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Harris Cyclery Parts for French Bicycles

We love old French bicycles,

but it can be hard to find parts for those built to older French standards and dimensions.
We stock repair parts to help keep yours on the road.

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Bottom Brackets | Brakes | Handlebars | Handlebar Tape
Headsets | Pedals | Rims | Tires & Tubes

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In addition to this commercial page, we have a very useful page of technical information and tips about older French bicycles.

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Brake shoes

Kool Stop Salmon

(Please check our main brake shoe page)
These stop a lot better than the old black ones. They're an ugly orange color (using the special "rubber" pioneered by the no-longer available Mathauser brake shoes. Nothing else works as well.

Sorry, we no longer have Mafac brake parts.
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French-thread Bottom Brackets

Many French bikes sold before the late 1970s used the now-obsolete French bottom-bracket threading.

See our French Cranks Page

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Chainwheels

See our French Cranks Page

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Cranks

See our French Cranks Page

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French-thread Freewheels

Most French bikes sold in the U.S. used standard ISO thread freewheels:
1.370/1.375 x 24 TPI
But older bikes made for the French market used a slightly smaller thread:
34.7 mm x 1mm (1.366" x 25.4 TPI)
If your hub is made for a French-thread freewheel, a standard freewheel will fit on, but be very loose and will be unusable.
It is not possible to put a French freewheel on a standard hub without considerable violence.

Sorry, French Thread Freewheels Are No Longer Available.

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Handlebars

The old French standard clamp size for aluminum handlebars is nominally 25 mm, though they are often a bit larger in practice.

Sorry, no more French size handlebars available.

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Headsets

Many French bikes sold before the late 1970s used the now-obsolete French headset threading:
25 mm x 1mm (0.984" x 25.4 TPI)
instead of the ISO standard threading:
1" x 24 TPI (25.4 mm x 1.06 mm)
For more details of headset dimensions, see the Headset entry of my Bicycle Glossary

French-thread Pedals

Most French bikes sold in the U.S. used standard thread pedals:
9/16" x 20 TPI (14.29 mm x 1.27)
But older bikes made for the French market used a slightly smaller thread:
14 mm x 1.25 (.551" x 20.32 TPI)
If your cranks are made for standard-thread pedals, a French-thread pedals will fit in, but be very loose and will be unusable. It is not possible to put a standard pedal into a French crank without considerable violence.

It is possible to re-tap French cranks to take standard pedals. Use standard 9/16" x 20 taps.

Click here for standard pedals, toe clips and toe straps.

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Stems

French Stems:

Sorry, we are not currently able to get any stems in the old French size.

French stems differ both in the size that fits into the steerer, and the size of the part that clamps on to the handlebar. Thus, if you want to replace the handlebars on a French bicycle, you will probably also need to replace the stem.

French stems are .2mm narrower where they fit into the steering column. A standard 7/8" / 22.2mm stem won't usually fit. In many cases, the limiting factor for fitting the stem in will be the headset locknut, rather than the steerer itself. Try removing the locknut before sanding down a stem. If the headset locknut is slightly tighter than the steerer, it can be enlarged easily with a small grinding wheel.

In cases where the stem really won't fit into the steerer, a few minutes work on the stem with sandpaper will usually do the trick. Wrap the sandpaper around the stem, grip it with your hand, and turn the stem round and round until it fits. You only need to remove 0.1 mm, which is 1/250", not much at all!

If you convert from a French stem to a standard one, you will also need to replace the handlebars, which are a different diameter.

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Tires & Tubes

French tires are listed on our Tires Page.

Specific hard-to-find French sizes include:

If the size numbers are confusing, see our page on Tire Sizing
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Tools

 

Things We DON'T Have (and cannot get.)

Please don't even bother asking us for:

Used Parts

Ideale leather saddles

Freewheels or parts for Helicomatic hubs.

AVA bars & stems

Simplex Retrofriction shift levers

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