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Madmaxie

Hi guys. Found the site several months ago when I was trying to determine whether or not my bike was real, and the catalogues and forums were a great help. It was legit by the way.

So anyway, I bought an early 70's Interclub a year ago for about $125 here in Philly at Via Bikes, and have loved it since the day I bought it. As far as I know, all of it is original, but I'm not sure (I'll post pictures as soon as I can steal my roommates camera). I replaced the seat, and the chain was replaced when I bought it, but other than that, I think even the tires are the originals.

I have abandoned public transportation in favor of riding all around the city. As such, my baby is no longer in the greatest of shape, and I was wondering what I could do to make it a little tougher. It needs a good cleaning, and sometime soon, I was hoping I could get out the surface rust and repaint her. I was wondering if anyone here has any tips about repainting and or repairing a bike that's almost forty years old? I was also hoping to switch to aluminum wheels so I can stop when it's even slightly humid out. My biggest concern is durability, because in all honesty, I am not gentle with this bike. I need her to be able to be locked to parking meters and dodge crazy Philly drivers.

Any help at all would be great. Thanks!

James

vanhelmont

James,

Welcome to the site, and it's great that you are making good use of your Interclub. I spent a few days in Philly last summer, and was amazed at all the old bikes, but didn't see any gitanes.

For rust prevention of paint chips, I would first dab it with a rust converter. The one I got is called "right stuff," and it's a green liquid I got at the auto parts store next to the body putty. It converts any surface rust to an inert coating, and leaves a surface layer of iron phosphate chromate. This prevents further rust. We tested similar stuff at a gas pipeline company where I once worked, with good results. Once it dries you can paint over it.

Some good tips on touching up are here:
http://www.gitaneusa.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=813

A quick improvement for brakes, especially if you have steel rims, is Koolstop salmon brake shoes. I used to live on a fairly steep hill, and in damp conditions the original shoes that came on a bike with steel rim would barely slow it down. The koolstop salmon shoes I put on it made a huge difference. Of course it's great to get alloy rims, but it's quick and relatively cheap to change the brake shoes.

Dave[/url]

scozim

James - welcome to the group. I probably can't add much from the technical side of things - others here are much better at that.

I can tell you that the thrill of riding your Gitane will hopefully never end. I've had my 1984 Sprint on my indoor trainer all winter and even taken it to the spinning classes at my local bike shop (where everyone else has aluminum/carbon modern bikes) and I am having a blast. Yes, even on a stationary trainer I love this bike. I can't wait for spring to get some new tires on it and hit the road.

Scott

PBR Streetgang

Welcome! Now, post some pics!

Madmaxie

Okay, so a quick update. A fortuitous turn of bad luck has me with a new back wheel. After breaking two spokes at once, and a third on the ride to the bike shop, me and the mechanic decided that it would be better just to replace the wheel. I really wasn't ready to cough up $75, but I also didn't want to come back in a week or two to replace what I think are the original spokes and wheels. So now I have a brand new, cheap alloy wheel, and a new tire. My old tire was worn down completely smooth, not a good thing for riding around in the rain and snow of Philly.

Also, a question: Does anyone know how much an early 70's Interclub sold for? I've been searching around the site and can't find it.

Also, another question. Thanks to vanhelmont for the suggestion about the rust converter, I've used something similar to this before on our lawnmower, and didn't think to use it here. However, there is too much rust and chipped paint to just touch up. So any suggestions about what type of Krylon I should use? Or perhaps something else? And what about a sealant? Again, anything would be helpful. Thanks

P.S, Roommate took his camera with him to Boston for the week, so no pics yet.

James
Philadelphia

sandranian · Site Admin

Chas., a regular contributor to this forum, would know the original sale price of the interclub....

greyhundguy

James,
"The Complete Buyer's Guide to Bicycles" 1973 lists the price for an 'Interclub' as $155.00. A TdF sold for $239.50

Here's the link: http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/v/broderir/Catalogs-Posters/Gitane/1973-01/

Jay

verktyg

Jay,

Thanks for the cool link.

I was thinking about $175 (freight costs to New Mexico were high).

The 1973 "The Complete Buyer's Guide To Bicycles" writeup that you referenced goes on to say that $155 is the MSR and that these bikes would probably be selling for around $169.95.

Back in the day most of the US bike importers/distributors were located near access to a seaport. At the time most of the imported bikes were coming from Europe so many of the importers were located in the Northeastern US.

Bikes don't weigh that much but they take up a lot of volume so the were shipped in large sea containers. It was expensive to ship a sea container inland because the shipping companies charged freight on the container both to and from the destination.

Most bicycles (and a lot of other items) had 2 list prices, one for the East Coast plus a higher price for destinations "west of the Mississippi" and sometimes even to the South.

Bicycles shops usually added freight costs to the price. Freight rates were regulated by the FCC at the time so the shipping costs could have been as high as $15 per bike depending of FOB point and destination.

Chas.

vanhelmont

James,

My experiences from two bikes recently and several others long ago:

1. Functional, not pretty
With an Imron-painted Trek, with a lot of little chips, light rust in chipped spots, and little or no rust inside, I did a little scraping and sanding on the spots that looked more rusted, then dabbed rust converter on the chipped spots with a q tip. The spots turned black, and by the next day paint around a few of them bubbled up. I scraped those spots and applied rust converter again. Then I painted with a Rustoleum aluminum paint that is good for stopping rust.

For a little better appearance, I could have done a light overall sanding after the rust converter, trying to even out the edge of the chips, then prime at least the bare spots and paint the whole bike.

2. To make it look pretty good
My Gitane was also beyond touching up. I used a chemical strip called Lift Off, which I got at Walmart. It's safe to use indoors, and doesn't hurt your hands. You are supposed to brush on a thick layer. The first time I used it the temp. was in the 80's, and it didn't form a thick layer, and didn't remove paint very well. I ended up doing most of the paint removal with a wire brush. I used it again at about 60 degrees, and it would go on thick. It removed the paint pretty effectively.
Then I applied the rust converter all over the frame. Some spots immediately turned dark indicating there was some rust there. The whole thing turned dark grey overnight due to a rust resistant iron phosphate chromate layer. There's a picture here
http://www.gitaneusa.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=745
I also treated the inside. I stopped up all openings with electrical tape, put about 1/2 cup of rust converter in, and swished it around all through the frame. I left it in about 36 hours, and swished it around several times. The most important area for internal rust is the chain stays. If water gets into your frame it can collect there and cause rust, leading to frame failure. At least the rust converter I used doesn't need to be washed out or anything. I just poured it out at the end and let the frame dry.
Another more traditional treatment I also used (although either one alone should be enough) was linseed oil. I put a little inside the frame and swished it around. It will soak into any rust present, and leave a coating on bare metal. This coating drys very slowly. I hung up the frame for a few days, and let the excess run out. By then the inside was sticky. It's still a tiny bit tacky after about 6 months, but inside the frame who cares? The old red barn paint is iron oxide (rust!) mixed with linseed oil.

I wanted to try to replicate the original "champion blue" color, if possible. It is a candy apple color, with a translucent top coat over a reflective bottom coat, like chrome or (in the original paint) white primer. I got an automotive blue that was supposed to be for candy apple type painting, but the primers that they had were grey or brown. I used my silver rustoleum as a primer, figuring that the automotive paint, since it can be used for repairs, should stick to a variety of other paints. I figured wrong. The paint looked good, but came off very easily when I started putting components back on. Even when I hung it on a rubber coated hook, a big area of paint came off. It just didn't stick to the rustoleum.

I have re-stripped, and I'm going to try a white krylon primer with a blue krylon, which was a cheaper paint that doesn't claim superior coverage, so maybe I can still get a candy apple blue. Also I liked the color better than the krylons or rustoleums that cost a couple bucks more. Well while I play around with my Gitane and wait for a fork, I have another bike to ride. Since yours seems to get heavier use, and more exposure to the weather, my advice would be to get a $4 or $5 Krylon or Rustoleum, instead of a $3 one. They both make heavy duty spray paints that I would use in your situation.

I'll be interested to see any recommendations anybody has on clear coat. When I paint, I'm also going to paint something to test clear coat on, having learned from my experience with the first paint.

Anyway, good luck if you decide to repaint!

Dave

smilingroadrunner

Summer 1971, after waiting since earlier that spring in hopes of a Champion Blue frame in my size showing up in the shipments of Gitanes to my local bicycle shop. The impatience of my 18yrs led me to take home my first Interclub. Burgess Cycle Shop --Salina, Ks. I paid $180.00 for the White '71 Interclub. It's still my faithful steed, although the stable has grown over the last few years.

My recollection at that time was TdeF sold for $250.00, and the Super Corsa was approx $425.00 ( or for an extra 100 it could be equipped with the Campy brakes).

I Paid $584.00 for my Campy equipped Schwinn P-13 Paramount 2 years later (sorry folks don't hold that against me) I truly believe my '70 TdeF has a better --more comfortable road ride---than the Paramount---but I love all of them.

I Like Steel !!!
____________________
C.A.
Salina, Ks.

Madmaxie

This photo was taken back in early December during a Geohash originating from my ex-girlfriends house. The winter has not been kind to my trusty steed Sad

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