[CR]"Bespoke" French builders of RACING bikes

Topics: History:Norris Lockley
(Example: Production Builders:LeJeune)

From: "Norris Lockley" <norris@norrislockley.wanadoo.co.uk>
To: <Classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
Date: Thu, 8 Dec 2005 12:23:48 -0000
Subject: [CR]"Bespoke" French builders of RACING bikes

I reckon that almost all observers of the French hand-built bike scene tend to look upon the 30s-to- 60s as the classic era..and then conclude that with a few rare exceptions, including the SSC ateliers of Peugeot, Mercier ( some woderful stuff there) etc. it has been downhill ever since.

I dont think this really is the case for just as there appears to have been a decline in the number of constructeurs building the classic 650 randonneur models, there was a rise in the number of builders catering for the racing bike market. I started working with French builders, importing from them, mainly parts, in the late 70s and through to the mid-90s, and I met up with dozens of local and regional builders producing superb frames Has anyone over there heard of Fabrol down there at St Victor la Corte in the Languedoc? Or Le Vacon just outside Paris, or Pierre Perrin, or Preuss, or Ouest Cycles., or Daniel Salmon....there are still plenty of them about....no doubt not as many as there were..but more than in the UK.

In the reference period that Peter Kohler mentioned, just in the Paris conurbation you could have found carre, Alain Michel, Jean Frelat(SMG), Rene Andre, Ripoll(CACEG), Didier Louis, Archambud (Ganolo), Polchlopek, Gemini, Burdin, AMR(Camus), and not too far distant, Meral, JF Kaufmann (builder of a lot of frames for the pros in the 80s), J-M Duret (Geliano), Delcroix, LaFRance, Danois,.Dennis Quillon, Bebere, etc. In the Lyon area there was Follis, (still there) Haral, Cattin Routens, Daleo, Paillet...Andre Sabliere, Ginet, Duracycle.. and the list is far from exhaustive.

It's true as Jan Heine said, Jean-Paul Routens is no longer the force that his father was, but he is still capable of turning out a beautiful frame from the workshops underneath his large store. We shouldn't forget that it was Jean-paul who built those beautiful lugless (soudo-brase) Vitus aero-tubed track pursuit bikes on which the debutante cycliste Jeannie Longo started her incredible career. I traded with Jean-Paul for nearly 15 years..imported all manner of goodies from him until, one day, the 96- page catalogue ceased to exist, only to be replaced by the 42-page one. "C'est le marche!" J-P explained. Gone were all the slow-moving products from quaint French manufacturers, even Huret, TA, the majority of Stronglight, Maxicar, Pelissier, Nervar to be replaced by Shimano, Suntour, Sanshin, Sugino... Today in nearly every Tabac, in every airport, you could buy a Routens Mail-Order catalogue. J-P saw the future.. and was the first French wholesaler to grasp the nettle..and to survive. It's a shame... but ask yourself which country sets the trends in global trading that the rest have, inevitably, to follow..or go under?

If Peter wants to invest, even today, in a retro fast road-bike, I think he should take the advice given by John Berry, on the List...buy a Follis. I was lucky to be at the 2001 Semaine Federale when it took place near where I keep my caravan in Provence..and to join in with the 18,000+ other enthusiasts. In the canvas-tented exhibition village, Follis' stall was a mecca for the connoisseurs. I had just bought a s/h 1954 Follis frame with "Follis" and "Lyon" cut out of the headlugs, and had also found a copy of "Miroir de Cyclisme" showing Jean Forestier winning the 53 or 54 Paris-Roubaix(I think) on just such a frame. I recall nudging my way through the noisy wine-drinking throng to find , M Chollet, the very polite, the very impeccably smart, very French proprietor..to ask him if he still had any of the highly decorative decals from that period.

His response to my enquiry and the frame ...and the picture..was quite amazing. He hoisted the frame high above his head with one hand to show it to the "Follisistes" while with the other he waved the picture of Forestier..and shouted "Mes amis..voici l'heritage Follis" - virtually "Now then my friends, just look at the Follis heritage". I assumed it was all another part of that mysterious French jig-saw called "la Patrimoine".

My advice to anyone would be not to write off the French "constructeur"..they are still there, they are still very skilful, very creative, but they are now using the modern materials available to them...even steel is making a come-back..but I doubt whether we shall ever see the return of the long slender sweeping fork blade bronze-welded to a hand-made two-plate fork crown.

Tonight I catch a plane to Paris..or more accurately Tours.. for a flying visit (!!!!) to sign on the dotted line for a little more property. My wife isn't going with me ..which is just as well as I have to collect a few bikes, among them a 1960s Mercier, a beautiful Alain Michel track iron..and rarist of the rare, an immaculate Oscar Egg, the seller of which advises me that she has some othe r bikes that might interest me such as..Genial-Lucifer and Magnat --Lebon (memories of Charly), and Michel..and Boreal. Unfortunately my hire car will not be big enough to take them all, but I might just persuade her, with more filthy Euros, to hang on to them until February, when I hope to go back again...That's why I need the extra property..to accommodate my obsession for French bikes. Oh! almost forgot..the seller of my recent Carre has just offerd me an immaculate 50s Motoconfort and a 70s Luis Ocana. Why must I always say "Oui" when I should say "Non, merci"

Thinking of Carre, the Lejeune track bike pointed out recently on the http://www.bikecult site, to the List, is almost definitely a Carre. The top-eye plates are identical to those on my two Carres..but it might just be a "Reyssel" from Lille...but I doubt it.

Norris Lockley...en route pour la belle France...Settle UK