Brickpilot7

Hi,
I recently purchased a 1992 Trek 750, and in going over it I believe someone along the line changed the rear wheelset. It has an Araya rim, Suze hub, and an Atom 77 compact Freewheel. I am pretty sure the '92 750 had Matrix rims and a 7 gear cassette. I have a '92 Trek 730 and that is the setup it has. I did a search on the Atom 77 freewheel and saw where someone else had questioned it and that it evidently has a French thread. My main concern at this point is that the shifter is a 7 gear but the freewheel is only 6 rings. I am fairly happy with the tooth count on the existing rings, the large is a 30 and I live in a very hilly area. What are my options, can I add a ring at the rear or do I need to get a completely different freewheel, will a 7 ring Shimano fit or do I need to get a new hub also, in which case I probably should go ahead and get a whole new wheelset. Everything else on the bike looks much the same as my 730 but in a nicer grade. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

JohnDThompson 

It's unlikely that the freewheel is French thread, even though Atom is a French company. AFAIK, Suzue never made a French thread hub, and Atom made plenty of English thread freewheels. Are you having a problem with the shifter or freewheel that makes you think you need to change something?

Brickpilot7

Hi,
Thanks for the reply. I haven't removed the freewheel, I was just doing some research on the Atom and came across and earlier thread where someone had removed an Atom freewheel and there was a French inscription on the rear of it, and some replies came in that it probably had a French thread. As far as there being a problem with the shifting or freewheel I haven't tried it yet. I had just received the bike and it had been dismantled for shipping and I was in the process of putting it back together and making sure it was right prior to riding it when I noticed the difference in the front and rear wheelsets and the fact that there was a freewheel on the rear and it only had six rings rather than the seven I had anticipated, and the shifter was for seven rings, it's a Shimano seven gear shifter on the flat bar. As I mentioned my other '92 Trek has a seven ring cassette on the rear and I just was curious before I finished putting it back together. I have found a few used front and rear wheelsets, with the rear set up for a seven ring cassette and a 126mm dropout on the internet and I may go that route.

evwxxx

Well you can always change that freewheel out for something like a Suntour 7sp, which are still fairly easy to find. Atom made ok, not great, freewheels.

dbakl

Oddly enough, in 30 some odd years of messing with bikes an Atom freewheel is the only one I've encountered in French. But yes, I'm sure they made English as well. They were pretty standard at the low to mid range.

cudak888 

I've yet to see one that I'd even consider OK. For the most part, they're extremely prone to chain-skating with anything but bulged-plate Shimano UG chain, or any comparable, ultra-wide 3/32" chain.

-Kurt

dbakl

I trash almost all the freewheels I come across and replace with Suntour...

scozim 

I was cleaning up the Gitane last night and noticed the 14-24 freewheel was an Atom 77, not Maillard as I assumed. So, far it's working flawlessly but I'll probably eventually move to a Suntour.

cudak888 

Send me all your 5 and 6 speed Reginas, please

-Kurt

dbakl

Well, the Reginas usually just peel the strip off used to remove them, then I disassemble and remove with a big pair of channel locks. That's why they go in the trash, hate Reginas!

JohnDThompson 

Not to mention all the goofy cog platforms and threadings. At least the later ones used splines on the larger cogs, and they finally adopted the splined remover pioneered by Zeus and Atom.

What I don't understand is why Campy still included the 2-prong Regina remover in their "complete" tool kits for years after Regina stopped making them and even after Campy had their own freewheel on the market. You'd think they could at least have included an insert for their own freewheel.

Brickpilot7

I have been looking at some some Suntour freewheels on ebay and also some Shimano, it sounds like when it comes to freewheels from this era most feel that Suntour is superior, am I correct in assuming that? Will I have any problem with installing a Suntour freewheel on the Suze hub? I know I have read that Suntour and Shimano are usually interchangeble, the rear derailleur is a Suntour XCM but the shifters on the bar are Shimano, any issues? Thanks, this has been a big help.

evwxxx

Any freewheel will fit on the Suze hub as long as it has the right threads (english) and correct number of cogs for the application. Suntour-Shimano-Regina-Atom-Maillard-IRD-TDC-Cyclo-whatever else you can think of.