Vintage Components - Maillard freewheels
Maillard freewheels made under Sachs ownership can be found here.
French-threaded Maillard freewheels are posted here
Maillard freewheels on this page:
5-speed:
13-24 | 14-28 | Schwinn-Approved 14-28 | 14-34
6-Speed: 13-23 | 13-24-pre-Aris | 13-24 | 14-30
A feature post: Introduction of the freewheel, from 1899
Maillard was a French hub, pedal and freewheel manufacturer. Maurice Maillard (pictured on the left) started a car-body shop in Incheville, in Normandy, France. Noticing that most of the French component makers were located in St. Etienne, in south-central France, he took advantage of his location to start making bicycle parts for bike makers closer to him, who found shipping from St. Etienne too expensive.
During the First World War, while other cycle component makers switched over to weapons manufacturing, Maillard continued to make bicycle parts. As a result, his company really took off. This was due in no small part to his strong business exporting to the United Kingdom.
Through the 1930s and after the Second World War his firm continued to grow. By 1947 Maillard was making 300,000 freewheels a year.
In the 1960s Maillard took over freewheel and hub makers Atom and Normandy. Both firms had started just after the Second World War.
Maurice's son Pierre took over in 1966. A few years later the great American bike boom hit. Pierre jumped on the opportunity and in a mere 18 months had tripled his company's production of freewheels and hubs. The result? By 1971 the firm was making components in five factories staffed with 1,770 employees.
Then the company took a wrong turn. The bike boom lasted only into the mid 1970s and the company invested heavily into a radical redesign of the hub and freewheel combination, called the Helicomatic hub.
It was (we believe), the first integrated freehub. But the flange spacing wasn't optimal, the rear wheel needed more dish (pulling the rim to the center of the hub's lock nuts by making the drive-side spokes tighter) than other hubs of the era and the bearings were an odd 5/32". The bearings and cones wore quickly. Shimano's later freehub solved the Helicomatic's problems and that's how hubs are made today.
Between the loss of the bike boom business, Asian competition and the cost of the Helicomatic debacle, the Maillard firm became a shadow of its former self.
In 1987 the German Fichtel & Sachs firm purchased Maillard. And then, the now-renamed Sachs company was sold to the American SRAM company in 1997.
Important: Do Not try to mount a French-threaded freewheel on an British or Italian-threaded hub. It will start, but as it is screwed on it will bind and destroy the threads. Also, do not mount a British or Italian threaded freewheel on a French-threaded hub. It will screw on, but then slip under load.
French freewheel threading: 34.7 x 1mm (1.366" x 25.4 TPI)
British freewheel threading: 1.37" x 24 tpi
Maillard 5-speed 14-28 freewheel. Used
Maillard 5-speed 14-28 freewheel #1. Used, $40.00
Here's the front of the freewheel.
And just as nice from the back.
Maillard 5-speed 14-28 freewheel #2. Used, $60.00
Top view
Side view
The back of the freewheel
Maillard-Schwinn Approved 5-speed 14-28 freewheel. Used, $40.00
"Schwinn Approved" model F-3
If you are restoring a 70s or 80s Schwinn, this might be just the freewheel you are looking for,
Maillard 5-speed 14-34 freewheel. Used, $75.00/each
Cog progression: 14/18/23/30/34
This will help you get up that hill.
Side view
The back of the Maillard 14-34 freewheel.
Maillard Course 6-speed 13-23, '85 freewheel. Used, $60.00/each
- This freewheel uses a 2-prong remover such as Var 413 or Maillard 409
- This freewheel is 32mm wide
- This freewheel is non-indexed.
Top view
From the back
Sachs-Maillard 6-speed pre-Aris 13-24 freewheel. Used, $50.00
This freewheel was produced after Sachs purchased Maillard in 1987, but before production was switched over to the index-compatible "Aris" system. This should be considered a freewheel for friction systems.
It has been cleaned and lubricated.
Very little use
From the back
Maillard 6-speed 13-24 freewheel. Used, $40.00
Made after Sachs purchased Maillard.
Maillard 6-speed 14-30 freewheel. Used, $50.00
- Made after Sachs purchased Maillard.
- We have three in stock.
Top view
Nice that Maillard stamps "BSC" on the body so that you know it's English threaded.
Introduction of the Freewheel, from Cycling, October 7, 1899:
Page 1
And early, rare inch-pitch Enfield freewheel.
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