First retro roadbike - 1970's Puch Mistral

[998dave]

Hey,

New here, and I guess like most people I'm going to start by asking for information.
This is my new bike, (first proper vintage road bike), hopefully attached.

I believe it's a late 70's / early 80's Puch Mistral SLE.
Serial number is 6258974.

A lot of the components appear original;
- Suntour Chainset, (although rear derailleur is Shimano)
- Weinemann Brakeset,(although front caliper is Shimano)
- Neither wheel is original, although at least they're matching Weinemanns as well.

Can anyone help me identify the bike, or get hold of the original component spec's, (though I may not go back to fully original).

Dave

 

[998dave]

Re:

Decided to start working on the Puch, but first I repaired the rear puncture, pumped up the tyres, and went for a quick 'before' ride.

Not too bad, gears and brakes need some adjustment, (expected), and the old tyres definitely need replacing. Also, I don't like the original MKS pedals on it.

 

[998dave]

I've now started stripping the bike down and cleaning everything as I go along. Gear cables replaced, friction shifters tightened, and gears adjusted up - runs much better.

Wheels are now out for a clean and new tubes and tyres.

 

[998dave]

Last night I found some dating evidence - suggests late '77 or early '78.

 

[legrandefromage]

Dont know about original spec but 'groupsets' werent a feature until later with many bikes coming out with mix & match.

Heres a nice big pic from that Googly thing

Tyres make a hell of a difference to a ride, and have no fear with experimenting on stem. bar reach so it fits comfortably

 

[998dave]

Dont know about original spec but 'groupsets' werent a feature until later with many bikes coming out with mix & match.

Heres a nice big pic from that Googly thing

Tyres make a hell of a difference to a ride, and have no fear with experimenting on stem. bar reach so it fits comfortably

A fair point re: groupsets, all the brakes matched and everything on the gears except the rear derailleur were Suntour but who knows.

Nice picture, I found a couple of others that show my bike but with the extra Puch Stickers - not sure I want to add them though as I quite like the plain look.

Tyres - fingers crossed these Conti's will work well - sticking them on tonight then will clip some lights on and go for a quick run if it's not too late.

I'll fiddle with the stem, I've got the original as well as the slightly longer one currently on the bike - not changing it right now as the bar tape is nice and new at the moment, (previous owner).

 

[998dave]

Put the wheels back together and refitted - put my 'new' Miche front skewer in to match the rear - looks good.

I used Gunk degreaser to wipe the wheels clean - very pleased with how well they came up, see before and after pic;

 

[998dave]

Chain, sprockets and derailleurs all cleaned and reassembled.
Toying with the idea of a new chain, but not really necessary at the moment as all is working well. New cables are in place too.

 

[legrandefromage]

At least it all came apart easy enough.

 

[998dave]

At least it all came apart easy enough.

I think it's been apart relatively recently, then just sat in a shed for a couple of years - even the seat post had a nice smear of grease on it.