I kind-of believe that, in the early 1960s, Alfa released a pair of parallelogram derailleurs. Based on very little evidence, I further believe that:

• Both had a pressed steel b-knuckle and outer parallelogram plate. Both also sported knurled thumbwheel adjuster like an early 1060s Simplex.
• The first, called the 'Alfa 61', was released in 1961 (geddit?). This had the same p-knuckle and pulley cage as the 1961 Zeus Gran Sport.
• The second, called the 'Alfa 65', was released in 1965. This one had a two-part pressed steel p-knuckle and the same geometry of pulley cage as the 1965 Zeus Gran Sport.

As such, both derailleurs were well constructed and reasonably advanced designs for budget derailleurs of the time.

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I believe that this is a rather clean example of an Alfa 65. It has a rather cunning two part pressed steel p-knuckle. This allows you to open up the parallelogram to remove the inevitable gunk.

It also has a steel pulley cage with off-set pulley wheels following the geometry of a 1965 Zeus Gran Sport.

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• Derailleur brands: Alfa
• Categories: Alfa - the bad and the ugly
• Country: Spain
• Date of introduction: 1965?
• Date of this example: unknown
• Model no.: unknown
• Weight: 226g
• Maximum cog: 30 teeth
• Total capacity: 28 teeth?
• Pulley centre to centre: 46mm
• Index compatibility: friction
• Chain width: 3/32”
• Logic: top normal
• B pivot: unsprung
• P pivot: sprung
• Materials: steel

Ref. 1101