I have a profound appreciation and love for the old stuff but struggle to find 4400 euros relatively cheap. Maybe just because I don't believe in the economic principle of "it is worth what someone wants to pay for it." I think at some point the price exceeds the true value of the thing in my view.
My "old" max budget which would get out of hand would be around 1000 - 1500€ mark starting from a 2nd hand frame-set.
Now with more age, wisdom, and my ability, and how much cycling I do I feel I can be happy on virtually anything for 1/10th of that. Always at the back of my head is almost like a € / Km / enjoyment thing which an accountant bean counter would find it necessary to decide things.
Still a treat is a treat. Don't see any point to de-privilege oneself and do agree to just push the boat out once in a while is fine.
I find everything new today is either expensive or simply utter shit. I have difficulty to adjust to this "disposable" society being raised on a principal of "buy once, save thrice". Quality (or rather to specification) will never be an entirely cheap option.
Exactly. €1,000 if you're patient, €1,500 if you're not and have to pay eBay prices.
Getting back on topic: I just bought this for mrs non-fixie. Not in my hands yet, but I believe it to be a mid-seventies Super Evry. Full Reynolds 531. Even with a nice new B17s and a guidon à trois positions it will be comfortably within budget.
A key figure in the revival of Concours de Machines with Victoire, Christophe is passionate about cycle touring in Clermont-Ferrand and craftsmanship. He has passed on this passion to his son Loïc, a recent graduate with a BTS in metalworking. For his work placement, Loïc turned to Victoire with the idea of building a touring bike for his father. This is the story of a project that is as exciting as it is moving. We'll let him tell you all about this bike that's unlike any other...
"It was interesting for Loïc to discover another way of working with metal, another method of assembling tubes, which is uncommon in metalworking, where TIG and MAG are more common. This project allowed him to understand the requirements of frame manufacturing: precision, patience... Of course, he first had to ‘learn the ropes’ by practising on scrap tubes. Soldering, cleaning, he had to gain a minimum of experience before starting on the frame itself.
I absolutely wanted to keep the position of my old bike, a Routens, but switch to 26-inch wheels. I also wanted to stick with a lightweight touring bike configuration for day trips without lights. Classic and simple with small-diameter steel tubes, yet designed to be easily dismantled.
Christophe is enamoured with French designs from the 1930s to the 1950s, particularly Routes and Bourdel, two frame builders well known to those in the know. So we offered him a bicycle with a traditional aesthetic.
Christophe's son Loïc built the frame, fork and stem of his father's bicycle with the help of our frame builders. This unique process gives Christophe's bicycle a very strong sentimental value.
Although Christophe's bike is reminiscent of machines from the past, it also features many modern elements. The headset is standard 1-1/8‘, instead of the smaller 1’ headsets used previously.
Another unique feature of this bike is that it includes numerous components made by Christophe himself from old second-hand parts, such as this magnificent fully machined rear derailleur, or the ‘suicide’ front derailleur.
The crankset is a modern René Herse that Christophe drilled out to make it lighter and reminiscent of the Motobécane crankset used by Luis Ocana.
Christophe is a regular contributor to Bicycle Quarterly magazine and a friend of Jan Heine, the editor-in-chief. Jan Heine is also the person behind the revival of the René Herse brand. That is why Christophe's bicycle features prototypes (now commercially available) of René Herse cantilever brakes.
The gear shift lever on the frame is also very special. It is a Campagnolo lever modified by Christophe to make it compatible with the derailleur. For maximum visual harmony, Christophe wanted a single colour for the frame, stem and fork.
Christophe words,
I was lucky enough to see the different stages of production. Once on the bike, I feel right at home. It has the same position as my Routens, which is what mattered most to me. However, I immediately noticed that the Victoire is stiffer and more responsive.
Not nit picking, of course would never dream of that, but if it was my build and I had those metal working skills I would have been inclined to have a cable operated custom FD and spend time on making a pair of custom unique downtube gear levers. That Campag lollipop stick is a left hand shifter and would have been mounted wrong. It doesn't look out of place at a distance but an opportunity was surely missed to have something engraved more personal or simply Victoire.
Yours sincerely, difficult sod to please entirely.
Not nit picking, of course would never dream of that, but if it was my build and I had those metal working skills I would have been inclined to have a cable operated custom FD and spend time on making a pair of custom unique downtube gear levers. That Campag lollipop stick is a left hand shifter and would have been mounted wrong. It doesn't look out of place at a distance but an opportunity was surely missed to have something engraved more personal or simply Victoire.
I rather like the choices made in the drivetrain. Lets be honest, there are more things that could be considered suicidal, like formula 1 in the sixties, didn't stop people from enjoying it. 26" is a surprise. It does give the bike lovely proportions.
Not nit picking, of course would never dream of that, but if it was my build and I had those metal working skills I would have been inclined to have a cable operated custom FD and spend time on making a pair of custom unique downtube gear levers. That Campag lollipop stick is a left hand shifter and would have been mounted wrong. It doesn't look out of place at a distance but an opportunity was surely missed to have something engraved more personal or simply Victoire. 
