Note that in the attached catalog, the Team Champion is Campy NR/SR, while the Le Champion is slightly less expensive Campy Gran Sport. IIRC, when Motobecane went back to French components on Team Champion in the 80's, it was with Stronglight 106/107 with the Campy 144 BCD circle, adn Mafac SP's which were Campy clones (and good ones).
Regards,
Jerry Moos
Big Spring, Texas, USA
> From: verktyg <verktyg@aol.com>
\r?\n> Subject: Re: [CR] Motobecane and Columbus tubing question.
\r?\n> To: "michael D'Arcy" <dorchaidhe@hotmail.com>, Classicrendezvous@bikelist.org, verktyg@aol.com
\r?\n> Date: Saturday, September 19, 2009, 2:06 PM
\r?\n> Michael,
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Your bike is most likely a model that wasn't offered in the
\r?\n> US.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Is it a solid color green or does it have horizontal stripe
\r?\n> decals on the bottom of the seat and down tubes? Sometimes
\r?\n> the plastic stripe decals have been removed.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Here's a link to the 1979 Motobecane US catalog:
\r?\n> http://equusbicycle.com/
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Motobecane produced bikes with the horizontal lines for
\r?\n> several years in the late 70s. My 1978 Team Champion is
\r?\n> light metallic blue with dark blue stripes. The frame is
\r?\n> made of metric diameter Columbus tubing with Columbus
\r?\n> decals in French.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> I also had a silver and dark blue striped Le Champion. The
\r?\n> the 3 main tubes and forks were Reynolds 531, an odd
\r?\n> combination to save a few centimes??? The workmanship
\r?\n> on that frame was nowhere near as nice as my Team Champion.
\r?\n>
\r?\n>
\r?\n> I've seen photos of higher end Motobecane frames or bikes
\r?\n> with the horizontal stripes in the following colors:
\r?\n>
\r?\n> gold with dark blue or black stripes
\r?\n> silver with dark blue stripes
\r?\n> silver with gray stripes
\r?\n> dark metallic gray with silver stripes
\r?\n> light pink metallic with purple stripes
\r?\n>
\r?\n> I recall seeing a light green Motobecane frame or bike on
\r?\n> one of the European eBays a while back. I thought that maybe
\r?\n> it was light blue or gold and color in the photos was off.
\r?\n>
\r?\n>
\r?\n> The Team Champion models (or Champion Team on some European
\r?\n> bikes) came with Campy NR or NR/SR components from 1974
\r?\n> until the early 1980s when they switched to mostly French
\r?\n> components with Weinmann brakes.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Here's the partial time line I've found for Team Champion
\r?\n> frames:
\r?\n>
\r?\n> 1974-1976 Luis Ocana team replica orange*, Reynolds
\r?\n> 531 tubing
\r?\n> 1977 Light metallic blue with dark blue stripes, Reynolds
\r?\n> 753 tubing
\r?\n> 1978 Light metallic blue with dark blue stripes, Columbus
\r?\n> SL tubing
\r?\n> 1979 Light metallic blue with dark blue stripes, Columbus
\r?\n> SL tubing
\r?\n> 1980 color?, Columbus SL tubing
\r?\n> 1981 color?, Columbus SL tubing
\r?\n> 1982-1984? Dark metallic blue, chrome rear triangle,
\r?\n> Columbus SL tubing
\r?\n>
\r?\n>
\r?\n> From 1974 until at least 1984 the Le Champion model came
\r?\n> equipped with all Campy or Campy with some other make of
\r?\n> brakes.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Le Champion time line (1974 to 1977)
\r?\n>
\r?\n> 1974-1976 Lilac metallic or silver, Reynolds 531 tubing
\r?\n> 1977? Silver with dark blue stripes, 3 tubes & forks
\r?\n> Reynolds 531 tubing
\r?\n> 1979 Champagne with blue or black stripes 3 tubes &
\r?\n> forks Reynolds 531
\r?\n>
\r?\n> If anyone can fill in the time line gaps, please do.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Ocana supposedly rode a re-badged Italian frame and they
\r?\n> had different decals on the bikes in the 1973 TdF
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Chas. Colerich
\r?\n> Oakland, CA USA
\r?\n>
\r?\n>
\r?\n> michael D'Arcy wrote:
\r?\n> > Hello,
\r?\n> >
\r?\n> > I recently bought a lime green Motobecane bicycle with
\r?\n> Columbus tubing. It has been ridden just once. The parts
\r?\n> are
\r?\n> > Campagnolo Nuovo Record, the crank arms indicate 1977.
\r?\n> The rims are Super Champion, Saddle is S.Marco Supercorsa
\r?\n> > Lugs are longpoint, with cutouts, Fork crowns are
\r?\n> Chromed.
\r?\n> >
\r?\n> > Can anyone tell me what model this was? And, was it
\r?\n> common to build Motobecanes with Columbus?
\r?\n> >
\r?\n> > Best regards,
\r?\n> >
\r?\n> > Michael D'Arcy,
\r?\n> > Lyon, France