All the bikes I see parked on the street are 1960's and 1970's bikes with metal shimano tourney-type derailleurs. I guess in france they replaced their simplex prestiges with 7-speed steel derailleurs, like this one from ebay :
item #3664355563
I have seen a few bikes with nice lugs, and many mixte frames. All of these bikes are badly worn, with upright handlebars. Today I saw one with a AVA-type stem and hubs with wingnuts - probably one of the best bikes i've seen here. Peugeot and Gitane are a big rarity here. Most brands are ones i never saw importd into the USA. I am staying at Montparnasse near the latin quarter (student area, near sorbonne). However, things are the same way 3 mi north of here. The city is not friendly towards bikes.
I have only seen 1 classic high-quality 14-speed, it was in for repair at a small shop North of Notre Dame. I think it was named "Collini", with a Colnago Drean-type multicolor paint job, chrome headlugs, and all cinelli //C lugs, crown and //C BB shell, and a flourescent bike rider guy on the top tube, a look-down / top view, so when you look down you see this speedy cyclist with flames coming out the back of his bike to inspire you.
Monday I will go to Alex Singer. It's near the arc d'triomphe, where much of the real estate lists for 1.5 - 2M E$. I suppose you get a bicycle made for you just as somebody would tailor a suit. Many of the stores in that area display grand total of 20 or 30 items of merchandise in the entire store.
There is a sporting goods store ("Go Sport") right below my hotel, like a "Big 5" / K-mart if you Californians know what that's like. It has every sporting item imaginable, plus a small bike repair shop. I have never seen a store with absolutely every bike part for sale on a card (most are low quality), but including things like 10 types of freewheels / cassettes (even one campy mirage), 30 types of built wheels, including low-end mavic 27", five types of seatposts plus 2 suspension ones, and a triple crankset for E$40, and michelin carbon comps for E$25/ea. With a frameset, you part up a bicycle with only the carded parts on the walls.
- Don Gillies
San Diego, CA /
Paris, France