Various touring derailleurs were described in the first installment of the Vintage Bicycle Quarterly "Riding with classic derailleurs" article, which appeared in Vol. 4, No. 2. These included the Bi-Chain, Retro-Direct (both not derailleurs, technically speaking), Cyclo, Nivex, Simplex Randonneur, Spirax - up to here, you need special braze-ons, so they aren't an option for modern bikes - Huret Allvit, Campagnolo Rally, and Huret Duopar.
The article included history, how they work, and how they ride.
The second part of the article (in the upcoming issue, which is at the printer) covers "racing" derailleurs and their long-cage derivations (I have found that most long-cage versions shift very similarly to the short-cage derailleurs from which they were derived): Osgear Super Champion, Simplex Tour de France, Campagnolo Gran Sport, Campagnolo Record/Nuovo Record/Super Record, Simplex SLJ (this probably the long-cage derailleur you mention), Huret Jubilee (both long and short cage), Suntour Cyclone (long cage, this is basically the same as the VGT), as well as modern Shimano and Campy, and perhaps one or two I forgot to list.
During the real-road riding with these derailleurs, there were some interesting results. I won't recap the two 8-page articles here, but the Duopar works well, and so does the VGT/Cyclone GT. Most of the older derailleurs work surprisingly well, as long as they are used with the gear ranges for which they were intended. Some 1960s and 1970s derailleurs were a bit overwhelmed by the wider gear ranges of the time (52/42 on the front rather than 50/47 in the 1940s and early 1950s), so they require some fine-tuning to work well. Some work best with wide, stiff chains, some better with narrow, flexible chains, etc. All this is covered in the article.
Jan Heine Editor/Publisher Vintage Bicycle Quarterly c/o Il Vecchio Bicycles 140 Lakeside Ave, Ste. C Seattle WA 98122 http://www.vintagebicyclepress.com
At 9:55 PM -0700 5/30/06, r cielec wrote:
>Ahoy !
>
> On the CR page, French components, a long cage Simplex is shown in
>the header but not discussed.
>
> Can anyone, please, explain the particulars of this long cage
>Simplex rear mech?
>
> Yes, I may need a long cage but haven't a clue as to what I should
>be seeking. I would prefer European though, the preference many
>listers have for Suntours of the VGt variety is compelling. I have
>a Huret Duopar Eco but, I am of the impression that is less than
>desireable
>
> Thank you.
>
> Richard Cielec
> Chicago, Illinois
>
>
>---------------------------------
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