J—dVMar 10

RE: https://todon.eu/@redjives/115718790871486689

Time for a quick update on the mystery bicycle. First, thank you to everyone who replied; you were all super helpful! As you may recall, the original theory was that I had a 1970s French cycle of some sort. That seemed to fit the components and general style. But, it quickly became clear that it was *not* from one of the large makers of the time, so not Peugeot, Gitane, Motocabane, etc. There were plenty of other smaller brands at the time, so the basic ideas was still plausible; it would just be more difficult to identify. After asking here on the fediverse someone suggested I try one of the forums specialized in vintage bicycles.

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#BikeTooter #VintageBicycle

Show threadJ—dVMar 10

Remember the good old internet, where niche aficionados could come together and geek out? It still exists! At least, some of the time. I posted my question and the niche aficionados came through. First, with a whole bunch of details about the lugs and other bits and bobs and then with the real breakthrough: it's not from the 1970s! It's almost certainly older, likely post-WW2 French.

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https://www.retrobike.co.uk/threads/help-identifying-french-70s.501586/

Help identifying French 70s(?)

I have what appears—based on the components—to be a French bicycle from the ’70s. Here’s what I know: Derailleur: Simplex SO Freewheel: 3 speed Moyne "Inter" Hubs: Exceltoo Crank: Nervar Brakes: say "Racer" and I believe are CLB Dynamo: Soubitez Wingnuts: Huret Rack: Fiol The stem says: "∅...

Retrobike
Show threadJ—dVMar 10

They key was the derailleur hanger, or, really, the lack there of. The modern parallelogram form for the rear derailleur is not the first design that was tried. So even though this bike has a 70s or 80s era derailleur bolted onto it (a Simplex SO) the fittings on the frame are for a much older style. You can see how it works in the 3rd and 5th photo of this post: https://www.retrobike.co.uk/threads/vintage-french-randonneuers-and-porteurs.449944/page-23#post-3285014

Since this bike has the fittings for that style of derailleur, the frame is almost certainly pre-70s, and probably pre-60s. But, that still doesn't answer who made it, who "updated" it with 70s components, and especially, what of the decals and branding are original and what is from that refurb.

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Vintage French randonneuer's and porteurs.

The French like our bikes too :) https://forum.tontonvelo.com/viewtopic.php?f=70&t=13164 The poor French. What have they done to deserve this? Need to pay an annual subscription to the CTC to legitimately ride it, look for vintage tweed plus fours, forced to drink mandatory milky tea, try to...

Retrobike
Show threadJ—dVMar 10

The shiny and generic decals, based on their style, are more likely later additions. But the faint brand painted on the down tube—if I could figure out what it said—might be a clue. Here @no_fuss came up with the breakthrough, pointing me to a list of brands maintained on the wiki of a french vintage bicycle forum. Based on that, the most likely reading of my faint and peeling letters was “R. Teulade”. Unfortunately, neither the wiki nor the french forum had any more information. But then…

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Show threadJ—dVMar 10

But then I found Velos Vintages du Grenier, who on their website have two bicycles branded “R. Teulade” with the exact same cursive script! And what's more, they have the same Champion du Monde decal on the seat tube and a similar decal (but of a different famous race) on the head tube. Except, as noted, the decals appear to be newer than the frame I have. And the two bicycles on their website are quite different from mine. Maybe that means R. Teulade isn't the maker, but the name of someone fixing up old bikes? So I contacted Velos Vintages du Grenier…

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https://velosvintagesdugrenier.com/products/velo-vintage-femme-mixte-vert-taille-s-m

Vélo vintage Femme/Mixte vert - Taille S/M

Show threadPatrick Dersjant RCXMar 10
@redjives Ah, thanks for allowing me a quick jump down the rabbit hole. As a seasoned genealogy researcher, I haven't been able to track down poor Roberts grave yet, though it is probably in Croumaly.
Robert you ask? Yes, Robert Roger TEULADE was born on the 15th of August in Bassignac-le-Bas. I have not been able to find anything in this quick time about his youth, but he started his business at 69 Rue Paul Doumer in Aurillac on 25th December 1955. Probably started out with bicycles, and expanded into motorcycles and other vehicles. I do not know how the bicycle market looked like in the 50s and 60s, but could it be he was buying in parts and assembling them into full bikes to sell under his own name?
Anyways, at the end of 1989 his business was liquidated, either due to pension or health reasons. He passed away on the 23rd of june 1994 in Aurillac. It doesn't seem like he ever married or got kids, but I love to stand corrected.
Show threadPatrick Dersjant RCXMar 10
@redjives PS: Sources are the wiki on tontonvelo, acte-deces, societe dot com and the aurillac archives.
Show threadJ—dV
@patrick Fascinating, thank you! That definitely adds to the picture.
Mar 10 at 3:55pmWeb