Motobecane MX152

[Chilli Rinse]

I bought this Motobecane MX 152 on eBay in late November last year. I think she’s an ‘83, will have to double check the serial number. She was located in Dijon France and the seller told me only the seat, grips and tyres were not original to the bike. So not a total survivor but not far off. It’s full of scratches and faded ano and that for me was the charm of this old girl.
On first inspection the condition was as seen in the listing so I was happy. There were a few obvious mechanical issues that would need sorting and a few more surprises for me later on too.  I started to clean some of the parts that were removed for shipping. Seat, seat clamp, seat post, bars and stem, no issues. I took the brake and lever off, cleaned and greased, all good! The cable was knackered and the blocks were not the best so I found a very cheap  ‘84 Weinmann 1020 with og blocks and cable on eBay in France. Cable and blocks to be used only. The right hand grip dropped off when I picked the bars up. It was either an oversized motorbike grip or it had been stretched on a previous removal ? As they were not og, no biggy, nos Oury Pyramids ordered on eBay from the states. I couldn’t find a used set of red grips to suit. Wasn’t too keen on the replacement seat so bought a cheap faded ‘84 red aero style seat off of the bloke I bought the Weinmann 1020 off in France. Still not sure which one to go with ? She only came with the bar pad so that got a wipe over. The soft Velcro section needed to be glued as it was being pulled out of place and had a baggy finish. The foam was a diy job so a cheap nos v pad was ordered from you guessed it, eBay. Looking for the stem and frame pads to complete the set. That needed trimming but it’s so much better than the bodge job it had. The chain was a bit too rusty so I cleaned one off of another Motobecane complete I bought a while back. Probably not og but one side of a link was missing and couldn’t be used, luckily the length needed for the 152 was shorter.  So cleaned and oiled it won’t go to waste.
The pedals next... both caps missing and only one reflector on each, one spun but was dry, the other crunched quite badly. Stripped them down and found that each bearing race was missing at least half of the bearings. One seal was knackered and the locking nuts were mismatched. No caps equaled cruddy spindles but they cleaned up well as did the races and adjusting cones. Result! I found some old SR SP-250 pedals on eBay and took a gamble on them being suitable donors for the end caps. It turned out that the caps fitted as did the bearings, seals and hardware.      After the repack all was well and they’re running nice and smooth. So I needed 2 reflectors and discovered that SR SP-152 pedals use the Cat Eye 0217 push fit reflectors I needed. I picked a pair up complete with 4 reflectors for less than an eBay listing for 3 reflectors with some broken tabs. Another result! Popped those on, sorted!
The left crank arm from the Nervar 3 piece had been removed and the adjusting cup was half out. After removing that the bearing cage came out in 3 pieces. After the  drive side was removed the spindle came out and that had a few chunks missing right where the bearings sit. So another eBay search and a complete bottom bracket with the correct 7 caged bearings was bought. Everything cleaned up well and the repack left all running sweet. Arms and chainring were put in with the washing up, nice and clean. The crankset was missing the dust caps so you guessed it, a nice cheap pair found on good old eBay, lol. Job done!
The wheels next... cheap new black tyres removed but the tubes were saved as they held air. The front wheel was crunching and grabbing so another strip down, clean and repack. Running sweet now. The spokes had been sprayed blue and there was over spray on the rim, hub and forks. 00 gauge  wire wool to the rescue. This didn’t affect the ano rim and hub but did remove the paint form the spokes. This was a few hours of work and the cramp in my hands only lasted for a day, ouch! That was a killer. The rear wheel ran sweet and didn’t have any paint on it but the front cleaned up so well I decided to torture myself again. Another few hours of work resulted in severe cramp in both hands but it was worth it. Both wheels still need trueing up but for now they’ll do, wobbles and hops is an understatement. 
I’d bought a pair of Ambrosio wheels earlier on in the year, from the same seller of the Weinmann 1020 and seat in France. They came with some rough looking red gumwall Golden Boy comp III’s. They were nearly in the bin but I thought they would work with this resto if I could save them. They were nicely faded and the tread area was good but the walls were very dry and crusty, almost cracking! So they had a nice  hot wash in the bath with a bit of fairy and a stiff scrubbing brush. Well, they came up too good to be honest, lost all the colour fade  and were nice and bright. All that remains is some French tarmac that I couldn’t get off. It just adds to the look I reckon, lol. The crusty gumwalls remained so they were treated with silicon spray to try to rehydrate them a little and prevent further degrading. It was a partial success with a very slight improvement to the flexibility of the walls and they popped on the rims easily. They hold air well and time will tell if they’re OK to ride.
The headset was very stiff but loose., which was a concern. Whilst removing headset and forks I noticed the top set of bearings had been put in the wrong way around! After cleaning, on inspection no damage was found so repack and refit and all running sweet. Result!
Frame and forks... the forks weren’t too bad and the blue overspray had already been removed. So I lightly went over them with the 00 wire wool and most of the rust spots came off. The scraped decals were left as is. The frame was just wiped down. No attempt to touch in any scrapes or scratches and the damaged decals were left as is.
She’s all built up now and mechanically sound. She may not look too pretty but on this little project that was the whole point for me. In my eyes she’s cool and was worth the effort. Will add some pics and spec tomorrow, then a little shakedown ride.
Thanks for reading   
The last pic is made up of the ones used in the listing.

[monkian]

Nice work Toby
Bikes like this often get overlooked but I think they’re an important part of the OSBMX story. Great to see it getting some love. Look forward to seeing the pics

[Chilli Rinse]

Nice work Toby
Bikes like this often get overlooked but I think they’re an important part of the OSBMX story. Great to see it getting some love. Look forward to seeing the pics

Thanks Paul, I agree and there are some little gems out there at affordable prices too 

[Chilli Rinse]

She doesn’t look much different but she is clean has fresh grease all over except the rear hub.

Spec

1982 Motobecane MX152 frame and TMX forks with OG paint, chrome & decals
OG headset
OG fake Suntour mini stem
OG Motobecane v bars
OG v bar pad with added nos foam
Nos Oury Pyramid grips
OG Chang Star Tech 2 lever
OG Chang Star MX 1000 caliper with added 84 Weinmann blocks & 84 Weinmann cable
OG bottom bracket converter and OG Nervar adjusting cup with added Nervar bearings & Nervar spindle 
OG Nervar crankset with 44T chainring & added Nervar caps
OG SR Custom M pedals with added SR seal, bearings, end caps, lock nuts and reflectors
Used chain marked IRIS
OG Weinmann 20x1.75 rims with OG Maillard Helico Matic  hubs, 16T freewheel & OG spokes
80s (date 81 I think) Golden Boy 20x2.125 & 1.75 comp III tyres & CS tubes
OG SR Laprade seat post
OG SR seat clamp
84 aero type seat marked made in Italy

[monkian]

Looks and sounds like you’ve sensitively brought this right back to life Toby. Bikes like this are the reason BMX was accessible to so many kids BITD that helped make the scene as big as it was

Shame about the problem you’ve had with the pics. I found using the Tapatalk App the easiest way to upload them straight from your phone. Maybe give that a go

[P J Tunni]

I like it, interesting colour scheme, nice to see something a bit different! 

[Chilli Rinse]

Thanks for your comments guys. I love the over the top frame decals. I used too much hairspray on the grips and one is still wet. When it’s dry I’ll take the old girl out. Thanks for the Tapatalk tip Paul. I’ve downloaded it and will give it a go now.












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[Chilli Rinse]

Cheers Paul, this Tapatalk is working out for me. Very good quality pics compared to my last attempt.












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[Chilli Rinse]

Last few pics












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[Chilli Rinse]

It seems like a lifetime ago when this was completed, so I guess builds are never truly finished 

I bought a Motobecane branded Weinmann adjuster some time ago and forgot I had it. It was meant to go on my MX 113 but the caliper I used wasn't able to take it. So it is now sitting pretty on this old girl. The braking is still crap using the tech II lever but the adjuster is a nice little finishing touch.

[Chilli Rinse]

Update > Last week I purchased a nicely worn survivor SR MS-420 stem in red. It compliments the SR Custom M pedals, SR Laprade seat post and SR seat clamp very nicely indeed, as it has the same faded red finish showing the gold base colour. A nice little upgrade that fits right in. I'm still looking for the frame and stem pads to complete her. I missed out on a nice frame pad listed on Leboncoin a few weeks back. The search continues!

[Chilli Rinse]

Incoming 

I have been looking for a set or just frame and stem pads for 4 years now. Finally with the help from a French eBay and Leboncoin seller, a complete set was bought at a very decent price. The 152 will be looking as she should when these are fitted. I can't wait!