Restoration Suggestions / M700 Shimano LX Front Derailleur

[WTKJR]

Hi All,
Currently restoring a 1993 M700 that I picked up locally. The front derailleur was rusted pretty bad, so I cleaned it up and ran it on a brass wire wheel for a bit. It looks better but has some surface scars now. I don't want to destroy it by doing the wrong thing. Suggestions as to where to go from here?

 

[JohnnyD]

Hi All,
Currently restoring a 1993 M700 that I picked up locally. The front derailleur was rusted pretty bad, so I cleaned it up and ran it on a brass wire wheel for a bit. It looks better but has some surface scars now. I don't want to destroy it by doing the wrong thing. Suggestions as to where to go from here?

That one is pretty pitted from the rust, not much else to do but use some good metal polish and a rag to get what shine you can out of it. Another route is to pick up an Deore LX M550 front derailleur off of Ebay for 20-30ish dollars. The M700 came with M550 front and rear derailleurs, shifters and hubs.

 

[WTKJR]

Thanks Johnny,
Thats kinda what I thought but wanted to see if someone had another solution.
I've got a 1994 M500 and a 1995 F400 as well but they were both in much better condition when I got them.

 

[JohnnyD]

Thanks Johnny,
Thats kinda what I thought but wanted to see if someone had another solution.
I've got a 1994 M500 and a 1995 F400 as well but they were both in much better condition when I got them.

Unlike most "vintage" parts, at least the M550 series parts are affordable. I am probably in the minority here, but in that generation the Deore LX was every bit as good as XT and now can be had at a significantly cheaper price than XT parts from that era.