completed - `86 La Vie Claire Look TVT

Retro Dan

Devout Dirtbag
After a fair amount of work and parts sourcing, my KG86 Look TVT in `86 La Vie Claire colours is now finished!

Frame was a new old stock april `86 made KG86 in lacquered carbon, sprayed silver with pearlescent lacquer to give the blue tinge in the light - the Purist Police can look away now as I couldn`t quite cover the whole frame up as the carbon layup was just too pretty to paint, so I had a section of the downtube faded from silver to clear around where the front deralieur clamps on - discreet but worth doing.

Parts are the period c-record campagnolo groupset, cobalto brakes, delta levers, cinelli bar and stem had to swop out the campag aero seatpost for a campag super long non aero as i just could not fit comfortably without showing more post. Wheels are nos 28 spoke Ambrosio Metamophosis rims freshly threaded onto record hubs (thanks to Rustie for insisting on me grabbing the rims when they came up on ebay - they are epic) shod with the usual continental giro tubs. Weight complete with Look Pedals is 8.95 kilo which is respectable.

How does it ride? Had it out 3 times so far, pretty darned awesome on the road. Average speed on a 1 hour strava timed lumpy ride (around 400 meters climbing) is 31.5 kph on a lone rider ride (compared with 33 kph on a Dogma, 31.5 on a Pantani Bianchi and 29.5 on a US Postal Trek) - would be at least 1kph faster once I`m used to the downtube shifters - still have to think far too much about the shifting - might have to go for an indexed shifter rather than friction. This would be one heck of a bike with a nine speed record titanium set up form the late 90`s on it.... Climbing is good but need to get the gear selection right early on in the climb, but descending is exceptional - the KG86 in this settup will go downhill quicker and easier than my Dogma which is quite a feet.... and there`s no creaking and the frame hasn`t exploded or colapsed.... full La Vie Claire kit to match of course....

1 very bad thing - Benotto Bar Tape - why dis such a cr*p shiney, slippy non cushioned bar tape ever become the choice for pro racers around the world - might as well smear the ally bars in lard....

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Still working on the next project - `53 Italian Torpado Gran Sport pro racer......
 
Congratulation!!! Absolute Great Work @Retro Dan - I love this bike, But please accept my correction, your bike is not a LOOK KG 86

Your bike is based on a TVT Carbon 7 or TVT9. Like all LOOK frames before the LOOK KG 96, it was manufactured by French company TVT and listed by LOOK or "Groupe Bernard Tapie Sport" as a Kevlar 2000 type in the 1987 LOOK catalogue. In the 1988 catalogue it was under LOOK KG 85.

The KG 86 was offered not before 1989 as LOOK KG 86 Kevlar 2001 type, and it has in contrast to the afore-mentioned predecessors, which still have a built between the seatstays brake bridge, the later LOOK typical attachment of the rear brake bridge by the around the seatstays fixing
This type of rear brake bridge makes me sure that it is a TVT 1st Gen, having a rear integrated brake bridge glued inside the straight seatstays. This was typical TVT9, which was first introduced in 1983 in Paris.

The LOOK KG 86 has a rear brake bridge, which was fixed around the seat stays, as was the case with LOOK's first real LOOK, the KG 96, the famous LDS KG 171, and its successor.
BR Thomas

BTW - to complete your work I can offer to sell you a pair of used black LOOK PP75 pedals for pocket money, which has been used by La Vie Claire Team in 1986
 
Re:

Hi Gridno27,
Your probably right - I get confused with the model numbers - definatly an April `86 frame though due to the serial numbers, plus I thought the rear brake bridge bonded between the seatstays was the early model with the ones looking like they are bolted around the seatstays being the `87 ones? Pretty sure this is an identical frame to your LVC TVT, not that it matters, its a cool bike...
 
Re:

Plus, to add to my confusion, this months Cyclist magazine visit the Look factory and theres the same bike frame, ally bridge set inbetween the seat stays, and they refer to it as an `86 KG86 at the factory...
 
Looks great - but is it to small for you? That's a lot of seat pin showing for a bike of that era. However, you obviously like it a lot so feel free to ignore me ;)
 
Re:

Hi Old Ned,
Yep, its showing a lot of post, had to swop the Record Aero post for a Campag extra long, not so much that its to small for me, more that my other bikes have a more modern set up - did try the more relaxed set-up of the time but it gave me a lot of cramp, so mimicked the set up of my other rides.... plus I have very long legs....

Cheers, Dan.
 
Hi Dan

at my 2nd more detailed look - there's a small critism on a very very high level … :mrgreen:

crankset isn't a 1st Gen Corsa Record with graved shield logo
FD isn't also not 1st Gen Corsa Record with riveting in line not diagonal like yours

...but if time and money - 1st Gen parts will come sometime :D


:oops: but I envy you for the Metamorphosis Ambrosia rims - I had found a pair look a like of Synthesis Special only

BR Thomas
 
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