Decals & Transfers

There have been many inquiries regarding the topic of decals. Specifically, Bertin owners of older, classic bikes want to know where and how to get period-correct decals to restore their framesets. In most cases, the bicycles they own are anywhere from 15 to 50 years old and usually in poor cosmetic condition. Paint is chipped, decals are missing, tubing decals are rubbed partially away but the bikes themselves remain as viable and desireable as when they were made. The need to mechanically and cosmetically renew the bike becomes obvious but it is the “how” of restoration which is the problem.

Sources for Painting

The owners who will have already made the decision to begin that restoration (see this Richard Sachs source on restoration) often have located persons or companies able to do the sandblasting, repairs and repainting. For example, Argos and Bob Jackson in the U.K., Velocolour in Canada, Joe Bell and Cyclart in the U.S., all do superb restoration work as do many local or regional framebuilders.

Sources for Decals

The difficulty arises in trying to find frame art for less well known companies such as Bertin. Cyclomondo and H. Lloyd are two valuable sources for transfers but even they do not have a universal availability of decals or what they stock may not be period correct. As well as these two, there are others suggested in the Restoration section to the right of the main posts on this page.

Some restoration shops will custom make decals from originals on your frameset. That was not the process that was done for the restoration of my personal Bertin – the decals had been stripped away in a previous refinishing. Replacing/locating decals is time consuming and can be expensive. The art work for my frameset took six months for the graphics to be finished. That was after I had located and downloaded the images to be used as the basis of reproduction by the graphic artist involved.

Due to the wide range of Bertin graphics and decals, and the widening range of reader interest in other than just the 1960s and 1970s Bertins, I have decided to expand and revise this section. The availability of these on line categories may allow decals to be more readily and speedily produced.

The new format will follow that of the Road Bike Galleries. Each decade will have a discrete section and the graphics will be illustrated with the best examples available to me. There will be one or more bicycle photos showing a profile shot of the representative graphics. A head tube badge/decal/graphic will be included as will details such as seat stay caps, if available. Road and track bikes did not differ significantly during the years Cycles Bertin was in production so, where applicable, they will be used interchangably for illustrations.

Decals and Graphics by Decade

Decals and Graphics 1950 – 1959

Immediate post WW II graphics on Bertin’s early production were simple and clear. Headtube badges were made from painted, pressed metal and were screwed or rivetted into place. Decals were simple sans serif letters on the downtube. Information on the late 1940s production is not available at this time but I assume it is similar to the early 1950s design

A.BERTIN

The bicycle above is an early 1950s Bertin C 10. Note the contrasting head and seat tube panels. The frame is extentsively pinstriped in the seat tube colour and the white panel is trimmed by French national coloured bands above and below. The seat tube panel to the right is representative of the general style.

Partially missing is the A.B. diamond shaped decal common to Bertins up until the 1980s. Check the sample to the left.

Later graphic styles varied as can be seen from the mid-50s example which follows below. The dropout on this frameset indicates that it is a 1956 production bicycle. It retains the stamped/riveted head badge which time has robbed of its colour and the seat tube banding/A.B. diamond but the downtube logo has changed to a much more ornate form. The Arrow/Script version shown on this frameset was used until the 1960s on track, road and touring models alike.

This logo or similar variations would last forward into the mid-1960s. The orange frameset which follows is a well preserved example of a 1958 Bertin sport bike complete with all its graphics comparitively undamaged.

The head tube is now decorated by the familiar foil Bertin badge, extensive pinstriping is seen on the frame tubes and the head tube tri-coloured band has appeared to match the two on the seat tube. Seat stay caps have aquired tri-colour decals and the Durifort forks have gained white pinstriping on the crown.

Many early framesets were built with Vitus Durifort tubing in all of the frame and forks. Identifying decals appeared on the seat tube and both fork blades. The orange and white example above has the 3 main tubes in Durifort as well as the fork. The two photos below show the Vitus stickers which are two of the oldest I have record of.

3 Tubes Durifort

Durifort Forks

 

Soon to come — the 1960’s.

Bertin Decals & Graphics Topic

Bertin 50s Headbadge

One of the most frequently viewed topics on this blog is the page for Bertin decals and graphics. As a result, I’m currently working on a post about each decade’s graphics — which will parallel the structure of the galleries.

Stay tuned.

Bertin Site Changes

Updated November 3, 2009:

Previous visitors to Bertin Classic Cycles will have noted that things are not what they once were. The previous theme with its dramatic Bertin colours of red and black had been serving less well than previously .

It was an aging theme and it was gradually losing function and compatability with the latest changes to WordPress. I discovered accidently that when people clicked on Categories all they got was a six or eight line summary which did not link to the full, previous post. If they then attempted to access the topic using the Tag Cloud they found that it would no longer work at all.

So, if you are one of the previously thwarted, my apologies and I hope this new format will serve you better. If you find a problem, feel free to leave a comment or email me at [bertinclassiccycles[at]yahoo[dot]ca] with your concerns.

Visitors will also notice that I have restructured the galleries on the sidebar to cope with the increasing numbers of photographs. Bertins have been left in their Road, Track and Juvenile catagories but the road bike galleries have been subdivided by their era – 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s, as well as the final decade of the 90s until the cessation of production. Those posts, by the way, are also available via the “category” archives.

In future, I will continue to post to the Galleries photos sent to me of readers’ Bertins such as this one from Lorenzo (under the 80s). Plus, I will be organizing and preparing a major post on Bertin graphics and decals arranged by era  just like the Gallery reorganization.

So, much remains to be done but with time, I hope to have an even more useful site than currently.

Road Bike Gallery 1990 – 1999

The 1990s would be a time of momentous change for Ets. Bertin. In addition to massive changes  in suppliers, bicycle design and distribution, there came a radical restructuring of the company. Ets. Bertin was absorbed by Shimano to become Shimano France. Cycles Bertin continued as a stand alone manufacturer of bicycles and frames. In 1993, the company was purchased by Cibo, a large non-cycling holding company. Then, a year later, Andre Bertin died in St. Laurent-Blangy. The company continued on for several years, finally ending production around 1999-2000.

This final decade saw rapid changes in equipment like STI and Ergopower, a continuing shift to Columbus tubing although Vitus still supplied some tubesets and the use of oversized tubes and compact frame designs in some Bertin models. The broad line of classic bicycles from the early post WW II period had transitioned into BMX, mountain bikes, hybrids and dedicated racing bikes each highly specialized for its application.

This is an early 90s Columbus framed Bertin with Shimano RSX and STI.

This Bertin road bike is distinguished by its unusual, for a Bertin, straight fork. Originally found on leboncoin.fr .

 

This appears to be a mid-90s 105 equiped road bike with a later graphics style.

 

A mid-90s Bertin sport bike with an RSX triple gruppo.

 

This 90’s frameset  is distinguished by the continued use of lugs and of Vitus 999 plain guage tubing.

Detail ofVitus 999 tubing sticker.

 

An early 90s Bertin sport bike. Note the close clearences.

 

This early 90s Bertin is equiped with a 300EX Gruppo and, unusually, STI as well.

 

A late 90s Bertin C 300 with oversize steel tubing, semi-compact design and Campagnolo Ergopower.

 

This Bertin C 3000 has the oversize steel frameset and striking graphics of the last of Bertin’s road bike production.

 

This Bertin is equiped with the lower end Shimano 300EX crankset.

 

This 1990s frameset is for sale (Nov. 2009) at Ebay from the NOS Bicycle Shop.

 

An early 90s  flat bar hybrid with a lugless steel frame and very tight geometry.

 

 

 

A welded aluminum framed Bertin C 4000 from the mid- 90s.

 

This lugged, steel framed Bertin C 2336 is RSX and STI equipped.

 

This is also a lugged, Columbus tubed Bertin from the early 90s. Note the extremely tight wheel/tire clearances on this bicycle.

 

This unidentified Bertin model features oversize welded steel tubes and  what appears to be a Shimano 105 gruppo featuring STI and dual pivot brakes.

 

This Bertin has a welded alloy frame and steel fork with a Shimano 105 STI gruppo.

 

Once again, a welded aluminum frame but matched to a Vitus carbon fiber fork on this mid-1990s Bertin.

 

 

 

 

This page was updated on December 17, 2009. 

 

Road Bike Gallery 1980 – 1989

The pace of technological change accelerated during the 1980s. By the mid to late 80s Shimano’s SIS , Sachs’ ARIS, Suntour’s Accushift and Campagnolo’s Synchro were offering some variety of indexed shifting to the mass market. Older companies like Simplex and Huret were left behind, merged or slipped into bankrupty.  At the same time, tubing types proliferated. Vitus reformatted Durifort into Vitus 888, and added 172, 181, 971, 980 and 983 for various applications and levels of performance. Bertins used some of these types in various combinations.

As well, Reynolds had released 753, 501, 501SL, 531 Professional and 531 Special Tourist. Columbus had diversified its product offerings as well  with Aelle, Aelle R, SP, SL, SLX and on into Cromor, Nivachrom, Gilco and other special application steels.

As steel tubesets specialized and diversified, highly sophisticated aluminum and titanium tubes came into the high end of the market. As well, there was a boom in special tubesets for the exploding mountain bike segement of the bicycle marketplace.

In all of this, Cycles Bertin caught the wave. The 80s saw a shift away from the classic Vitus and Reynolds products and over to the more fashionable Columbus tubesets as frame tubing decals in the Gallery testify. As might be expected of a Shimano distributor, more and more of the Bertin product line came with Shimano as the decade advanced. In North America, Bertins became less available except for a few individual dealers in the U.S. and Canada.

An 80s Bertin with Reynolds 501 frameset and and early 90s Shimano 105 gruppo. Originally for sale on Ebay Canada.

 

This seems to be a mid 80s Bertin C 270 or C 290 with a Columbus frameset and a Shimano 600 gruppo.

 

A Bertin C 34 with Reynolds 531 main frame and a Vitus Durifort fork equiped with a 1st generation Shimano 600 gruppo.

 

This is a later 80s Bertin Cyclotouriste built with a Vitus 888 frameset and full touring equipment including a brazed on generator, lights and racks.

 

This is probably a Bertin c 270 with a full Reynolds 501 frameset found originally on leboncoin, October 2009.

 

This Bertin is equiped with the rarely seen Shimano AX aerodynamic gruppo from the early 80s.

 

This is a Bertin C 210 or 220 built from Columbus Aelle. It was found on the Sargent website in London.

 

This possible C 70 model Bertin was shared by Steve V. of California. Note that this bike retains full French equipment.

 

This Reynolds framed C 37 is set up as a Sportif bike with fenders and handlebar bag but has an early Shimano 600 gruppo.

 

An early 80s French equiped Bertin C 35 found originally on Bike Forum.

 

A Bertin C 37 with a full Campagnolo Nuovo Record gruppo, the top of the line option for Bertin racing bikes. This bike was from a German online bicycle museum site Rembetis- Historische Fahrrader.

 

This Vitus 979  bicycle would be identified by Bertin as either a C 181 and so on in numerical sequence up to C 581 depending on the equipment fitted. This may be a C 581 as it appears to have 1st generation Dura Ace fitted.  Cycles Bertin also sold the aero profile 979s and the carbon tubed framesets but seemingly did not give them distinctive Bertin model numbers.

 

This thoughtfully upgraded Bertin C 35 was contributed by Lorenzo from Philadelphia.

 

This woman’s frame is built from Durifort tubing and features a stepthrough frame design.

 

This refinished Bertin C 171 is Shimano Exage equipped and was found on le boncoin from France.

 

Updated December 6, 2009. 

Road Bike Gallery 1970-1979

Bertin bikes cotinued to expand their distribution during this period of the Bike Boom. Framesets were built with Vitus supplied Durifort/888 tubes and, later in the decade’ with Vitus 172 as was the case for the C 37 bis. Some higher end bicycles and framesets like the C 35 were built with a Reynolds main triangle and Vitus for the rest. Specific models like  the C 37 and C 38 remained all Reynolds. Framesets were built using forged ends and braze-ons gradually reappeared on the higher end racing frames.

French equipment was the basic specification on frames, but in the mid-70s, Bertin became the French Shimano distributor and its gruppos proliferated through the lineup during this decade as an upgrade before the fullout Campagnolo option. The house brand Milermo equipment was speced extensively on everything from dropouts to saddles, to stems, tape and almost any other accessory required to complete a bike.

Bertin dabbled as well with non-traditional materials such as welded aluminum in the C 80  and welded titanium in the C 75T although these never became a major part of the Bertin lineup.

 

Bertin C 31 bis — from Craigslist

 

Bertin C 37 Originally for sale on E-Bay

 

Bertin C 37 — Don Genovese’s bike on the Velo Cafe at Cyclofiend.com

  

C 37 for sale at Team Karim

 

Bertin C 34 — Psycleman’s Bertin at the Velo Cafe on Cyclofiend.com

 

Bertin C 28 – from a French bulletin board (Apr 09)

 

Bertin C 132 Cyclo-Touiste, E-Bay April 2009

 

Bertin C 31? Ebay France, May 2009

 

Bertin C 28, May 2009

 

Chad Magiera’s Bertin C 37 from a German website, March, 2009.

 

Bertin C 31 fixie, April 2009.

 

A Bertin C 132 shared by JPA from an older EBay post.

 

A probable C 28 with later equipment upgrades also from JPA.

 

A Bertin C 31 photo from EBay also provided by JPA

 

A Bertin Mixte found on the Calgary, Alberta Craigslist in June, 2009

 

Details of the Bertin Mixte from above.

 

Unkown model of Bertin found on Craigslist, June 2009.

 

Extensively modified Bertin from Bike Forum, June 2009.

 

Bertin C 132 found on Craigslist, June 2009.

 

Bertin frameset and detail shots from MarcBaby at Mobile1

 

Bertin C 37, all Campy, from Rembetis Historische Fahrrader

 

An early 80s C 70? shared by Steve V. from California

 

 

A Bertin C 35 from Bike Forum

 

The much modified and stolen Bertin of Calvin Jones, Park Tools technical expert.

 

A 48 cm Bertin C 34 found on Ebay, July 2009.

 

Details of the Bertin above.

 

This is a late 60s Bertin C 37 recently aquired by Stefan Bergler of Germany.

 

This appears to be a Bertin C 31? from the 1970s also shared by Stefan Bergler.

 

A Bertin C 34 from the mid 1970s found on line .

 

Detail photos of the C 34 found above.

 

Rich Pinder’s Bertin C 35 from his excellent Ride Vintage Steel site.

 

A late 60s or early 70s Bertin C 37 built with 531 and for sale on the Toronto Kijiji site in September of 2009.

 

Details of the C 37 from Kijiji including the old Huret Luxe friction shift levers and the 531 forks.

 

A Bertin C 34 with full Durifort tubeset.

 

Details of the C 34 above.

 

A Bertin C 132 Cyclo Touriste found on Ebay.

 

This is possibly an early Bertin C 117 minus its touring accessories. Note the long cage Simplex Prestige rear derailleur. Originally from Ebay in July, 2009.

 

An 80s Bertin C 220 with a Shimano 600 Arabesque gruppo. Bertin manufactured bikes for specific dealers hence the Mottet label.

 

An 70s Bertin C 31.

 

A Bertin C 37 for sale on the SORBA website in August of 2009.

 

This seems to be an early to mid-70s Bertin C 35 with a Vitus 971 frame and fork found on Ebay, October 2009.

 

A 60 cm late 70s Bertin C 34 or C 35 shared by Tim M. from Virginia. Note the all French equipment – except the Silca pump!

 

 A Bertin C 37 seen on Ebay in October, 2009.

 

This is a Bertin C 31 with unusual panniers from leboncoin.fr.

 

This Bertin with a Durifort frameset is unusual in reverting to a traditional style woman’s frame at a time when Bertin offered other models as mixtes.

 

This Bertin randonneuse was found on Ebay Fr. The frame sticker on the downtube identifies it as part of the Cyclotouiste range, possibly a C 132. It is a fully French bike from tubing to running gear.

 

This photo shows details of the wiring  routing and the bottom bracket generator.

This photo is included to show details of the wiring and the attached light bracket on the TA brake mounted front bag support rack .

 

 

This C 34 is set up in Sportif  fashion with Esge Cromoplastic fenders and a stem supported, suspended handlebar bag.

 

 

A well equipped Bertin C 117 mixte with Durifort frameset built in generator  lighting and TA rack mount for the headlight.

This  Bertin C 35, from the Oct. 09 Ebay posting, was purchased by Tim M., refurbished and kitted out as seen in the photo immediately above. The bike is all French, including its Vitus 971 frameset.

 

 

Last update December 12, 2009.

 

Road Bike Gallery 1960-1969

This period saw a rapid development in the Bertin line of quality road bikes. Vitus remained a supplier for Durifort but Reynolds 531 became more common in the C 35 and C 37 lines. From the early to the late 60s forged ends with derailleur hangers became universal across the quality product line. Braze ons elaborated especially for the Cyclotouriste  line for Bertin never seemed to universally embrace the 60s passion for clipping things to the frame.

An early 60s Bertin of unknown type built with Reynolds A tubing, the predessor of 531.

An early 60s to mid-60s C 37 with stamped dropouts offered for sale on the Toronto Kijiji in September, 2009.

This Bertin C 34 photo comes from a French bulletin board in April, 2009.

This Campagnolo Nouvo Record equiped Bertin C 35 dates from the early to later part of the 1960s. Further details can be found here .

This is an early 60s C 37 in a full Reynolds 531 frameset found on Ebay.

                                       Detail of the C 37 above.

                     This Bertin C 31 was a late 60s production item.

    An early to mid-60s C 31 Cyclotouriste found on Ebay in April 2009.

This Bertin C 35  is a mid to late 60s example located on the Ride Vintage Steel site.

An early C 117 minus touring accessories. Note the long cage Simplex Prestige touring derailleur.

The above photo shows an early C 37 formerly owned by Mike from New Zealand.

A 60s period C 37 with full 531, Nervex lugs and Simplex Tour de France rear derailleur.

Road Bike Gallery 1950-1959

Bertin road bikes in this period frequently had Simplex Tour de France, Cyclo or Huret derailleurs. Derailleur attachment could be bolt on or to dedicated stamped steel brazed in rear forkends. Front derailleurs were rod or lever/cable operated towards the end of the decade. Wheels were frequently 650B for utility and touring bikes but racing bikes used the larger 700C format. Lugged frames were the norm usually built from Vitus Durifort or, more rarely, Reynolds 531.

 

This is a 50s period Bertin C 10 with SA rear hub. Note the Ideale woman’s saddle and the brazed on centerpull brakes. From leboncion.fr, Oct.2009. 

 

An unidentified but quality frameset from the period with stamped dropots including a derailleur tab.

                                          Detail of dropouts

A late 50s Bertin C 36 “Course Competition” built with Durifort tubing.

 

This image of a Bertin C 25 “Porteur Parisien” from the late 40s or early 50s was found on leboncoin.fr in November of 2009.

 

Velo Orange Bertin Handlebar Bag

Original Bag Setup

For longer rides, I had been considering a handle bar bag for this summer. There had been one with the bike when I bought it that had a stem mounted Mariposa custom designed decaleur but the bag itself left much to be desired. It was unsupported on the bottom  and the load had a tendencey to bounce and shift while the bike was moving. The Mariposa decaleur did its job but the bag design itself was not adequate for the application. Additionally, the weight of items in the bag negatively affected the steering, stability  and responsiveness of the bike.

Watanabe Bag

So, it became necessary to explore the alternatives. Jitensha Studio has one variety of bag from Japan made by Shoichi Watanabe, as does the Yellow Jersey whose bags come from Ostrich in Japan. Wallingford handles a wide selection of Gilles Berthoud bags.

Berthoud Bags

Velo Orange also sells a handlebar bag called the Champagne. ( See photo below, left) The Berthoud bag was slightly taller and the quality was apparently better. However, price was an important consideration and I selected the Velo Orange product.

The order was placed through the Velo Orange on line store and delivery followed promptly by Canada Post. The package was flattish and securely boxed. When opened, everything was present, undamaged and ready for assembly.

VO Champagne

The actual bag was packed flat and a quick touch up with a steam iron literally ironed out the wrinkles. The bag is labelled “Made in Pakistan” and sewing and assembly quality is quite good. The bag comes with a shoulder strap made from lesser quality fabric and I disposed of mine since I had no use for it. Leather quality seems good and is uniformly sewn. There are 3, 8 inch ( 20 cm) straps with plated buckles for attaching the bag to the handlebars and the front rack.

Leather Straps

Issues:  Not many, really. I cleaned up the straps and rolled them with a lint roller to get rid of the small leather fibers left over from manufacturing. The bag is made to be used with some form of decaleur and is pulled closed by the elastic closure cord if none  is present. The bag sags to the middle if not modified. I intended to use the bag without a decaleur so I pop rivetted a strip of aluminium reinforcement onto the top edge of the bag.

Stiffener With Pop Rivets

The bag is supplied with 3 black plastic side and bottom stiffeners which work fine as supplied but which I fussed with to make a perfect fit.

Plastic Stiffeners

Evaluation: The bag has been a very good value for its price point. I use it on a TA front rack attached to brazed on Mafac Competitions.

TA Rack

Actual attachment is done with a small velcro strap which is much easier to open and close in tight spaces compared to the leather strap originally

Velcro Rack Strap

supplied.  Filled full of stuff for a 4 hour ride, the bag remained stable and neatly contained all that I needed. The outside pockets were good for a small camera, tool kit and such like. The map pocket with its velcro closure held everything securely despite a very windy day. Hand space on the bars is affected slightly but is not a problem. Clearance when riding on the hoods is adequate but you are aware of the bag’s presence. The added weight on the bike’s front end had no apparent effect on handling and the bag is a vast improvement over the original configuration. Well done, Velo Orange!

Gallery Page Revisions

The former Gallery page was becoming unwieldy and difficult to use. As a result, it has been divided into three subsections: Road Bike Gallery, Track Bike Gallery, and Juvenile Bike Gallery. Some of the material will be familiar to previous users but other images are new. I hope you will use either the active links or the tabs at the top of the page to check out the new format.

(left) Bertin C 56 track bike