Donald A. Martinich wrote:
I've just pulled my Mafac centerpulls up out of my basement stash of vintage bike parts and I'm using them for my Cinelli S.C. build. I've read Jan's article in RR but I still can't i.d. them. All it says on the front arm is "DURAL FORGE" on the left and "MAFAC" in the center. Anyone know what model these are? +++++++ Let's get this straight, at least from the non-francophile perspective. Leaving out the High-Zoot Tiger and late Competition models, the-run-of-the-mill RACER version has only two significant varieties. The early ones had brass/bronze bushings, and the later ones had plastic bushing washers. The early ones must have been defective, since they changed the design (maybe they didn't chatter enough?), so you are free to send them to me for safekeeping. I will exchange them (at no cost) for the later ones with plastic bushings that announced your presence far more effectively than today's sedate bells.
harvey sachs
mcLean va