A few years back when this bike was built I was looking to create a nice vintage rider, an all purpose machine that would be both versatile and a little sporty. At the time I lived in the high desert and contending with rain was almost never an issue. Now we spend much of our time in the Pacific North West where conditions couldn’t be more different. It was time to revise the Lygie to be more suitable for it’s new locale.

The Lygie before it’s transition to an Oregon bike

Time for a change of character

This may be the one in my medley of bicycles that I have seemed to ride the least, for whatever reason. I was happy with it when I built it 8 years ago, but with our change in location I began to wonder if an update wasn’t in order. Riding conditions in Utah rarely requires fenders, but in the Pacific North West they make a lot more sense. Many bikes from the 60’s & 70’s era have good clearances in the frame which allow for a lot of choice in tire widths. I knew that I could put almost any tire size I wanted to on this bike and still retain clearance for fenders! With this versatility available I decided to restate this bike as something suitable for the more variable conditions of the PNW.

A short list of revisions

The shifters will go from the stem back to the down-tube and a larger 35c tire will be installed along with full fenders.. The clamp-on bottle cage will be swapped out for an old school one which mounts up on the bars and a frame pump will be added. Lastly to make this road ready I’ll install front and rear lighting, a mirror and maybe a bell. These updates should help make this a functional but retro, all roads, all year rider!

These Dia Compe brakes also have plenty of room for fenders, even with a larger tire size like 35c. I have an older set of Velo Orange stainless steel fenders that will be just about the right size for these tires. I’ve had to cobble together the hardware to fit them properly but they should be sturdy. I’ve given the front fender some additional support by adding an attachment point to the front mini-rack. Integrating racks and fenders was commonly done in the French Constructeur bikes of the post-war era where they strived to create a bicycle where the components worked together resulting in stronger and lighter designs. These days everything is a stand-alone bolt on accessory with little thought about the result as a whole. The idea of minimal but strong is still a good one though!

Bicycles of this era often did not have braze on mounts for water bottles. I originally used an older TA clamp on style mount on the seat tube but it never really looked right for the bike. Instead I found a handlebar mount type bottle holder. Mounts like these sometimes are hard to make secure so I have added a reinforcement cable which should prevent downward rotation of the cage.

I’ve found an inexpensive reproduction frame pump to use because I still prefer a pump to CO2 cartridges. The chrome goes well with the look of the bike and fits with the retro look. This style with a flexible hose is my preferred type over a fixed valve block on a pump. It might be a little more fiddly to use but I usually get better pressure in the tire with this type.

For a bike that will actually get ridden in the real world, a modern LED light is a necessity. Sadly there are few good alternatives out there with a vintage look. There are old battery or generator units that look like spaceships but perform poorly, or there are some really good lights which would only look at home on a modern machine. My plan is to use one of the least offensive looking of the latter type and just live with it.

The resulting mixed-gruppo of components

The bones: 1968 Lygie Record Pro frame and fork with it’s original paint and character, in 58 cm, frame #68A1189. She shows well for her age!

Rotating pair: The wheels are built around some Phil Wood hubs with Velo Orange Raid rims using 32 x DT 14/15 butted spokes and brass nips, wrapped with Panaracer Pasela 35’s. They spin like butta!

Gearbox: Campy Super Record derailleurs F&R with a Soma extended cage in the rear. A Shimano 7 speed freewheel (13-30) with a classic VO crank-set (48/34). Levers are classic Record units on the down-tube which is where they belong!

Stoppers: Dia Comp center pulls have never given me goose bumps but they do have the right reach and clearance, and when matched with some TRP aero levers actually do a pretty good job of braking. Who knew you could actually stop a vintage bike!

Human interface: A simple and basic VO stem with some no name bars with Brooks leather tape, a Cardiff saddle on a Campy Record post and Shimano SPD pedals is where I rest my parts.

Doodads and extras: Velo Orange fenders and front mini rack, TA water bottle holder, a reproduction frame pump and Mopha tool roll complete my accessory package.

Final thoughts and imaginings

In literature Lygie is a fictional princess whose identity is somewhat of a mystery. She is a curious but beautiful character who was both desired and enslaved by the Romans in the 1896 book, Qou Vadis by Henryk Sienkiewicz. Later, just after the turn of the century a burlesque dancer in in France adopted the persona for her act at the Moulin Rouge. Outside of these instances Lygie is not a well known figure. She is an interesting choice as the image for a bicycle marque but was probably appropriate for the era when the company debuted in 1905. Perhaps when Lygie was founded by Alfredo Sironi, he was smitten by this character, or maybe he just went to the burlesque show. That bit of interesting minutiae is forever lost to history.

In conclusion

The Princess’ final weight comes in at 30.5 pounds, which is riding weight with pedals, lights, tools, racks, cages and pump. She is an international character with Italian, France, England, Switzerland, the USA, Japan and no doubt a little Chinese in her lineage. Not a lightweight by current standards but back in the day it would have been right inline with other similarly equipped models.

More history on Lygie bicycles can be found here at; Lygie History and Racing.

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