Fellow Listers,
Because I need to wear a brace on my left leg when I ride, I need more clearance than a straight crank arm will allow. Thanks to Mark Stonich of Bikesmith Design who bent a French crank arm for my old Chemineau, I am now able to ride it almost daily.
Now I have another Chemineau, and I have a dilemma. Should I go ahead and try to bend the left crank arm on it, or try to find another French crank arm to bend? The original one on the bike is marked "Vedett France". I don't want to spoil something original and irreplaceable, but I would like to ride the bike.
I searched through my stash of old crank arms, but none of them were French threaded, however, I found out that the French pedals will screw onto the Italian or Taiwanese arms. I tried bending the one from Taiwan, but, alas, it is very sturdy, (and heavy), and I could not bend it. This left me with some Magistroni arms. I don't know if Magistronis are hard to come by, and therefore should not be bent, so I need some advice. The Magistronis are part of a set pulled off a Fiorelli tandem.
I sent an email to Mark, but he must be on vacation.
David Lester
West Hartford, Connecticut, USA
http://www.wooljersey.com/