Charlie,
I had one of those on a bike I had a couple years back. I was not impressed with it's shifting, and took it apart as much as I was able to, cleaned it to within an inch of it's life and put it back together (which was a colossal wrestling match pitting me against those springs.
The end result was no noticeable improvement in shifting. I found it often had to shift up two cogs before shifting back down one (maybe two or three and repeating a couple times) to get the gear I wanted.
In fairness to the derailleur, I should note that this one was mounted on a claw that hooked to the axle, rather than mounting to a threaded hole in the dropout. Perhaps a different mounting position would have suited this design better. I'll also note that the Front mechanism seemed to work just fine.
I would change one of those derailleurs out the moment I found something else to replace it - unless I didn't plan on ever riding the bicycle.
As always, YMMV, but Frank and I will have to be content to agree to disagree on this model.
Cheers,
John Barry Mechanicsburg, (sounds like our kind of place, no?) PA, USA
> I'm in the process of setting up my first Huret
> Allvit gear train. NMind
> you, it is not the first I've ridden a bike so
> equipped, just the first
> time assembling same. Are the friction cups on the
> shifters best run dry
> or with a light coating of grease or oil? They
> appear to have been dry
> when last in service.
>
> The RD is the more modern model with two detents for
> tensioning the
> spring for amount of takeup instead of the 1961
> model four with four.
> While I expect that I can figure it out, which of
> the two provide the
> greatest amount of chainwrap?
>
> Finally, are these components as wonderful as Frank
> Berto holds them to
> be in The Dancing Chain? Judging from their sparsity
> among photographs
> of vintage lightweights of the era on the web, they
> seem to have been
> the decidely poor cousins to the Campagnolo Gran
> Sport in the 1960's. As
> a second-tier frame (and inanimate object), my
> Rotrax Shirley is
> unlikely to care.
>
> regards,
>
> Charlie "guess I'll find out" Young
> Honey Brook, PA
> USA
>
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