[CR]Laperle alloy/Mecadural

(Example: Framebuilding:Paint)

Date: Tue, 9 Sep 2008 07:17:07 +0000 (GMT)
From: "alex m" <alexpianos@yahoo.fr>
To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
Subject: [CR]Laperle alloy/Mecadural


Photos of the frame I sold in 2004 can be seen on Joel Metz' site (middle o f page, sitting in a field) :

http://www.blackbirdsf.org/caminade/similar.html

Some years back a flood of these frames appeared on the French market, lite rally hundreds of the things, NOS. Prices started off high, and quickly cra shed... They became something of a joke, as everyone had a unsaleable pile of them in stock.. But the market gradually soaked them up, and prices came back up.

They were apparently made by Mecadural, and badged under different marques, most often Leducq, but I've seen many others.

Not as elegant or refined as a Caminade or a Barra by far, but very sturdil y built (steel fork, the alloy fork on the other bike on Joel's page is not original).

As they were sold as bare frames, there are no "correct" parts for these bi kes, though you should maybe try to achieve "period correct".

By coincidence a few sets of Pyb brakes appeared on the market NOS at the s ame time as the Mecadural frames, so you sometimes find Mecadurals with Pyb brakes, as in the case of the Laperle

Alexander March Bordeaux France

PS : Anyone want a Mecadural frame? I have one or two somewhere in a pile.