Les Bille Paks, formule nouvelle pour la protection et la manipulation des billes — L’Officiel du cycle, 6 July 1957

A note in L’Officiel du cycle, 6 July 1957, page 27, “Les Bille Paks”, reprinted from 30 March: packets of steel balls in the four common sizes for bicycle bearings, made by the British Manufactured Bearing Company and sold by the Consortium de Précision Mécanique, with a photograph. The heading and coupon line are transcribed as printed; the text is summarized in Ebykr’s words.

— Page 1 —
LES BILLE PAKS, FORMULE NOUVELLE POUR LA PROTECTION ET LA MANIPULATION DES BILLES

C 357 Pour recevoir une documentation sur cette production, remplir le bon ci-contre.

[Ebykr summary; the article’s text is not reproduced. A short product note on the “Bille Pak”. Loose bearing balls are a sore point for the bicycle repairer and the dealer, who risk losing them, mixing up their sizes and wasting time. For these trades the CONSORTIUM DE PRÉCISION MÉCANIQUE now offers the “Bille Pak”, packets holding complete sets of steel balls, made by the British Manufactured bearing Company, named as the biggest producer of “miniature” steel balls in Grande-Bretagne (Great Britain). Kept from corrosion by their transparent plastic packet, the balls come in sets of twenty. The four ball sizes offered, said to be the ones most used, are 6,35 mm, 3,96 mm, 4,76 mm and 3,17 mm. Each packet holds ample balls to rebuild a headset (jeux de direction), bottom bracket (pédalier), hubs (moyeux) or pedals (pédales). The note says the new packaging preserves quality, cleanliness and protection, and expects the “Bille Paks” to be valued for easy handling and storage. The boxed coupon line, code C 357, refers readers to the reply form beside it on the same page.]

[One halftone photograph of a clear plastic packet with loose steel balls scattered around its lower part. Printed on the packet: “5/32” with an inch mark at the upper right, “SIGNE DE QUALITÉ” across the top, and below them an animal emblem, apparently a bulldog, on a round badge with two blurred lines of lettering, the first apparently “BRITISH”, and “BILLE PAKS” around the foot of the badge. No signature or monogram.]

[The rest of page 27 carries the other items of the “Equipements & Outillage” column (the Biplex accessories, the Sablé equipment), the list of summer closings and the reply form, not part of this record.]