Rich, TTT made bars and stems (still does). You are thinking of TA cranks. However the crank in the photo is a Stronglight model 93. Both TA and Stronglight were French, but completely different companies. The Stronglight 93 was the most common crank on high end French bikes in the early and mid 70's. They are available quite frequently on eBay, usually at reasonable prices, so you shouldn't have any problem buying one. There are two things to be aware of though. Stronglight axles had a different taper from Campy and its clones, so you will probably need a BB compatible with Stronglight. Also, Stronglight 93 used a different crank extractot thread than the now-standard Campy thread, so you'll need a Stronglight crank extractor. Both the Stronglight BB and the Stronglight extractor are less common than the cranks themselves.
Besides Stronglight axles, Stronglight cranks will work with TA axles, or Phil Wood if you get the right Phil Wood model. The lowest cost option may be JIS standard Japanese axles used on mid-priced Japanese cranks in the 70's and early 80's. Some of the shop owners on the list probably still have the JIS axles.
As to the extractor, they show up on eBay from time to time. But Stein Tools makes a nice, though not cheap, Stronglight extractor which I think you can buy at Bike Tools Etc. on the web. Note that old TA cranks also used a different extractor than Campy. It was very close to the Stronglight thread, but not identical. The old Park extractors were reversible, with Campy thread on one end and TA on the other. Do not try to use a TA extractor or the TA end of an old Park extractor, on a Stronglight crank. It will thread in, and sometimes it will work, but if the crank is stubborn, it will sometimes strip the crank threads.
Regards,
Jerry Moos Big Spring, TX
Rich Rhodes <richlanguageelk@gmail.com> wrote: Hello, CR list,
I have joined the list because I have recently been rebuilding my Univega Viva Sport.
Here is my sad but hopefully redeemable history. In high school, I built myself a Reynolds 531 frame (but not the fork) suited mostly to fast around town riding. I joined the Navy and basically got out of biking for quite a long time. Well, after about 9 years of carting the primer grey frame around, I finally chucked it.
It wasn't long before I really started regretting that...
Well, anyway I picked up this Univega at a pawn shop. And it has served me well for about nine years now. In dealing with my grief, it hit me one day how much the Viva sport frame looked like the frame I had made. So...I began to think that with a little brazing work, I could make it look exactly like my high school metal shop project. So, the Lord willing, I am going to proceed with just that.
My dream equipment for it include a Huret Jubilee rear der., a Brooks Pro (honey) saddle, and a TTT crankset, and a bit of Campy.
Q: I think it's a TTT crankset I want. An image search got me a Japanese page, so I can't be sure:
http://velo.way-nifty.com/
Can someone tell me if that is TTT or does my memory (supplied by past * Bicycling* issues) fail me?
I'm in Poland, transplanted from CA, TX, and AZ.
I will gladly take any comments or advice about my dream bike.
Sincerely,
Richard L. Rhodes II (Rich Rhodes)