RE: [CR]Is it ... a Georg Fisher BB shell?

(Example: Framebuilders:Cecil Behringer)

Content-class: urn:content-classes:message
Subject: RE: [CR]Is it ... a Georg Fisher BB shell?
Date: Sat, 7 Apr 2007 01:24:47 -0700
In-Reply-To: <8c14bd140704061629r19b9f18et898a940d0f946d0@mail.gmail.com>
Thread-Topic: [CR]Is it ... a Georg Fisher BB shell?
Thread-Index: Acd4o4vLGG/+z255Tje+iAI44INvWAAR9vbQ
References: <8c14bd140704061629r19b9f18et898a940d0f946d0@mail.gmail.com>
From: "Mark Bulgier" <Mark@bulgier.net>
To: "Dan Kehew" <dan.kehew@gmail.com>, "classic rendezvous" <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>


Your shell says "RGF" on it and it's no relative of a Fischer, made by a different process (stamped and welded sheetmetal) in a different country (France). The brand is Gargatte. I have heard the F is for "Frères" (brothers) and the R is for Raccord which probably means something like fitting or joint or... bottom bracket shell?

Here's a picture of one nude: http://ebay.com/<blah>

They were very common in the 70s and a little bit into the 80s, showing up on many American, British and Continental frames. They are lighter than a Fischer, smoother, requiring much less work to make tolerably pretty, but can never be made to look nearly as pretty as a Fischer in the hands of a good builder. Neither will it be as rigid and precise. Fischers are annoying to work with but superior in most every other way, in my opinion.

Mark Bulgier Seattle WA USA

Dan Kehew wrote:
>
> Not long ago I got a bit of education from Mark Bulgier, Bob Hovey,
> and assorted folks with better minds than I, regarding the realities
> of Georg Fisher sand-cast bottom bracket shells. Mark was good enough
> to post some nice shots of the sort of shell used on late-60s and
> early 70s Masis:
>
> http://bulgier.net/pics/bike/FrameParts/GeorgFischerBBshell-0.jpg
> http://bulgier.net/pics/bike/FrameParts/GeorgFischerBBshell-1.jpg
> http://bulgier.net/pics/bike/FrameParts/GeorgFischerBBshell-2.jpg
>
> New question generated by a frameset Robert St.Cyr picked up from
> Hilary Stone that I've been ogling here at the Bike Barn at UCDavis.
> The bike is a 1950s era "Pearson" touring frame. The serial number is
> on the rear of the shell, and on top of the shell is this stamp:
>
> "?GF" in an oval. Sorry for lack of photo, but it's a black finish and
> not photographing clearly at all. The question mark represents a
> character we can't make out, but it doesn't look like a the plus-sign
> Swiss crosses on the photos above -- and the stamps above from the
> Masi-type shell aren't in an oval. Also, this is stamped on top,
> rather than below as on the Masi-type.
>
> So:
> Still a Fisher? If so, did Fisher have other stamps beyond this and the
> +GF+ ?
> What is the first symbol?
> Does this provide a closer clue to the Pearson's age?