Bicycle Mechanics - Rebuilding a Sturmey Archer 3 speed hub

I have an old SA 3 speed hub that's seen happier days. I aquired it on an old Scwinn whose mechanics were all bad. Shifting is crunchy and it doesn't roll too well. I'm thinking i may be able to rebuild it and hopefully breathe some life into this great old part. Anybody ever done this? Any online resources or diagrams I can turn to? I would just like to know a little about the inner working of this hub before I try to open it and dozens of delicate small parts fly out never to be seen again like Ralphie's lug nuts in the movie "A Christmas Story"

Get an older edition Glen's from a good used bookstore. It should have all the information you need.

Glen's?

Check out www.sheldonbrown.com. He loves hub gears.

Check out www.sheldonbrown.com. He loves hub gears.

Shouldn't everyone? ;)

Here's one for sale: Glenn's Complete Bicycle Manual '73 edition. Should have what you need...

http://www.greenapplebooks.com/cgi-bin/mergatroid/54225.html

Rebuilt it! Sure was fun when all the planet gears fell out and I had to put it back together. I know that you are supposed to use oil in these things but would it hurt to use grease? I have plenty of grease here but no oil.

According to my Sutherland's Handbook, Fourth Ed., 1985,.."Lubricate ball bearings by filling spaces between balls with grease. Be careful not to grease pawls. Lightly oil other parts with a good cycle oil (Wd-40 is too light for lasting lubrication, 3-in-1 Oil gums up with age.) Add abut two teaspoons (8 ml) of oil when assembled.

I have an old SA 3 speed hub that's seen happier days. I aquired it on an old Scwinn whose mechanics were all bad. Shifting is crunchy and it doesn't roll too well. I'm thinking i may be able to rebuild it and hopefully breathe some life into this great old part. Anybody ever done this? Any online resources or diagrams I can turn to? I would just like to know a little about the inner working of this hub before I try to open it and dozens of delicate small parts fly out never to be seen again like Ralphie's lug nuts in the movie "A Christmas Story"

What have you got to lose? If you can't fix this one you'll have to find another hub anyway.

I rebuilt one about 35 years ago because the prawls had worn out. I didn't have any reference material to work with so I just laid the parts down in order as I took it apart. As I recall, it wasn't all that complicated on the inside. At any rate, it worked fine when I finished and I rode that bike, mostly just when it rained, for another couple of years. I don't have any idea where to get parts today.

Good luck!

We stock a bunch of internal parts for Sturmey-Archer 3-speed hubs.
We also have exploded diagrams of the hubs under the 'General Resources' section of our site.

Vin - Menotomy Vintage Bicycles, Inc.
http://OldRoads.com

The first place to look for used books is: http://www.abebooks.com/ There are over 12,000 dealers who use this service. There is a Glens's Bicycle Manual listed as cheap as $1.00. I have one and I keep it just for projects such as this.

Doc

Try www.sturmey-archer.com/layout1.htm for rebuild technical info etc.