My 'new' project early 80's Gitane

[Andy69]

I went to view this bike, after it had been on ebay for a while. The seller had it listed as a frame for someone of at least 6 feet tall and I'm 5-8 and a bit, so didn't look too close until my day off today, when I noticed it looked like a 22 inch or so, so should be okay.
Anyway, I viewed it and it looked like crap...covered in poxy mudguards, with the bottle cage zip-tied to the downtube, an Aldi 90's styleee computer and was sit-up-and-beg-tastic, but it was the right size.
However under all the dross looked a cool bike and this chap was the first owner, having bought it new when he lived in the Loire , so I took a cheap punt and rode it home, in my jeans and trainers, leaving the confused wife to drive home alone
Always wanted a Gitane, never had one. Don't know too much about them either, apart from the top-end pro stuff of the day.
Pretty sure this is an '81 or '82 after some research, thanks to the graphics.
It has no rust at all, only a couple of scratches, crap gears, cool Lyotard pedals and nice Mavic rims, along with the worst saddle I've ever sat on.
So, I've commandeered the kitchen tonight, 'un-freezed' the bar stem and set it up more acceptably for now and will set to work over the weekend.
Cheers

 

[Andy69]

Re:

So, I've been hard at work cleaning as much as possible within a day or so, trued the rims and greased bearings. I've also been for a decent ride and it rides great.
I have some plans now too. I'll be replacing the mechs with period Simplex, putting some toe clips on it and a Rolls saddle and cleaning much, much more! Other than that, just riding it hard and enjoying the summer...80's style
Anyhow here's some more pics, cheers.

 

[Rich34]

Re:

I like that - evocative looks and name. Nice to see it being used and enjoyed, and that colour makes a change from blue!

 

[Andy69]

Re: Re:

I like that - evocative looks and name. Nice to see it being used and enjoyed, and that colour makes a change from blue!

Thank you
I've done a couple of good sessions on it now and it's really lovely to ride.
I've re-dished the rear rim and put an early 105 rear mech on it for now and that has improved the shifting dramatically. The saddle is awful, but will be replaced with a Rolls and am yet to order some decent pedals for it.
Cheers.