Tom Hayes asked:
Did Normandy make track or flip-flop hubs? Just got another French = track bike, and it started me thinking about looking for the stuff over = the winter. ============================ Absolutely. My fixed-gear conversion Raleigh Competition sports a Maillard HF single-sided fixed gear. I remember getting an Atom (SF?) from REW Reynolds, probably in the early 70s. No big deal, just like the road hub except for the outboard LH thread. Yup, same high-quality cones and tight clearances between cones and dust shields.
But, the cat's meow was readily bought from your friendly SCHWINN LBS: The Model XR-5 Schwinn Deluxe Exerciser used an inexpensive Normandy or Atom fixed gear hub, with friction provided by a modified Weinmann/DiaCompe center pull brake on a spoked steel rim. What I can't remember is whether it was a 28 or 36 hole hub. FWIW, all I have left (like the Cheshire Cat's Smile) is a gargantuan 65 tooth (virtually) solid steel Ashtabula chainring. At a bit over 10.5" it is too big to fit the blade slot in my table saw - and has the wrong hole size, anyhow. :-)
harvey sachs
mcLean va