Early 50s La Gazelle - Eau-de-Nil 🛠️ The Merlot Aftermath 🍷

Nice shot of the rear dropout, so much of it has been swallowed up by the stays, having that tube section extended to the axle must give a stiffer rear end, my PX10 looking pretty flimsy in comparison...👍
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Love your observations @vcballbat . Pretty early on I came to the conclusion there was no way in hell I was going to spread the rear end to modernise it. I saw the forged solid looking dropouts combined with long pencil thin stays and said no way they would stand a correction to be square so as not bend a rear wheel axle. The stays would have been fcuked I reckon (compare the diameter to your PX10, the jury is still out there concerning rear stiffness). The other reason is the brake bridge is such a puny, skinny, small diameter rolled steel thing I don't think it would be able to take any sideways expansion stress. I even got kittens when fiddling with a rear brake on it. It's as if the sole purpose of it was to attach a mudguard. That's my take on old French bikes - whittled down to nothing, rounded down to nothing, since the beginning of time - exactly where you would like it beefed up a bit to spring board off.

I'm putting a lot of faith in this frame as it is and don't want to mess with it. Alignment is superb and precision is superb - I dare not risk touching it with my skills, and in honesty, I dare not trust any old bike shop to mess with it either. I'm firm that the frame will not be modified whilst in my custody. I have to work with it being sensitive to what gear system and OLN it was designed for.

Also hoping that the frame is the sound core to the future build and will ride well despite that there will be more lardy parts hanging off it.

Traditional bike tech. wrenching says if the tyres, wheels, and frame are top notch nothing else will make a big difference. :)
 
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Woz said:
Went back in the thread and saw you commented on the brake calliper reach. I'm now going completely insane over this.

Just tried the Mafac Racer centre pulls - the rear is perfect, brake pads sit about half way, the front though the pads sit right at the top and I can only just get them to hit the 700c steel chrome rims where they should be - I may even need to file the brake hole a little.

View attachment 670522

Definitely don't want to mess around with the Mafac Competition centre pull short reach; the straddle wire is a nightmare scenario.

Another issue I've come across is the headset mounted front cable hanger for the Mafac centre pull. It raises the overall stack height a bit too much to properly fit the top lock nut (only about 1 3/4 turns). My only way out is to replace the headset with the lower stack height one from the Gitane doner bike; the bottom race stack height is a good 2.5mm shorter.

Also tested the rear with a Weinmann 730 long reach, fits good on the rim, impossible on the front. Weinmann 500 short reach on the front is a perfect fit. I absolutely hate these brakes too, but will use them to get the bike rolling - I'm itching to try it and see if it's a good fit.
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One of these neat little problem solvers could get you out the s**t ... just try finding one..

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/11555583...iIhcVWxQfO&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY Screenshot_20221017-094148~2.png
 
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Some of the prices asked are just utterly daft IMHO. You are right - the lugs all look very similar indeed.

Saw stupid money being asked for 4 speed freewheels on Ebay.fr (with French thread), basically the same price as this complete 50s race bike with the top draw trimmings. It's a funny world out there.
 
Woz said:
Some of the prices asked are just utterly daft IMHO. You are right - the lugs all look very similar indeed.

Saw stupid money being asked for 4 speed freewheels on Ebay.fr (with French thread), basically the same price as this complete 50s race bike with the top draw trimmings. It's a funny world out there.
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Yeah that looks good for the money, wow France is massive, i hitched from heel of Italy to Orange in two days over the Alps and ended up at une petite village called Gigondas where i stayed pour le vendage and fell in love 💕
 
^ OMG. Gigondas - never been there but drank it. 😍 Orange I know. Had two failed attempts to go up Ventoux.

Yeah. France is big country with a lot of old tat rusting away in attics and barns. With a good eye, there is still gold out there if you put the time, diesel money, and elbow grease in it. These stupid prices some people are dreaming up I can't figure out.
 
vcballbat said:
Just in love that moment in time when I was 20 ish without a care in the world but we had to get the grapes to the co operative, I would love to go back and Just to be in the village Square with my pickers..
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You just may find out in an odd sort of way, not much as changed. I had an almost 20 year lapse of France and it all felt still cozy and identifiable. Sadly, I'm an old Romantic so don't believe too much what I say either. France in the last 2 years or more as had an utter battering down to it's core - "attacked at the very of heart of what France is about'' said the President. And he wasn't wrong. Of late, and due to Covid and the energy crises, it's unfortunately been too much for many people. There is only one serving bistro out of four where I could amble about on bike without a care in the world and could stop for a drink and a good old butter and ham sandwich.

I do have confidence though it will bound back. Maybe not tomorrow, maybe not the day after, but it will.
 
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