>Dave, I have tyo agree with Frank. After a scan through the post war section
>of The Dancing Chain I think you will have to be content with 3 or 4 cogs,
>either French or English Cyclo, if you want to be period correct. There were
>other French makers, such as Super Inax.
>
>Nigel Land
>North Lincs
>UK
Cyclo in France introduced 5-speed derailleurs in the late 1930s, I believe. This was their standard 2-wire model. Certainly the 1946 Herse tandem we used in Paris-Brest-Paris 2003 was equipped with a 5-speed.
See http://www.vintagebicyclepress.com/
and scroll half-way down. Further down is a 1952 Rene Herse with 5-speed Cyclo. That one even says "5 vitesses" on it.
The bike on the cover of our book "The Golden Age of Handbuilt Bicycles" also has the Cyclo 5-speed derailleur - it's from 1952 as well. And it wasn't only Herse who used them.
Later, Cyclo even offered a 6-speed model, which usually was used with a 5-speed freewheel and chainrest.
I don't know whether any of those ever were made available in the UK. -- Jan Heine Editor/Publisher Vintage Bicycle Quarterly c/o Il Vecchio Bicycles 140 Lakeside Ave, Ste. C Seattle WA 98122 http://www.vintagebicyclepress.com