Originally Posted by
ehcoplex
I'm actually hoping the hub
is English threaded, as I have a couple english-threaded freewheels already, though I suspect that's unlikely as all else on the bike is French..... But then again, these bikes were apparently 'commissioned' by an American in partnership with a French friend, and the original wheels were 27", so who knows. Waiting on a Suntour freewheel removal tool so see if I can get (what's left of) it off....
Based on the freewheel (It is a Perfect/Pro Compe) not having any "metric" markings, I'm going to say that either the hub is English threaded or the freewheel has been mashed onto the hub and it's all completely ruined. Let's hope for the former!
But there's a way to be dead-sure:
Maillard 700 hubs that are English threaded should have a groove machined in the unthreaded portion inboard of the freewheel threads, like so:
The French threaded equivalent lacks the groove, See below:
Finally, if you are having a hard time with a freewheel remover on that Suntour body, I have had success with a very large pipe wrench. You can usually get it to grip in the divots where the pawls used to be. Then, brace the wheel on the floor, against a wall, and heave!
P.S. those look like they might be butted spokes. Anyway, a nice wheelset - worth saving for sure!