The Mafac Competition brakesets always had calipers with a bronze pivot bushing whereas the Racer's had a plastic bushing (very early Racers had the bronze bushing too). Also, the Competition was available with a slotted brake bridge to offer a wider drop range, I've never seen in person nor in a Mafac catalog that the Racer's were available with such a bridge. The Competiton has an impossible to find straddle cable. Finish was the same on both, polished alloy. Lastly, the Racer's and Competition's had different drop ranges with the Competition's being a smaller overall range.
Racer w/small stirrup (bridge) 48.5 - 63 Racer w/large stirrup 53.5 - 68 Competiton w/small stirrup 43 - 53 Competition w/large stirrup 48 - 58 Competition w/adjustable/slotted stirrup 50 - 65
Mafac Competiton's are my favorite brake of all time - really!
I hope that is helpful,
Eric Elman Somers, CT glad to contribute an answer to the list instead of just asking a question for a change!
> Realistically, what are the differences/advantages of the Competitions
over
> the Racers? Is it more a fit/finish issue or are the Competitions a
'better'
> brake set? Thoughts you'd care to share?
>
> Thanks for any insights,
>
> David Bilenkey
> Ottawa, Ontario, Canada