[CR]In defense of "bike boom" French equipment (& Singer report)

(Example: Production Builders:Cinelli)

From: "Mark Petry" <mpetry@bainbridgeisland.net>
To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>, "'Jan Heine'" <heine@mindspring.com>
Date: Sun, 9 Mar 2003 09:56:06 -0800
Subject: [CR]In defense of "bike boom" French equipment (& Singer report)

I saw this thread from Jan and realized that I owed the list a little more detailed commentary on the new Singer, inasmuch as it has just arrived and has some components that might be considered relevant to the french bike boom discussion - the Maxicar hubs being a notable exception.

Overall - the bike is fabulous - it has a wonderful ride and it is a thing of beauty to look at. The ride is much more lively than my "old" Singer, which is a randonneur design - while this one is they call a "Sportif". It feels responsive and zippy while being very stable - no flex around the BB, and no front wheel flop (the old bike has a bit of this). I am planning to RIDE this bike - it will NOT be a wall hanger - in fact it has already been in a bit of rain - so I may make some changes that deviate slightly from the "all classic french" configuration.

I concur with Joe B-Z's assessment of the Huret Jubilee's shifting characteristics - the lever throw required for a given shift (reference the Frank Berto derailleur test rig with the protractor on the lever) is quite a bit more than what I'm used to. The 24t is the biggest cog it will handle - a 26t is nice to have on hilly Bainbridge Island, and altho I do have the 30t front ring, I just don't like to go down on the granny that much, does'nt feel "macho", ya know? Plus, once the freewheel threaded down fully (after I rode it a bit) the Jubilee rear would not deflect over to the inner cog - the parallelogram would not deform that far. So I had to add a 1mm spacer under the freewheel and now it's fine. Changing the rear housing to stainless steel helped a bit too. I do have to say in the Jubilee's favor is that it never feels like it is not centered on the gear - there is quite a wide zone where it sounds "happy" - in contrast to the Campy which wants to be tuned "just right" and needs fiddling if the cable slips even a tiny bit. The front changer is mounted a bit higher than I would have done, and the levers (Huret design but marked "sachs") are just wonderful - smooooth as butter and the friction is much easier to adjust to my liking than with the Campy equivalents.

I added a set of Mathauser pads to the front brakes (mafac racers) and they now are more than adequate, with very solid feel and good modulation. This bike was ordered with a mafac brake setup featuring the pivots brazed directly into the frame - eliminating the yoke and single center bolt which is a big source of slop in centerpulls - and the braking forces are imparted to the frame thru 2 very solidly mounted brake pivots. Singer used a cross wire with a ball end from the Competition series brake - impossible to find - but I have had great luck with a derailleur cable that fits right into the floating nut on the Racer and feels VERY solid - that's a mod I'll make "later", for sure. I have Mafacs on 3 bikes - one set of Racers with the "Spence Booster Plates - all of which work well but the Mathauser pads are a vital addition even today. The new style Mafac levers have a large and flat surface which feels much friendlier to the fingers than the old style.

The bike's fit (62 seat x 59 top) is spot-on for me, and the handlebar bend (a 3-ttt engraved bar that I've never seen before) is really great, very similar to a Cinelli ref. 65 criterium bend - really like it! Might add some blue foam tape just to damp out the "pave" if you know what I mean, vice the single layer of Tressostar that is on there now. And that fabricated Singer stem - slender, chromed, very elegant - with my name engraved on the top button is even nicer to look at than the embossed cap on a threadless Chris King. Singer also installed some cool "old style" TA bolts - acorn nut style - on the chainwheels that remind me of the set Grant Handley had on ebay - no bid at $50.00! They did not install the tres cool TA sealed bearing BB - I'm going to order that however.

Couple other neat details worth mentioning - the Maxicar hubs are really pretty (altho the axle hardware is a bit less refined in appearance than the equivalent parts on a Campy hub) and the rear dropouts - vertical, machined from plate - are FAR superior to the 1010As when fenders are installed. That rear wheel just drops right out of there. And the alloy fenders - with blue stripe painted to match the bike - offer excellent rain protection (that's important here in the Pacific Northwest) and they DO NOT RATTLE.

All in all, quite a machine, and I'm very pleased with it - but just like any new bike there are fine adjustments and some "tuning" required to get it to the point where it truly becomes an extension of your body - which I think is the essence of a really fine machine, that is, you are'nt even aware of it. And the Singer definitely qualifies on that score.

Special offer - I will have this bike at the "cirque" (sans fenders) and anybody who can get over it can take it around the block!

===================================================== Mark Petry 206.618.9642 Beautiful Bainbridge Island, WA mpetry@bainbridgeisland.net

===================================================== "Most of American life consists of driving somewhere and then returning home, wondering why the hell you went."

John Updike, "Rabbit at Rest" =====================================================