Univega Bikes

I was given a pair of nearly matching Univega 10 speed bikes a while back, a Gran Turismo racer and a SuperTen Mixte.  These are both really neat bikes in their own right.  I am in the process of fixing them up and making them roadworthy, so let me tell you a little about them as they are currently.

Let’s start with the Gran Turismo.  For starters the frame is made from 1024 steel butted tubing.  Some research on this type of steel indicates that it is a fairly heavy steel that is not too highly regarded by the bike snobs who like their rides light.  Whatever, I like a steel frame myself, so the 1024 will do.  The forks are probably the same material.  Whatever heaviness that the frame has is partly made up for by having a set of Araya 27” aluminum alloy rims.  These rims aren’t anything special, but it is nice that they aren’t steel.  The gearing components are SunTour V-GT-Luxe and are shifted with end of bar friction hybrid (they click in one direction) shifters.  The brakes are Dia Compe center pull, and are in need of some new pads.

For the most part, I like this bike.  I am not sure if I am going to keep it as a 10 speed, or make it into another single speed bike.

The SuperTen mixte is a pretty cool bike.  I have been wanting a mixte frame for some time, and am glad that this one dropped into my lap.  Of course, the frame is too small for me, so this bike is going to become a lender bike for visitors who want to go for a bike ride, or for Dorothy to tool around on.  It is a heavy one, with steel everything, from the Araya rims to the handlebars and seatpost.  The tires on both bikes are dry rotted and in very bad shape, yet they all hold air (at least for a while).  Obviously the rubber all needs to be replaced.

The modern mixte frame is an offshoot of the porteur frames that delivered newspapers and other things around Paris many years ago.  As you can see from the pictures here, a good number of frames had a third stay in the rear triangle, even with a standard mens top bar.  There are a few examples of a dropped top tube in this collection as well.

Well, enough history.  I am planning to fit this bike with some different gear.  The first thing to go will be the drop bars.  I really can’t stand drop bars and think that some old style swept back handlebars will hook this bike up and provide the rider with a more upright posture.  A leather saddle (of course), and maybe some new gearing options (like an internally geared hub) will do this bike nicely.  Both of these bikes are a bit on the heavy side, with the mixte being the heavier of the two.   I would like to ultimately change out the rims, but that may have to wait for a while so I can concentrate on getting an old Schwinn Jaguar built up for Dorothy.