MotoBecane Mixte Restoration

Hello and Welcome
Today I worked on the MotoBecane mixtie. I had to take the rear derailleur (above) apart to get it cleaned up. I could not get one of the jockey wheels to spin at all. And the other one would barely spin with force. Well it`s all good now. "Hopefully" tomorrow I will rehab the rear wheel and get it mounted with a new chain. Then I will find out if I put this french rear derailleur back together correctly.

I also polished the center pull caliper-brakes today. I got those mounted along with the stem. I swapped the steel handlebars for an alloy set I had taken off an old Nottingham Raleigh.
Also cleaned up the stem and rear reflector mounts and got those back on. Also cleaned up the front derailleur (below) and got it remounted. And I cleaned up the Brake levers and got those mounted on the new (old) handlebars. As usual I used Mothers Mag and Aluminum Polish on all the aluminum and alloy stuff.
Oh yeah I cleaned up the "West Germany" (stamped) pedals. A little pitting but overall they look great mounted on the bike. These pedals were cleaned up with Turtle Wax Chrome Polish & Rust Remover a brass detail brush. And lots of elbow grease.

As you can see (below) the front wheel and hub cleaned up beautifully. On all the chrome I use Turtle Wax Chrome Polish & Rust Remover. I also use a fine brass detailing brush on the chrome when needed. And it the rust is real bad I will use a fine brass wheel brush mounted on a rechargeable drill. safety glasses required

UPDATE:8-8-09 The MotoBecane is finished all appears to be working well. I added some French colors to dress it up a bit. I think it is a damn nice little bike. A few things I have learned about Motobecane and the Mixtie frame. First the word "Mixtie" is derived from a french word that means Unisex. Meaning it is not a girls frame but a unisex frame. That idea never really caught on here in the USA. Another thing I have learned is that the name Motobecane comes from two french slang words. First Moto is slang (in french) for motor and becane is slang (also in french) for bicycle. It makes sense as I know they once built motorcycles and still might for that matter. I think they may still produce mopeds but I am not positive.
I have attached a few more picks of the finished project. And I am always open to constructive criticism and suggestions.


This bike was sold to a girl in Chicago. It was picked up by her sister and it rode the roof rack all the way to the windy city. That is all I have for today. Please Ride Safely and Remember to Always RESCUE, RESTORE & RECYCLE
Cheers,Hugh