For all you Franchophiles tired of slovenly brazed-up, sloppily -filed -up- lugged factory produced road frames from Gitane, Peugeot, Motobecane and the like, you must have a look at this HARAL frame on US Ebay - Road bikes and Frames - item No 7158878401.
HARAL, a small company of about five staff, based on the industrial estate in the town of La Motte-Servolex, just near Chambery in the Haute Savoie region of France...resting in the foothills of the Alps. not far from the Swiss border, represented some of the finest quality frames produced in France in the 70/80s period. As far as i know they ceased production sometime in the early 90s.
The company hand-built a range of made-to-measure frames for discriminating customers, and while the most memorable models are probably the lugless bronze-welded low profiles, HARAL also built tourers, randoneurs etc, and track frames. What I recall being very memorable about HARAL is the fact that they used the Excell tubing supplied by Mr Rezze, of Pierrebenite near Lyon.
The Ebay frame represents the pinnacle of HARAL's road frames, being the "haut de gamme" model. The tubing is as described by the seller, a combination of very high spec steel lined with carbon fibre along the insides of the three main frames tubes. A set as supplied for a typical 55cms frame would weigh about 1225 gms, due largely to the fact that the thinner walls were only about 0. 3 or 0.4mm thick.It was for this reason that it was necessary to silver solder a "collar" around the seat tube to carry the braze-on front mech. I suspect that the boss was brazed onto the collar before this latter was soldered onto the tube. This particular tube set was introduced at the Milan Show in either '83 or '85. The continuous line of ovals rolled into the wall of the head tube was known as "perle". This effect was normally exclusive to the main tubes of the low-profile tube-set, two of which were curved in an arc-type shape.
One of the other distinctive features of many HARAL frames was the spectacular flambouyant finishes. Particularly outstanding was the burgundy flam sprayed over the "perle" tubes along which five (or was it 4?) rows of pearls ran.
The red cross symbol incorporated into the headbadge is the symbol of the Haute Savoie region as well as of Switzerland. As to the bracket - the irregularity noticed by the seller - the threading could well be Swiss to accommodate, probably an Edco sealed bearing bracket to match the headset. Very high quality stuff, that Edco. I once met the owner, a rich Swiss engineer, who admitted that the bike parts were very much an expensive hobby for his company.
If any CR Lister is wanting to set up his stable of future French classics, then this HARAL - a transitional product combining the new material , - carbon fibre - with the established - cro-moly steel, sits right on the cusp of permanent changes in cycle frame manufacturing materials and technology. And... lucklily for me I still happen to have one set of the Excell CSK tubes still in stock.. so I don't have to resist the temptation to bid on this item. But I have a feeling that I shall leave the tubes just where they are, unblemished in their box, so that in years to come one of my descendants will be able to launch them for sale on Ebay.... just like that set of rarissimo Campag drop-outs of a couple of months ago.
Norris Lockley..Settle UK
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