Designed to be a mass market indexed derailleur, the VIC is a steel monster vaguely reminiscent of the Huret Allvit. Unlike the Allvit, its parallelogram is made up of ‘three dimensional’ arms (like a SunTour Honor) rather than made up of flat plates (like a Huret Svelto), and the guide pulley moves forwards as it moves inwards. The basic geometry has many elements of a design of the SunTour Love (LV00) that SunTour patented (US patent # 4,789,379) in 1987. This geometry is quite interesting, promising the advantages of a slant parallelogram, without the torque across the parallelogram pivots. The VIC should have changed as well as a SunTour V and lasted as long as a Campagnolo Nuovo Record.

The price to pay for this sophistication is a lorra, lorra metal, as Cilla would say. Not a good way to keep down the weight on a low end steel gear. I believe it was a commercial disaster.

Finally the VIC is one of a select band of derailleurs which have the logo upside down for easy reading from low flying helicopters.

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1. 
   

2. •Brand: Sugino
   

3. •Country: Japan, manufactured in China
   

4. •Date of introduction: 1996
   

5. •Date of this example: unknown (stamped lot no E-3)
   

6. •Model no: RD11
   

7. •Weight: 455g including hanger plate
   

8. •Maximum cog: 32 teeth
   

9. •Total capacity: 38 teeth
   

10. •Pulley centre to centre: 85mm
    

11. •Index compatibility: 6 speed
    

12. •Chain width: 3/32”
    

13. •Logic: top normal
    

14. •Pivots: two pivots, front sprung and rear unsprung
    

15. •Material: steel
    

0249/H