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Louison Bobet – The Bicycles:
At the end of the 1954 racing season, Louison Bobet signed an agreement with Mercier for Mercier to produce bicycles in Saint-Etienne under the Louison Bobet brand. In 1955 and beyond, Bobet rode a yellow Louison Bobet branded bike in competition and was mounted on one when he won his third successive Tour de France in 1955.
It is apparent that many Louison Bobet bikes were very similar to their Mercier stablemates – same lugs, same tubes, same equipment, but the bicycle shown here may be exclusive to the Bobet brand. It looks to be a replica of the 1955 Louison Bobet team bikes with its yellow colour and brazed on fittings for the Huret Special Louison Bobet rear derailleur which was controlled by twin levers, one for changing gear and one for adjusting tension. The two cables were routed to the derailleur via a double roller above the bottom bracket and a double cable stop on the right chainstay.
Towards the end of 1955, Bobet announced that his team would use Campagnolo equipment for 1956. In the absence of catalogue information, it is not known whether a production model continued with the Huret gear. (DO YOU HAVE ANY CATALOGUES THAT YOU CAN SHARE? PLEASE USE CONTACT PAGE)
In (year TBD) Mercier ceased production of Louison Bobet bikes. The brand was subsequently revived by Louison Bobet in (year TBD)
Links to Bikes:
Louison Bobet – The Man:
References:
Demain On Roule / Tomorrow We Ride, by Jean Bobet, first published TBD
Wikipedia