Jeff, I'm not familiar with the details of all the Vitus grades, but I would have thought Vitus 172 or any double butted Vitus tubing would have been far superior to Carbolite which I thought was only used on low end Peugeots. However, Looking in Chuck's collected Peugeot catalogs, I do note that some fairly inexpensive models were made with Vitus. Also, the best Carbolite frame, often called the PH10 or PH12 in the catalogs, did have decent equipment like you describe, and many of the components were similar to Vitus tubed models just one model higher in the lineup. So while I doubt the two bikes are equivalent, they may have very similar components. "Course" can designate any road bike, especially one which can even theoretically be used for some kind of competition, so that word is not necessarily the model name. The 70's bike you describe is probably late 70's and may very well be 1979 as you speculate. Not top end, but certainly not junk either. All things being equal, I would think the Vitus bike would be lighter, more responsive, and probably a bit more valuable than the Carbolite one, though neither would bring a very high price. Even top Peugeot models have to be really mint to go for much over $500, so it's best to just ride and enjoy French bikes and not worry about wearing them out or decreasing their value.
As to the Weinmann brakes with DiaCompe safety levers, it was my impresssion that DiaCompe invented the safety levers, then did a cross-licensing deal with Weinmann under which Weinmann could produce the safety levers and DiaCompe could in turn produce clones of some Weinmann brake models.
Regards,
Jerry Moos
Jeff Widman wrote:
> Hi Everyone,
>
> This is long, but I couldn't stop typing. Anyway, read
> below for a description of the bike. Mine is fully
> original, defintely used, but still very nice.
>
> Should I be concerned about keeping everything
> original?
>
> Should I be concerned about riding it and further
> wearing down the components? They are definitely not
> new, but still in decent condition.
>
> And, anyone interested in it? I like retro bikes, but
> can't afford one that is needs to be kept from getting
> more wear and tear.
>
> Now that Simplex has gone out of business, it would be
> very tough to replace the components. Also, it would
> be just about impossible to replace the components
> that say Peugeot.
>
> It just so happens that I have a new, 1980 version of
> this same bike. However, mine was made from
> Carbolite-103, a 'home grown' tube from Peugeot.
> Anyway, it has Simplex derailers, Dt friction shifters
> (not retrofriction) Stronglight cranks, and a
> freewheel that says Atom 77 Compact. The brakes say
> Weinmann, the non aero levers say Weinmann on the
> 'real' brake handles. It also has the 'safety' levers,
> and they say Dia-Compe. Did the two companies merge
> sometime before this, hence the combination? My bike
> says the same as the bike described below. Also,
> Rigida rims.
> The neat thing about this bike is that the rear
> derailer, crank arms, and centerpull brakes themselves
> say Peugeot. The 'true' makes are also labeled, but
> the words Peugeot are the biggest names. Until I got
> more into bikes, I just figured that Peugeot made
> everything. Everything on this bike is original,
> nothing has been changed. Fully French, I have yet to
> find anything on it that does not say made in France.
> Except the ESGE kickstand. However, even the chain
> said made in France. The previous owner bought it in
> 1980 for $400. She kept it in excellent condition and
> rode it throughout college. She's a friend of my mom's
> and several years ago when I was looking for a bigger
> bike, she gave it to me.
> Once again, please answer my question stated above.
> Jeff
>
> --- Mark Battley <m.battley@irl.cri.nz> wrote:
> > Hi, I'm new to this list, having found it while
> > looking for information
> > about a bike I bought (for the equivalent of about
> > $US13) last week. I live
> > in Auckland, New Zealand, and have been involved in
> > a variety of types of
> > cycling on and off - touring, commuting, MTB,
> > low-key competition.
> >
> > Anyhow, I'm interested in further information about
> > this bike:
> >
> > It is a Peugeot 12spd. Colour light green, Labelled
> > "Course" on one side of
> > the top tube, "Vitus 172 Serie Legere Special double
> > butted" and "Record du
> > Monde 1" on seat tube. Simplex DT shifters and FD,
> > RD had been replaced with
> > an old Superbepro. Rear hub is 6spd Atom, RIGIDA
> > 700C rim, front wheel had
> > been replaced by a really cruddy 27" steel rim
> > wheel. Weimann sidepulls,
> > Mafac levers, ATAX handlebars. Crankset is labelled
> > Peugeot. Obviously not a
> > high end bike, but the frame looks reasonable, is
> > relatively light, and is
> > in tidy condition. The frame is about 54cm c-t, 54cm
> > top-tube.
> >
> > It has a 7 digit serial number, which according to
> > http://www.iag.net/
> > is 1970s, from the look
> > of the decals compared to some pictures on the above
> > site it would seem to
> > be late 70s. The cranks have "Japan" and "79" with a
> > letter on the inside
> > face. It has been suggested to me that the 79 could
> > mean a 1979
> > manufacturing date, which would fit the other
> > information.
> >
> > I'd appreciate any information about how this fitted
> > into the Peugeot range,
> > how old it is etc.
> >
> > I'd also be interested in information about the
> > Vitus tubing on this bike -
> > what is it equivalent to?
> >
> > I have to confess that I am not a purist, and have
> > replaced most of the
> > components with newer parts that I had spare -
> > modern wheels and tyres,
> > drivetrain is mostly Shimano 105 8spd, cartridge BB
> > (which fitted the
> > threads, surprisingly), "aero" brake levers,
> > clipless pedals. It rides
> > nicely and I am very happy with it.
> >
> > Regards,
> >
> > Mark Battley.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
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> >
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