Midlife
Retro Wizard
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What freewheel tool do I need for this?
- Thread starter Y282
- Start date
Atom, Normandy or Maillard, or all three at one point, then Sachs-Mallard too
Let's just say French freewheels shall we.This one indeed is weird ass. Short lived low-end IMHO, and like you say, more like an old single speed fitting.
Love the above one, box indicates a spline removal tool too
Anyhow, I wouldn't dream of buying a remover for this. Getting medieval on it's ass would be better and more fun.
Voila:
https://www.muzarde.com/anatomie-des-roues-libres-maillard-24-cannelures/
Number 6 in the first picture, remove the sprockets, then this.
He mentions this type is rather rare, and doesn't recommend them because they are difficult to remove. They are labelled ATOM, but the company Atom was already purchased by Maillard at this point. If you click around his site looking at "Roues Libre" the quantity and variations are indeed mind boggling.
Pretty sure it's the same.
To be 100% sure, the OP could remove the next to last small sprocket (the smallest sprocket should come off with it and the others just pull off) if he's got two chain whips. Probably a good thing to do anyway if the angle grinder will go in it
I do need to order a second chain whip and this is as good an excuse as anyPretty sure it's the same.
To be 100% sure, the OP could remove the next to last small sprocket (the smallest sprocket should come off with it and the others just pull off) if he's got two chain whips. Probably a good thing to do anyway if the angle grinder will go in it
Nabeaquam
BoTM Winner
My early Ross mountain bike had a worn out five speed French rear hub. The puller for it was almost non existent, but an old bike shop here found one in their junk drawer. The Japanese put the French out of business by simply improving the puller mechanism so you could actually pull it in without stripping. On two occasions I was able to pull these ill designed freewheels by carefully grinding and filing down a big bolt head so the points fit the groves tightly and pounding it into the freewheel. On the third attempt to do this I had a failure, too tight. I spot welded it so it couldn’t freewheel and took it off. Big chance of melting and goobering up the alloy hub threads doing this. I hate old French cassettes, stupid. If it’s got indents instead of groves you can sometimes take it apart on the wheel and disable it. A local bike shop has done this on occasion.
jim haseltine
Senior Retro Guru
The small splined Maillard freewheel tool was designated 407 'Atom', the larger splined tool was 408 'Normandy' then the basic 2 dog was 409 '700'. A better 2 dog remover (which I've got somewhere in a tool drawer) was 411 'Luxe 700 avec broche' and had a skewer to hold it in place. With typically annoying Gallic illogic, despite both it and Maillard hub quick release skewers being M5, the remover skewer was M5x1 whilst the hub skewers were M5x0.8.
There were also versions of the 407 and 409 with handles that were termed 'professionnelle'.
Various parts of the 6-speed 'Sprint' freewheel were interchangeable with the 7-speed 'Compact' model so in timetrials I ran a custom light weight 7-speed freewheel which used the inner body (the bit that screwed onto the hub) and larger sprockets from a dural Sprint. That's another piece of kit that I've not seen for 40 years but should be knocking around somewhere in my junk boxes.
There were also versions of the 407 and 409 with handles that were termed 'professionnelle'.
Various parts of the 6-speed 'Sprint' freewheel were interchangeable with the 7-speed 'Compact' model so in timetrials I ran a custom light weight 7-speed freewheel which used the inner body (the bit that screwed onto the hub) and larger sprockets from a dural Sprint. That's another piece of kit that I've not seen for 40 years but should be knocking around somewhere in my junk boxes.
