-
It's hard to understand what Simplex thought they were doing.
The Juy 51 does look at least slightly superior to the TdF - for example the TdF jockey cage side plates are rather crudely stamped out, whereas the Juy 51 side plates are nicely bevelled.
My memory may be unreliable here, but I was barely aware of the Juy51 and the only Simplexes I remember seeing in use were TdF's - possibly this just reflects the company I was keeping!
I think the 543 and the Juyrecord60 were pretty much the same thing, as the price implies. As I mentioned above I never saw one in the flesh when they were current. They do appear to have been a better proposition than the earlier mechs - they certainly look more robust - but I think they were hopelessly overpriced against the Campag.
By the time of my first season as a club cyclist (1959) the great majority of riders I came into contact with were Campag equipped - I believe Simplex was already doomed by that point, and they effectively admitted defeat by producing their own parallelogram mech, I think for the 1960 season.
The French, while progressive in many things, can have a streak of stubborn conservatism and I think that played a part here. Another example is Henri Desgrange's refusal to allow any variable gears in 'his' Tour de France.
Just for clarity here, the jockey wheel on the right in the pic above goes at the top.