Show me your derailleur stash

[lconley]

I have been going through all of my various boxes, toolboxes, etc. and getting all of my various parts organized. Decided to get all of my derailleurs together. On top are the New-In-Box Dura Ace 7700 GS and the Campagnolo Rally (version 1a with the reinforced hanger). Below the Dura Ace is a Dura Ace variant, the LeTour Schwinn Approved GT-350. This was a rebadged Shimano Crane GS which was what you got with a Dura Ace Touring Group. This is what came on a Schwinn Paramount P-15 instead of Campagnolo, because in Schwinn's evaluation it shifter better, which it did. This was the beginning of the end for Campagnolo's dominance and the start of the acceptance of Japanese parts at the top levels. The Rally was Campagnolo's response, their first dropped parallelogram derailleur and the best shifting Campagnolo derailleur of the Nuovo Record era. But none of these shifted as well as a Suntour slant parallelogram which was still under patent at the time. Then there are of course, front and rear Campagnolo Nuovo Record derailleurs, because in the seventies, if your bike didn't have Campagnolo, you weren't s**t. There is even a mostly plastic Simplex Criterium spare for my Gitane in there. An ultra-compact RX100 FD, an all-silver Sora.

I know there are other hoarders, uh - I mean collectors, out there.

Laing

Delray Beach FL

[E. Ricky Creek]

These are all really cool when seen together like this. I have been curious to try and old Campy derailleur with the Soma adapter cage. https://www.somafabshop.com/shop/product/soma-derailleur-cage-threaded-set-2790?category=764

Has anyone tried that and was it a keeper or just an oddity?

I honestly probably won't ever stray from the Altus 310 for the rest of my bike life. I stocked up early in the pandemic and have recently been buying the replacement pulleys, too, so I am set. 

Now for front derailleurs...

[James M]

The adapter cage setup is "ok".  I had it on my Motobecane restoration, set up with 13-32 6 speed in the back, 30/46 in the front.  It covered the range fine, but the Campy rear derailleur doesn't track the shape of the cassette the way modern derailleurs do.  I swapped it out for a better shifting Suntour V-GT Luxe.

[lconley]

The version 3 of the Campagnolo Rally was in fact, just a Nuovo Record with the long Rally pulley cage. Very strong and reliable, just didn't shift very well.

I sold the Schwinn LeTour GT300 and Campagnolo FD that came on my Paramount and put Suntour Cyclones on it in probably 76 or 77. I bought the Rally to put on it when I was going to restore it (still haven't) and bought the GT300 recently - looked for years without finding one for a decent price. The Paramount currently has Campy Super Record RD and FD.

Just for a laugh:

Laing

[Eric Marth]

Laing – Where did you pick up your big bad proto-Altus? 

[lconley]

I got it off of eBay. They are out there. I had been looking for a while, an NOS one showed up for an expensive but semi-reasonable price (less than some people want for a beat-up used one) - lets just say less that a pair of CeramicSpeed pulleys. Most people want way, way too much for them , kind of like NOS Brooks B-68 saddles which range from $100 to $400 - I buy the $100 ones. It will probably be going on my Rosco Bubbe V1 with the RX100 FD, shifted by Dura Ace bar end shifters on Paul Thumbie mounts. It could end up on my Riv Custom though. Kind of depends on the front derailleur - the water bottle mount is located too high for most front derailleurs like the RX100 (I have a Rene Herse 42-26 crank), but the Campy Athena 11 works and I already have the Athenas on the bike, but the large pulley DA RD would seem more Rivendell-ish. I just cannot find my way to using a Dura Ace RD with Campagnolo FD - kind of like putting a Chevy engine in a classic Mustang. 

Laing

[lconley]

Shimano Nexave RD-C600 - latest addition . This is a pretty strange derailleur - odd cable housing routing. Three pivots. BIG derailleur. I have never messed with Rapid Rise before. Big Altus style pulleys.

Laing

Delray Beach FL

[Pam Bikes]

I'm not good on ebay.  Have you seen a B68S in honey?  If so, I'd like one.  I thought I was the only one with parts in the closet but I only have a XT Rapid Rise derailleur but the original one is still fine 63,000 miles and still trucking.

On Friday, February 18, 2022 at 8:26:05 AM UTC-5 lconley wrote:

[lconley]

I bought a new black B68S in January of 2020 for $100 including shipping. It had chrome rails and perforations for lacing and multiple colors of lacing included. I cannot recall seeing a Honey B68S. 

Laing

[Brother Bunny]

Here's my little derailleur stash, which includes a shiny, patent pending Shimano Altus LT, and a couple big-pulleyed Shimano Altus M310's, in varying degrees of shininess. 

I've been looking for a low-normal derailleur of some variety at my local bike co-op, and I finally found a Shimano Deore XT M770, but I was scared off by its potential of being a Shadow model. Should I scoop it up, or should I keep looking for an older Rapid Rise model?

[Garth]

Here's just my FD collection.

Not pictured is the Shimano 105 5500 and Suntour XC Pro M735 being used on my two current bikes.

Shimano R440 Taigra says ( 9-speed ) .... sheesh.

Two Deore MT-60's, one still new and the other has remnants of Squirt wax lube that generally requires a propane torch to remove if you don't want to resort to chemicals.

Two M611's , I bought one for the Susie but they were on a silly low discount so I bought two. Look familiar ?  Yeah, the Microshift/Riv Skeleton is but a copy of these.

The Campy's are a Super and Nuovo Record, and a Athena from my for Gitane bike from 1985. The SR came with a KHS racing bike I bought in 1990. I sold all my Campy RD's, I think !  Fortunately it's pretty hard to make a modest priced RD that is really bad, save the self-exploding Suntour Mountech !  I still have the replacement today and riding it on my Franklin, 990 and the NR I bought in the mid 80's as is.

The Superbe Pro I bought solo also, it has an endless band thing and tight adjustment screws from h-e- double toothpicks. It's short cage way before anyone ever paid attention to such things, 1986.

Oh, I forgot the second still new in box 105 5500. I bought two in 1999 from Performance, they looked nice so why not ? Performance bike was great back then , I also bought six Sachs 13-32 freewheels because well you can never enough freewheels ! My first one finally was worn out last year, one down, one mounted and four to go. By then I'll be 120something in Earth years, which are like dog years in that they aren't existents but I play along as if they were..... oh such is storytime ! 

I don't have so many RD's.....

Not pictured is a grey and white "Sport LX" long cage SGS, shifts to 32, at least. From 1986-7?

That's one of two Deore LX 581's. Pictured is new, the other is on the Bomba.

Sunrace R91, R90, whatever confusing duplicity they come up. Never used a Sunrace.

The XT is a M737, something like that.

The Deore is a MT-60, new/shop wear. This, like the MT-60 FD's, I bought for a song from ebay well before people started overpricing everything.

The M591 and M360's i bought a year or two ago. The M591 for my Susie, maybe ....  like those M611's FD's.

[Garth]

So my "just my fd collection" turned into both !  Editing be darned !

[RichS]

Hello Garth, 

I'm jealous:-)! Lately I've been fixated on front derailers. You're fanning the flames.

Best,

Rich in ATL

[Garth]

I know Rich, there's something about the little buggers isn't there, the ones that sparkle !  I pulled my second 105 out of the box to take a pic, oh what chrome ! The other I've had on my Franklin since I bought it. It's moved everything I've thrown at with ease. Originally a 26/44/48, then a 24/36/50, and now a basic 36/46.

What's awesome is that many NOS "old" derailleurs/parts keep popping up from sellers all over the World.