[CR] GANOLO or POLCHLOPEK ?

(Example: Framebuilders:Alex Singer)

Date: Mon, 28 Jun 2010 00:24:35 +0100
From: "Norris Lockley" <nlockley73@gmail.com>
To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
Subject: [CR] GANOLO or POLCHLOPEK ?


Your further enquiry about your fairly radical SWB frame is very timely as I have just been browsing through a pile of Le Cycle magazines - French publication that, in the 60s through to the mid 80s functioned as almost a dual puprose cycle-trade-cum-cycling enthusiasts's monthly magazine.

In the dedition No 117 for November 1985 that featured a review of the recently hald Salon des Deux Roues - the Paris Cycle Show, there is a small article with a photo showing the seat cluster of a frame identical to yours. The heading of the photo is Ganolo.

The description under the photos states that the Ganolo frame has recently undergone a slight improvement to the area around the brake bridge, - this being in the form of what is called a 'carenage ' a technical term for 'streamlining' the purpose being to eliminate a little turbulence that sets in when the wind blew through the small triangle below the seat cluster. As I have pointed out to you in the photos in my Flickr album at

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cyclecrank

the original model of this frame was exhibited by the Europe-Cycles company of St Germain-en-Laye near Versailles at the 1983 Paris Show - this company being a member of the group owned by the former World record holder Maurice Archambaud that also included Cycles Laurent in central Paris. That particular model just had the shortened seat-stays butting up against the bottom of the seat tube - with a triangular hole in the middle.

The Le Cycle article also mentions that GANOLO had introduced the lady's version of this frame at the '85 Show - a photograph of which is also on my Flickr pages...carrying the Archambaud transfers.

I imported a few GANOLO standard road frames at the time as well as other accessories such as tubulars that were branded Ganolo, but was never tempted by the SWB because I thought it was too contrived a design and, potentially a weak one. I reckon the carenage is as much about stiffening up that seat cluster as it is about eliminating wind noise.

Because of the great similarities between the Ganolo SWB and the Rigideole designs of Edmond Polchlopek I had always assumed that he had built the frames for Ganolo. However I do recall a cavernous workshop underneath the Europe Cycles premises where it was claimed that frames were built, but possibly only the standard ones.

The interesting aspect of your frame is that it is lugless...all the others that I have seen are lugged. With the frame having a 'G' transfer on the head-tube, I think you can assume that it is a Ganolo...but that Edmond might have built it

Interestingly, the magazine also reports that Polchlopek introduced his Gauthier-Troussel-tubed Rigideole at the same Show.The photo on my Flickr site was taken at that Show

Norris Lockley, Settle UK