To the best of my knowledge, these cranks were only made in 1963, before TA adopted conventional square taper arms. Apparently Spence Wolfe must have bought quite a few sets and doled them out over the years, because they show up on later bikes from that shop. Sheldon Brown has spare pins, so stock up as I doubt they will ever be available again.
Joe Bender-Zanoni Great Notch, NJ
Mark Bulgier wrote:
>Yes Tom, those cranks were rare curiosities by the time I put them on
>that bike, in the late 70s. I think the design probably went away
>mostly because it wasn't very good! Right also about the TA pedals.
>The front hub is MaxiCar.
>
>If I might brag a little, note also the constructeur-style rear rack
>made from Cr-Mo steel tubing. I made that at age 19 I think. How many
>teenagers were into French-style touring bikes (with Art Stump
>dropouts!) back then?
>
>My mentor/guru was Jerry Collier, who a few people here may know. He
>supplied the "kinky" (his description) TA cranks.
>
>Here's a link to a close-up photo that shows how they attach to the
>axle:
>http://bulgier.net/pics/bike/TA/'Cottered'crank1.jpg
>
>Mark Bulgier
>Seattle WA USA
>
>Tom Ward wrote:
>
>
>>Seldom-seen early production TA crankarms & spindle may be
>>seen on the yellow "Ben Dover" bike built by Mark Bulgier
>>(at link supplied yesterday by Brandon Ives). Perhaps worth
>>pointing to for those who've not seen them, these crankarms
>>were no doubt a curiosity even at the date this bike was built.
>>
>>This is the type of bike I find myself perhaps most drawn
>>to--a sophisticated and dignified tourer--which it is, even
>>painted "safety" yellow! Here's the link to the drivetrain photo:
>>
>>http://tinyurl.com/89c48
>>
>>I believe those are TA pedals as well. Huret Duo-par rear
>>derailleur, other top-flight components are in evidence--see
>>the hubs--well, anyway, just struck me as neat to see that
>>old (even at the time) crankset on the re. It's a sort-of
>>cottered cotterless TA model with a proprietary spindle.
>>"Jeu de Grain"--do I have the name right? I may have learned
>>that fr om Sheldon's site. I believe we previously concluded
>>these cranks hit th e market in 1962. I would be curious to
>>hear of any dated advertising or catalog listings (having
>>put off buying Chuck's and others reprints for far too long,
>>and not having as many old mags as I'd like).