This beautiful Diamond derailleur is a surprisingly nicely made, and splendidly eclectic, amalgam of many different designs:
- The main theme is clearly that of a 1970s Shimano 600 EX Arabesque. Even Shimano's 'Arabesque' patterns get a deferential nod.
- The cable routing, cable adjuster and cable clamp are borrowed from a 1970s SunTour V Luxe.
- The adjustment screws mounted above the outer parallelogram plate are very reminiscent of a 1980s Huret Rival.
- The combination of black plastic knuckles and shiny metal parallelogram plates is very 1970s Simplex.
That's a list of all the main derailleur brands of the mid-to-late 20th Century, with the notable exception of Campagnolo!
If you want to know more about my guesses about the Diamond brand or the possible dates of this derailleur - please see the Diamond brand page.
This derailleur is a favourite of mine.
- Derailleur brands: Diamond
- Themes: Ultra-lightweight - touring/mountain bike
- Country: China
- Date of introduction: 1993?
- Date of this example: unknown
- Model no.: unknown
- Weight: 201g
- Maximum cog: 28 teeth (guess based on 1970s Shimano 600)
- Total capacity: 28 teeth (guess based on 1970s Shimano 600)
- Pulley centre to centre: 46mm
- Index compatibility: friction
- Chain width: 3/32”
- Logic: top normal
- B pivot: sprung
- P pivot: sprung
- Materials: largely aluminium with plastic knuckles
