>Quoth Dominic Rose:
>
>>Could anybody tell me when french threads stopped being used on bikes made in
>>France for the french market and how common they are? There is a four speed
>>currently on ebay.fr but the seller doesnt know which thead it has.
>>I'm trying to decide whether it's best to rebuild a wheel with an
>>english hub than trying
>>to find a four speed french threaded freewheel.
>
>I can't tell you exactly, but I believe the switch occurred after
>the move from 4-speed to 5-speed.
>
>I very much doubt that you would find a French made 4-speed
>freewheel with English/ISO threads.
>
>The 4 to 5 switch occurred in the late 1950s.
Most French bikes (sold in France) well into the 1980s had French-threaded freewheels (and hubs). Sometime in the late 1980s, Peugeot made a big deal out of the fact that the bikes they sold in Germany now had "BSA" threads, by which they meant British threads.
If a freewheel was sold in France before 1985 or so, it most likely is French-threaded. As was pointed out earlier, French companies did export British-threaded freewheels, so if you find the freewheel in Britain, it is likely to be British-threaded, unless it is a recent import by an old-parts dealer.
Jan Heine
Editor
Vintage Bicycle Press
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Seattle WA 98122
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