gitaneusa.com Forum Index » Vintage Gitane » help identify please... Goto page 1, 2  Next    View previous topic :: View next topic  help identify please...   Posted: Sun May 04, 2014 5:56 pm txmnjim Joined: 02 May 2014 Posts: 25 Location: Minnesota I bought a Gitane at a garage sale and I'm trying to identify it. It has "ansport" with the first letters rubbed off on the top tube. I was thinking of fixing it up and maybe get back into riding but it has shimano gears, and I'm not sure its all original? did they ever use shimano gears? thanks for any info you can give! jim in Rochester, mn   Posted: Mon May 05, 2014 5:00 am guidogad Joined: 24 Jul 2012 Posts: 12 1983 Gran Sport, but I didn't study the catalogue in any detail. Have a look yourself. It's fun and very educational. _________________ Guido Western Australia 1975 Olympic (sold in France) 1994 Replica III (sold in France)   Posted: Mon May 05, 2014 6:45 am txmnjim Joined: 02 May 2014 Posts: 25 Location: Minnesota awesome! thanks...i thought it might be a grand sport of some kind... have found out that others seem to use shimano, which seems a little strange, but i'll just go w/ that. i think i will go ahead and get the brakes fixed, and new tires for sure and try and get in shape by riding   Posted: Mon May 19, 2014 4:37 pm txmnjim Joined: 02 May 2014 Posts: 25 Location: Minnesota well I just got an estimate for the bike repair and its $211.00 US! most of that is for the two new tires. I'm seriously thinking of spending the dough since I couldn't find anything close to that quality new for less than $600-$750. the dw just said "if you spend that much you better ride it", which I'm thinking is what we in America call "the green light" Proper bike fit   Posted: Mon May 19, 2014 4:53 pm verktyg Joined: 14 Jan 2007 Posts: 2814 Location: SF Bay Area Greetings, Do you have the seat up that high? If so the frame is probably too small for you. You should have about 1" to 2" (25mm - 50mm) of clearance between the top tub and your personal area when you stand over the bike (called stand over height). If the frame is too small you'd be much better off finding another bike with a larger frame that fits you better. $210 for tires and brakes??? That doesn't sound like that great of a deal. Many people who work in bike shops weren't even a gleam in their daddy's eye when bike like yours were built (30+ years ago). They don't have a clue on how to work on anything but plastic bikes with the latest components. If this is the case then I'd shop around to see if you can find a shop with knowledge of older bikes. _________________ Chas. SF Bay Area, CA USA ============== 1984 Criterium 1969 TdF 1971 TdF 1974 TdF 1984 TdF x 2 Bikes 1970 SC 1971 SC 1972 SC 1984 SC 1984 Team Pro 1985 Professional 1990s Team Replica   Posted: Mon May 19, 2014 7:00 pm txmnjim Joined: 02 May 2014 Posts: 25 Location: Minnesota I have actually lowered the seat since this pic was taken. I will check out the clearance you speak of tomorrow. yes, if the bike appears to be a fit, I may check out some other shops. I also have a co-worker who says her boyfriend works on bikes...not sure how that deal would go? At least the shop I got a quote from is top notch. Thanks for the advice sir!   Posted: Tue May 20, 2014 7:53 am vanhelmont Joined: 11 Dec 2007 Posts: 242 Location: Florida Working on a bike isn't really very hard if you don't mind getting your hands dirty. You'd want to clean and grease bearings and chain, perhaps replace tires, tubes, and brake pads, and adjust brakes and gears. Your tires are probably 27x1 1/4, a size that is sort of obsolete but so common that I think even Walmart sells them. For rough roads I use cheap Taiwanese tires from a sort of low brow bike shop that went for about $10 a couple years ago. Panaracer Pasela comes in 27x1 if you want to go fast for probably thirty-something a tire. For info on how to fix stuff, especially on old French bikes, google "Sheldon Brown," who was a knowledgeable bike mechanic who loved French bikes and wrote great stuff, that his shop still posts on the internet. If you are still stuck, post questions here. You could get tires, tubes, cables, brake pads, tools, and some Phil grease for a good bit less than $200 if you're willing to learn a little and get your hands greasy. And I think it's fun!   Posted: Tue May 20, 2014 7:49 pm txmnjim Joined: 02 May 2014 Posts: 25 Location: Minnesota vanhelmont wrote: Working on a bike isn't really very hard if you don't mind getting your hands dirty. You'd want to clean and grease bearings and chain, perhaps replace tires, tubes, and brake pads, and adjust brakes and gears. Your tires are probably 27x1 1/4, a size that is sort of obsolete but so common that I think even Walmart sells them. For rough roads I use cheap Taiwanese tires from a sort of low brow bike shop that went for about $10 a couple years ago. Panaracer Pasela comes in 27x1 if you want to go fast for probably thirty-something a tire. For info on how to fix stuff, especially on old French bikes, google "Sheldon Brown," who was a knowledgeable bike mechanic who loved French bikes and wrote great stuff, that his shop still posts on the internet. If you are still stuck, post questions here. You could get tires, tubes, cables, brake pads, tools, and some Phil grease for a good bit less than $200 if you're willing to learn a little and get your hands greasy. And I think it's fun! thanks. i'm still considering my options...i may just have them replace the front tire (it is grossly warped) and hold off on the back for now. i just replaced the radiator in my truck but when i look at those little nobby things at the end of the brake cables and wonder how they slide into the brake lever and work, i get light headed i will check out Sheldon Brown though...   Posted: Tue May 20, 2014 10:37 pm verktyg Joined: 14 Jan 2007 Posts: 2814 Location: SF Bay Area vanhelmont wrote: Your tires are probably 27x1 1/4, a size that is sort of obsolete but so common that I think even Walmart sells them. Panaracer Pasela comes in 27x1 if you want to go fast for probably thirty-something a tire. Panaracer Paselas come in 27 x 1, 27 x 1 1/8 & 27 x 1 1/4 sizes. It could also have 700c wheels too. He should look at the tire side walls and read the size. Tires and new tubes ~ $70.00. Tire removal tools ~ $7.00-$10.00. OP say the tire is warped??? Is the rim bent? Park tool has a "Repair and Education" section on their website: http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help _________________ Chas. SF Bay Area, CA USA ============== 1984 Criterium 1969 TdF 1971 TdF 1974 TdF 1984 TdF x 2 Bikes 1970 SC 1971 SC 1972 SC 1984 SC 1984 Team Pro 1985 Professional 1990s Team Replica   Posted: Wed May 21, 2014 3:16 am txmnjim Joined: 02 May 2014 Posts: 25 Location: Minnesota verktyg wrote: vanhelmont wrote: Your tires are probably 27x1 1/4, a size that is sort of obsolete but so common that I think even Walmart sells them. Panaracer Pasela comes in 27x1 if you want to go fast for probably thirty-something a tire. Panaracer Paselas come in 27 x 1, 27 x 1 1/8 & 27 x 1 1/4 sizes. It could also have 700c wheels too. He should look at the tire side walls and read the size. Tires and new tubes ~ $70.00. Tire removal tools ~ $7.00-$10.00. OP say the tire is warped??? Is the rim bent? Park tool has a "Repair and Education" section on their website: http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help no, the tech said the rims were ok but the ft tire is strangely warped. I asked specifically about this. its also still holding air since when I pumped it up so we may be able to reuse the tubes? I will post a pic later if I can... tires   Posted: Wed May 21, 2014 5:09 am gman309905 Joined: 23 Dec 2012 Posts: 63 Location: Pittsburgh PA. If your looking for tires you should check out http://www.biketiresdirect.com/?gclid=CjgKEAjwnfGbBRDlxoHrl6uikyESJAD-nzCF6E8LcOkvKKSQyiJUQAbKsYsUlxvT60P4z3EavCURN_D_BwE Bike tires direct.com has a very good selection, a wide price range, depending on what you wish to spend and they ship it right to your house. warped tire but the rim is straight ? sounds like the sidewall casing has ruptured. If your tubes are still holding air you can use them but new ones are relatively inexpensive and will give you peace of mind, old tubes can go at anytime. Re: tires   Posted: Wed May 21, 2014 7:51 am txmnjim Joined: 02 May 2014 Posts: 25 Location: Minnesota gman309905 wrote: If your looking for tires you should check out http://www.biketiresdirect.com/?gclid=CjgKEAjwnfGbBRDlxoHrl6uikyESJAD-nzCF6E8LcOkvKKSQyiJUQAbKsYsUlxvT60P4z3EavCURN_D_BwE Bike tires direct.com has a very good selection, a wide price range, depending on what you wish to spend and they ship it right to your house. warped tire but the rim is straight ? sounds like the sidewall casing has ruptured. If your tubes are still holding air you can use them but new ones are relatively inexpensive and will give you peace of mind, old tubes can go at anytime. thanks! i found it is a Trek 700 X 250 and i'm still trying to figure out what that is on the TDC site? will pos a pic of the rupture when i get home, but the rear tire seems ok... TDC ?   Posted: Wed May 21, 2014 7:59 am gman309905 Joined: 23 Dec 2012 Posts: 63 Location: Pittsburgh PA. I'm not sure what you're referring to as the TDC site. If you wish to go to biketiresdirect, just click on the link, if you don't trust posted links, just google biketiresdirect.com Re: TDC ?   Posted: Wed May 21, 2014 8:08 am txmnjim Joined: 02 May 2014 Posts: 25 Location: Minnesota gman309905 wrote: I'm not sure what you're referring to as the TDC site. If you wish to go to biketiresdirect, just click on the link, if you don't trust posted links, just google biketiresdirect.com thanks! I was distracted by work, but i thought it was tires direct com   Posted: Wed May 21, 2014 11:37 am vanhelmont Joined: 11 Dec 2007 Posts: 242 Location: Florida 700c is nice, so you have a lot of choices. I like to buy tires from the bike shop even though they may cost a few bucks more and have a little less selection, so I won't feel guilty and maybe they will feel more like being helpful, when I need advice or little stuff like ball bearings and old brake parts that might be laying around somewhere. 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