Originally Posted by
LeicaLad
When I posted images of my '71 TdF with 650B wheels, I expected reactions. Total silence. Re: these minor tweaks? I'm a little surprised.
For shame... For shame...
Originally Posted by
LeicaLad
Now, the taping and very slight grinding to allow for a stop is NOT the same as drewing off the hanger ala some SS hipster. The purity of Simplex dropouts is. . . pointless.
Pretty much everyone I knew did it, and I did it to my much beloved War Horse. It does not diminish the value, and opens up a world of better RD options. I am currently running a nice French Sach Quarz on my TDF now, but had a Campy NR on it for 30+ years. These were production bikes, and there's not a whole lot of reason to be forced into using only vintage Simplex. The Simplex RDs were adequate, but the synthetic bodies are old and brittle on most survivors. There are enough other old parts that break, why limit yourself to those?
Back during the bike boom there weren't many options for upgrading the rear derailleurs on TdFs. The two main options were the "expensive" Campagnolo Nuovo Record at ~$29.00 USD and the Suntour V priced at $6.00 USD.
If you were flush you went with Campy. Both of them them were rated at 26T maximum freewheel sprocket size.
Both required modification of the Simplex dropouts. It wasn't a big deal then as TdFs (or PX-10s) were considered mid ranged models as compared to the high end all Campy Italian models and performance (or vanity) trumped originality.
Those who wanted to use a larger freewheel used a Suntour VGT with a long pulley cage.
The all metal Simplex Super LJ derailleurs first appeared in a 1972 catalog supplement but I never saw any until 1975. They were very expensive, maybe 30% more than Campy derailleurs.
Super LJ derailleurs were never popular back them because they suffered from guilt by association due to the poor reputation and image of the Delrin plastic models.
Today, Super LJ and the lower priced SX models are excellent choices for upgrading bikes with Simplex dropouts. Those derailleurs require no modifications.
verktyg
Chas.