-434 six speed indexed down tube shifter, but I am kind a torn cuz the Simplex are working great. Guess maybe I still have that old school feel for this.

What do I have to show for all of this?
So for less than $600 I have a nice-riding classic with modern components, 12 speeds, and near modern performance with a little bit of cool factor. And I have made a few mistakes but this blog is an experience to document for anyone interested in modifying the beautiful, but not expensive or unique bikes. Exactly what you need. None of these parts cost more than $20 each.

A little over a month ago I picked up a 1975 Peugeot UO-8 10 speed to compliment my big-box store purchased Schwinn Hybrid 7 speeds.

The Peugeot was a gorgeous, original and quite clean and complete model UO-8, as if it had rarely been ridden. It did need some work but that got me into trouble with my LBS--the old guy who owns my nearest shop used to sell these things new and doesn't think the world of them. And when asked to upgrade the bike (e.g. new rims) he insists that it's not worth it and will mess with the classic look. I have never understood this--they sold millions of these back in the seventies so I am not the protector of a rare bike--I just want something nice and unique to ride that will cost less than a low-end big manufacturer's new bike but still perform well and be eye catching and cool.

MegaRange
Well, the only solution for my Schwinn Meridian is apparently to melt it down and try to recycle it into beer cans. Instead I put a new Shimano MF-TZ31 Tourney Freewheel (14-34T Mega 7 Speed) and a new chain and adjusted the existing Shimano Tourney-TX derailleur and now I am king of the mountain! But I digress.

Anyway this forced me to learn to wrench and I have enjoyed it. I have seen several posts on upgrading old French bikes but nothing with prescriptive step by steps detailing how to modernize the drive train and specific solutions and parts.

Front Derailleur 
The first thing I did, 5 minutes into my first ride, was to bend the front Simplex derailleur and crack it. The official Simplex moto back in the day was "Failure: it's coming for all of us eventually."

I put a new-old-stock 28mm seat tube (French and smaller than the common 28.7 mm size) clamp-on Shimano RSX front der on but it needed an extra clamp-on cable stop (the original Simplex has it integrated) that I couldn't find in that French size so I shimmed a 28.7 mm model with a piece of inner tube.  I am hoping that works--so far so good. The der works well, but due to maxed out adjusters there is a little play in the front shifter, but it works with consistency so I am good with it.

6 Speeds and New Derailleur 
The Shimano 6 speed freewheel and cheap aluminum rim slipped right into the chain stays (none of Sheldon Brown's so-called cold setting to bend them), but it was too wide for the rear derailleur. I bought an early Shimano Tourney TY SIS rear derailleur that supports 6 speed and indexings. It works great with the Simplex friction shifters. Next thing to do is install the Shimano SL-434 six speed indexed down tube shifter, but I am kind a torn cuz the Simplex are working great. Guess maybe I still have that old school feel for this.

What do I have to show for all of this?
So for less than $600 I have a nice-riding classic with modern components, 12 speeds, and near modern performance with a little bit of cool factor. And I have made a few mistakes but this blog is an experience to document for anyone interested in modifying the beautiful, but not expensive or unique bikes. Exactly what you need. None of these parts cost more than $20 each.

A little over a month ago I picked up a 1975 Peugeot UO-8 10 speed to compliment my big-box store purchased Schwinn Hybrid 7 speeds.

The Peugeot was a gorgeous, original and quite clean and complete model UO-8, as if it had rarely been ridden. It did need some work but that got me into trouble with my LBS--the old guy who owns my nearest shop used to sell these things new and doesn't think the world of them. And when asked to upgrade the bike (e.g. new rims) he insists that it's not worth it and will mess with the classic look. I have never understood this--they sold millions of these back in the seventies so I am not the protector of a rare bike--I just want something nice and unique to ride that will cost less than a low-end big manufacturer's new bike but still perform well and be eye catching and cool.

MegaRange
Well, the only solution for my Schwinn Meridian is apparently to melt it down and try to recycle it into beer cans. Instead I put a new Shimano MF-TZ31 Tourney Freewheel (14-34T Mega 7 Speed) and a new chain and adjusted the existing Shimano Tourney-TX derailleur and now I am king of the mountain! But I digress.

Anyway this forced me to learn to wrench and I have enjoyed it. I have seen several posts on upgrading old French bikes but nothing with prescriptive step by steps detailing how to modernize the drive train and specific solutions and parts.

Front Derailleur 
The first thing I did, 5 minutes into my first ride, was to bend the front Simplex derailleur and crack it. The official Simplex moto back in the day was "Failure: it's coming for all of us eventually."

I put a new-old-stock 28mm seat tube (French and smaller than the common 28.7 mm size) clamp-on Shimano RSX front der on but it needed an extra clamp-on cable stop (the original Simplex has it integrated) that I couldn't find in that French size so I shimmed a 28.7 mm model with a piece of inner tube.  I am hoping that works--so far so good. The der works well, but due to maxed out adjusters there is a little play in the front shifter, but it works with consistency so I am good with it.

6 Speeds and New Derailleur 
The Shimano 6 speed freewheel and cheap aluminum rim slipped right into the chain stays (none of Sheldon Brown's so-called cold setting to bend them), but it was too wide for the rear derailleur. I bought an early Shimano Tourney TY SIS rear derailleur that supports 6 speed and indexings. It works great with the Simplex friction shifters. Next thing to do is install the Shimano SL-434 six speed indexed down tube shifter, but I am kind a torn cuz the Simplex are working great. Guess maybe I still have that old school feel for this.

What do I have to show for all of this?
So for less than $600 I have a nice-riding classic with modern components, 12 speeds, and near modern performance with a little bit of cool factor. And I have made a few mistakes but this blog is an experience to document for anyone interested in modifying the beautiful, but not expensive or unique bikes. Exactly what you need. None of these parts cost more than $20 each.

A little over a month ago I picked up a 1975 Peugeot UO-8 10 speed to compliment my big-box store purchased Schwinn Hybrid 7 speeds.

The Peugeot was a gorgeous, original and quite clean and complete model UO-8, as if it had rarely been ridden. It did need some work but that got me into trouble with my LBS--the old guy who owns my nearest shop used to sell these things new and doesn't think the world of them. And when asked to upgrade the bike (e.g. new rims) he insists that it's not worth it and will mess with the classic look.

I have never understood this--they sold millions of these back in the seventies so I am not the protector of a rare bike--I just want something nice and unique to ride that will cost less than a low-end big manufacturer's new bike but still perform well and be eye catching and cool.

Front Derailleur 
The first thing I did, 5 minutes into my first ride, was to bend the front Simplex derailleur into the path of the cranks and crack it. The official Simplex motto back in the day was "Failure: it's coming, for all of us, eventually."

I put a new-old-stock 28mm seat tube clamp-on  (French are 28 mm and smaller than the common 28.7 mm size) Shimano RSX front derailleur on but it needed an extra clamp-on cable stop (the original Simplex has it integrated) that I couldn't find in that French size so I shimmed a 28.7 mm model with a piece of inner tube.  I am hoping that works--so far so good. The der works well, but due to maxed out adjusters there is a little play in the front shifter, but it works with consistency so I am good with it.

6 Speeds and New Rear Derailleur 
The SunRace MFM-62A 6 speed freewheel and cheap Sta-Tru aluminum rim slipped right into the chain stays (none of Sheldon Brown's so-called cold setting to bend them), but it was too wide for the rear derailleeur. I bought an early Shimano Tourney TY-15 SIS rear derailleur that supports 6 speed and indexings. It works great with the Simplex friction shifters. It doesn't have a great retro look, but it's not bad. Next thing to do is install the Shimano SL-434 six speed indexed down tube shifter, but I am kind a torn cuz the Simplex friction shifters are working great. Guess maybe I still have that old school feel for this.

What do I have to show for all of this?
So for less than $600 I have a nice-riding classic with modern components, 12 speeds, and near modern performance with a little bit of cool factor. And I have made a few mistakes but this blog is meant to document for anyone interested in modifying these beautiful, but not expensive or unique bikes. Exactly what you need. None of these parts cost more than $20 each. In the end it is a fun bike to ride. Hopefully I can treat it well and make it reliable to boot.