Welcome to The Velo Collective
The definitive resource for vintage French bikes.
Manufrance Hirondelle Restoration By Jimi
Manufrance Bikes If you go looking for a vintage bike advertised on French classifieds, chances are you’ll easily come across a Manufrance for sale. A ubiquitous sight on French roads for many decades, the company was founded way back in 1885. The model...
Phillip’s Jacques Anquetil Bike
Monsieur Chrono This is a 1980’s Jacques Anquetil bike sent by Phillip, who is going to improve some parts of it and find out some more about the bike. I wrote a blog about an Anquetil find which I enjoyed restoring here, though with its Vitus frame and Shimano...
A Ride Along the French Mediterranean
Sun, Sea and a Dedicated Bike Trail The coast towns of Marseillan, Agde and Sete are holiday resorts with miles of sandy beaches and lots of attractions. It’s an area filled with camping sites which must get very busy in the summer. We stayed on the Marseillan...
Cool Vintage Bikes in Vintage French Towns
Peugeot HLE, Beziers With its undeniably 1980’s paintwork, this Peugeot was one of the few vintage bikes I saw around the town of Beziers, in south west France. I don’t think the owner of this bike has much concern about the originality of its...
Riding Vintage Around Lake Annecy, France
Going Alpine I’m not one for climbing large mountains in some pursuit of my own cycling fantasy. I admire those who do make it up Alpe D’Huez or Ventoux, but I would much follow the meanderings of a lazy river, or in this case, follow a bike trail around...
The Best Vintage 3 Arm Crankset?
One to Look Out For This is a Spécialités TA Professional 3-arm crankset, and frankly, I believe it's the nicest vintage crankset of its type. This particular crank came off a 1979 TI Team Raleigh Pro, in the celebrated red, black and yellow colours, built by...
Raleigh Professional v Schwinn Paramount
Those Were the Days I once owned a Raleigh Professional and a Schwinn Paramount at the same time. Yes, I was living the American dream, of having two of the most prestigious vintage bikes that were sold in America in my garage. Not a British garage, mind, which...
Felix’s Superb Lapierre Vitus 979
Lapierre in Dijon This is a beautiful bike. It has the same frame design and aesthetic of Vitus Dural frames which were highly admired in the early 1990's, and which were exported to the US and sold as premium aluminium framesets. Sean Kelly rode a Dural 979...
Two Blue Peugeots: a Competition and a Course – Vitus 181
Two for $150 I love the higher-end Peugeots of this era, especially the ones made with Vitus 181 tubing like this one. I often find myself looking for them in local classifieds, on Ebay and on Gumtree. The Competition model came in Reynolds 531 tubing, and the...
Motobecane Super Sprint – Damaged
First Look This is a Motobecane in nice condition for its age. Well, at least, this is what went through my mind when I first saw it and met its owner. I use “owner” here in the loosest sense, as he was a guy who dabbles in fixie projects and had never got...
Converting a Vintage French Bike into a 9 Speed with STI Levers
The Purple Bike It’s not everyone’s cup of tea: a purple frame that is quite striking and flamboyent, but I really like the colour. The story is a short one: I bought a custom built bike, mysteriously branded “Treboutte”, last year, and took all the parts off...
1979 Carlton Criterium
Dans Son Jus I’ve never owned a Criterium before, but I have restored a couple of Pro Ams and Longfellows in recent times. The bike in this blog, which needs top to bottom work, was lower in the ranks than the Pro Am, which had Reynolds 531 tubing. Yet, it is...
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