Classic & Vintage - SA Sprinter Elite 5 - info?

Does anyone know anything about the Sturmey Archer Sprinter Elite 5 speed (w/ drum brake, I believe)? As in, is it a cool hub or known for certain problems, that sort of thing.

I won one on eBay for $20, it appears to be alloy and the seller said it appears to be brand new. Actually I won it and a couple other miscellaneous things and I get the impression the seller knows nothing about bikes because he called some downtube shifters "gear change handles" and called the hub a "gearbox" so I lucked out from the sub-par listing. But from the photo it looks brand new and has an extra cog.

So assuming I have a complete sprinter elite 5 coming, what'd I get? Something awesome? $20 plus shipping of course and it's coming from Britain so it's going to end up like $50 total probably.

I believe that was an auction I was watching...small world.

The only potential problems I can think of are:

Strange OLD(think it's 124mm, might be able to add/remove spacers).
Not having all the parts, although most stuff is easily sourced from Sheldon/Harris Cyclery.

As for the hub, it's rather heavy, but built to last with minimal maintenance, perfect for a beater/utility style bike. Enjoy :D

cool.

Is this the original S-5 with the two indicator chains or the modern Sprinter 5 with one?

One I assume. Sprinter Elite.

Is this the original S-5 with the two indicator chains or the modern Sprinter 5 with one?The original S5 had one indicator chain and a bellcrank operated pushrod. Later S5/1s and S5/2s had 2 indicator chains, but I always convert them to the more efficient S5 spec with the bellcrank.

TimJ,
Sounds like you did OK. Are you getting a shifter with it?

The 1st single cable 5 speed, the 5-StAr, wasn't too reliable but the Sprinter is supposedly better. High cable tension can be a problem. Is yours recent enough to be made by SunRace in Taiwan? If so, it should be well sorted out.

Sad to see SA leave England, but if it had to end up in the far east, SunRace is a very progressive outfit. I have an AW by them and it's quite nice indeed.

I don't know if it has a shifter. I didn't ask the guy anything, I just took a shot. It seems to be brand new though. I found a manual online:

http://www.hadland.me.uk/spr5.pdf

And the elite pictured there, with drum brake, looks just like the one I'm being sent. I can't tell from the manual when it was made. It is alloy, though. With surface shipping (6 week wait maybe) it (and a few miscellaneous other things) cost me $53. I didn't think about the cost of shipping something so heavy from the UK when I bid on it so it's actually not the awesome deal I thought I was getting. Unless of course it's complete, then it is.

funny enough , i have above 7 speed unused (must be rare beast endangered species ?) :lol: built onto 700c mach one rim 36 h have never got round to using, may sell this as no longer required