Mark A’s 1976 Centurion Super LeMans

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Another from Mark A’s impressive stable. This time a 1976 Centurion Super LeMans


Year: 1976
Make: Centurion
Model: Super LeMans

A little bit about it: Guy advertises “two old ten speeds for sale” on Craigslist, and posts a crappy, almost unreadable photo. It’s late on a Sunday evening, but I call and he says come on out. I get to his place – discover he’s cleaning up after a yard sale, his entire front and back yard are completely filled with junk. There on his back porch are the two bikes, a 1974 Raleigh Sprite five speed in almost show room condition, and this bike, what appears to be a total beater Centurion. He wants forty bucks for the pair, which I gladly fork over. The next morning I start to clean the Centurion up and discover that despite the flaked off paint, this is really a nice ride. It’s now in my shop, stripped to bare metal, and getting prepared for a complete overhaul. I’m thinking of turning it into a touring bike, it’s that comfortable.

Thanks Mark

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  • Mark Anderson

    Since the photo above was made, I’ve added fenders, rear lights, rear rack and bag. It’s a wonderful ride quality to this bike.

  • Mark Anderson
  • Mark D

    Love the color and the chrome stays and fork. With the generator light and the “rando” bars, this bike is already saying “Tourer!” If it looks this good now, I hope you send pictures again when it’s cleaned up. Those non-descript CL ads can be OTS gold. Usually they’re nothing, but every once in a while you might find an ad with a crappy photo that says something like, “10-speed bike for sale,” only to find out it’s double-butted 531 throughout with a full Campy groupset!

    • Mark

      Thanks, Mark. I have completely stripped and repainted in the original “effervescent” orange paint (my name, not theirs!). I’ve replaced the saddle with an Ideale 80 that fits my sit bones almost perfectly, installed aluminum fenders and a tail light and rear rack. The cloth tape has been varnished for the first time ever, and I’ve got Paselas that arrived in yesterday’s mail that will get installed tonight or tomorrow. It rides like a dream, too. More recent pics are at http://www.flickr.com/photos/17170467@N05/sets/72157625334406359/

      Thanks for your comments!

      • older1

        Nice rescue, Mark, and an undeniably enviable find at a good price! What a rewarding project! Super-excellent pics, too: looks great!

        Along with Mark D’s observations, I’ll affirm your choice to keep it on tour duty!
        I know I’m pointing out the obvious, but most well-built, good, stable-riding OTS’s generally have relaxed angles with long wheelbases anyway, and in the case of your comfy Centurion, (fortunately) already equipped with classic randonneur-shaped bars, bar-end shifters, wider-range gearing, and center-pulls! Come to think of it: what else could it be?
        It’s sad to think of the many good OTS’s which are often neglected and discarded, but it’s great to see those people like you (and fellow readers) who appreciate them enough to put in the time and effort returning them to their intended function and usefulness.
        If it was only so simple to use a few tools to restore the real tragedy of discarded and forgotten human lives around us, eh?

  • Gordus

    Thanks for the memories! I used to own this exact bike in the mid ’80’s, same frame size, same color, same weirdly bulbous Avocet saddle (for me anyway). I did love the bar end shifters. I put in some long, long rides on this bike and I credit the Super Lemans with instilling within me the love of the ride which has taken me along 25 years.

  • Tom Pennello

    What memories this stirs! I had the exact same orange color SLM from 1974, along with the Union generator light in the picture. However, about 8 years ago, the top tube cleanly split in two on a fast downhill, probably hitting a pothole. I rode it unknowingly for a week, climbing hills and speeding down them, wondering what that extra “squeak” was. I carried the bike upstairs one day, saw the problem, and found that I could push the two split pieces apart sideways by about an inch. It was a clean break, and the tube was under tension, so it wanted to revert back to a straight top tube, hiding the split.

    I put a pipe clamp on it and rode it for a week until I got another bike.

    Now I won’t trust old steel frames and instead ride full carbon, which from what I’m told & read are less susceptible to breakage than steel.

    If it had been some other part of the frame that broke as I was going 40 mph downhill, I might not be alive to write this little note.

    • Cameron
      • http://marksbikes.wordpress.com/ Mark A.

        Beat me to it, Cameron! I’m fortunate in never having had a steel bike fail on me. I have, however, known several riders who’ve experienced catastrophic failures of CF and aluminum. I have in my studio a Campy rear derailleur that is still attached to the drop and one arm of a CF stay. They appear to have simply snapped off the bike!

      • older1

        Wow, thanks for that bustedcarbon link, Cameron!
        After watching so many $10,000+ bikes surviving crashes in the 2011 Tour, I was beginning to think c-f was becoming a viable alternative, but now I hate c-f even more than I used to!
        I’d be interested to know why so many bikes/wheels were swapped during many of the stages, though. Do you think it would ever be comprehensively reported/documented? Is there some kind of c-f-marketing cover-up going on?