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Does anyone have a clue?

Old 01-15-06, 01:29 PM
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Five years ago, I completed a transcontinental ride on my Schwinn Passage touring bike. It was wonderful seeing all of the sights. The only problem now is that it was purchased back in the mid-eighties when everything was open cup and bearing design and a five or six speed freewheel was the standard.

Since then, my local bike shop has been able to replace the bottom bracket with a sealed cartridge type, been able to get new cups for the headset and a new rear wheel that will fit in the designed width of the frame. He says that to try to "cold-set" the frame to accept a cassette with more gears would be really risky, especially if I was going to try to ride 3500 miles on it.

I would really like to complete the trip on "old blue eyes" again. Does anyone have a clue where I can purchase a quality new freewheel with five or six gears to fit a vintage frame?

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Old 01-15-06, 02:07 PM
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I don't remember the schwinn passage. is the rear spacing 120 or 126 mm? Harris Cyclery is one of several bike shops that stock quality freewheels for older bikes. They have the Suntour in both 120 and 126, 5-6 or 7 speed.
If you can squeeze in a 126 width, The Atom 4 pawl tandem freewheel they have is a tough freewheel. Back in the old days an atom freewheel on a Philwood hub was considered by many to be the best combo for touring and tandems.

The Yellow Jersey bike shop is in Madison Wisconsin they have a lot of older bike parts but thier prices tend to be high. They do carry Suntour Winner freewheels.

The Suntour freewheels are good but I did manage to break a couple. To be on the safe side you might want to buy two just so you have a spare that someone can Fedex to you just in case something happens
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Old 01-15-06, 02:46 PM
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The Passage was one step below the Voyager which was their top of the line touring bike at the time.

126mm.

Or perhaps carry the back-up with me. (along with the other back-up parts that you normally carry). Thanks for the information. I am willing to pay whatever they want to charge in order to get one of good quality. I will check them out.
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Old 01-15-06, 04:39 PM
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at 126 mm I think I would probaly lean toward the Atom, 14 x32 is a pretty good combo IMO. The guru at Harris is Sheldon Brown who knows his way around touring bikes better than most.

If the bike is 126mm 6-7spd shimano cassette hubs will fit your frame. They are no longer produced by shimano but new ones are frequently found on Ebay. They are very durable.
I am guessing your bike is steel framed? if so there should be no issue spreading it 4 mm to accept a 130mm hub, which would allow you to use 8 and 9 spd cassette hubs. Sheldon Brown has a page on respacing frames maybe you could print it and show it to your shop.
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Old 01-15-06, 04:55 PM
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Yes, steel framed. Chromoly was the standard back then. This is when friction shifting was still the norm. Even now some people say that the more basic the better on such a long trip and if you have friction shifting to use it because index shifting can get misaligned. I will print out the article and show it to my local mechanic. I still have about 5 months to get everything in perfect order. Thanks for the help.
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Old 01-15-06, 05:28 PM
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Originally Posted by lillypad
Five years ago, I completed a transcontinental ride on my Schwinn Passage touring bike. It was wonderful seeing all of the sights. The only problem now is that it was purchased back in the mid-eighties when everything was open cup and bearing design and a five or six speed freewheel was the standard.

Since then, my local bike shop has been able to replace the bottom bracket with a sealed cartridge type, been able to get new cups for the headset and a new rear wheel that will fit in the designed width of the frame. He says that to try to "cold-set" the frame to accept a cassette with more gears would be really risky, especially if I was going to try to ride 3500 miles on it.

I would really like to complete the trip on "old blue eyes" again. Does anyone have a clue where I can purchase a quality new freewheel with five or six gears to fit a vintage frame?

https://sheldonbrown.com/harris/freewheels.html#6
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Old 01-16-06, 11:14 AM
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Originally Posted by lillypad
Yes, steel framed. Chromoly was the standard back then. This is when friction shifting was still the norm. Even now some people say that the more basic the better on such a long trip and if you have friction shifting to use it because index shifting can get misaligned. I will print out the article and show it to my local mechanic. I still have about 5 months to get everything in perfect order. Thanks for the help.

I'm not a big fan of just changing things to change them but the age of freewheels is long dead! You could easily change over to a cassette and keep the friction mode or even upgrade to index with barends. You have plenty of time. There are distinct advantages to modern freehubs over freewheels.

First, selection. There are lots of freehub wheels and hubs out there now. You can get gearing in just about any range you want or you can build (for enough money) just about any gearing you want. There's not much in the way of freewheels still in existance.

Second, availability. If you were to blow up a freewheel in the middle of Tennessee (just to pick a spot) finding a new one could be very difficult. Think of what you are going through right now and think of what you'd have to do on the road. If you were to break a hub out there, finding a freewheel hub might be even harder.

Finally, removal. If you break a spoke, removing a cassette in the field (if you have the proper tool) to repair the spoke is easier. You can still cock it up (which I have ) but it's still easier than a freewheel.

Finally, finally, you don't need to cold set the frame for a wider hub. As long as you don't go crazy, like changing from a 120 to a 135mm hub, there is enough flex in the chainstays for a wider hub to be put in the dropouts. I have a mid-80's bike that had 126mm dropouts and I put a 130mm hub in it easily. The wheel doesn't just drop out anymore but I'm not racing so why do I need to hurry? If you were to go from a 120 to a 126mm hub that's only 6 mm. You might even be able to use do a 120mm to a 130mm hub which is only 10mm or a bit less than 1/2". A steel touring bike easily has that much springiness in it.
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Old 01-17-06, 09:21 AM
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I will talk to my local dealer, he probably has some 130's in stock and see how well they will fit. I will probably take two of whatever I decide on so that I will have a replacement at hand if I should need it. I am sure that he would gladly give me a refund on the second one if I end up not using it. Thanks
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Old 01-17-06, 10:23 PM
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Originally Posted by cyccommute
I'm not a big fan of just changing things to change them but the age of freewheels is long dead! You could easily change over to a cassette and keep the friction mode or even upgrade to index with barends. You have plenty of time. There are distinct advantages to modern freehubs over freewheels.

First, selection. There are lots of freehub wheels and hubs out there now. You can get gearing in just about any range you want or you can build (for enough money) just about any gearing you want. There's not much in the way of freewheels still in existance.

Second, availability. If you were to blow up a freewheel in the middle of Tennessee (just to pick a spot) finding a new one could be very difficult. Think of what you are going through right now and think of what you'd have to do on the road. If you were to break a hub out there, finding a freewheel hub might be even harder.

Finally, removal. If you break a spoke, removing a cassette in the field (if you have the proper tool) to repair the spoke is easier. You can still cock it up (which I have ) but it's still easier than a freewheel.

Finally, finally, you don't need to cold set the frame for a wider hub. As long as you don't go crazy, like changing from a 120 to a 135mm hub, there is enough flex in the chainstays for a wider hub to be put in the dropouts. I have a mid-80's bike that had 126mm dropouts and I put a 130mm hub in it easily. The wheel doesn't just drop out anymore but I'm not racing so why do I need to hurry? If you were to go from a 120 to a 126mm hub that's only 6 mm. You might even be able to use do a 120mm to a 130mm hub which is only 10mm or a bit less than 1/2". A steel touring bike easily has that much springiness in it.
Hey Cyco--the mid 80's bike that you converted to the 130 mm hub---was it aluminum? I have an 86' or so Cannondale and wonder if I could pull that off--easier access to spokes would be an advantage--then I could leave my 12 in crescent wrench at home . thanks
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Old 01-18-06, 01:50 AM
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I don't know what this guy is talking about - the advantage of steel is that can reset the back end - I have two that I had a expert frame shop do with the right tools - 1969 Paramount touring bike set now at 130 and a 1978 custom Davidson now set at 130 - I haven't gone as far as 135 - But I bought some great 40 hole Hugi's that are 140 which I am planning on puting on a bike current set at 135. Again it takes an expert with the right tools. FYI - Once set always keep a wheel in or you will have to have reset again.
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Old 01-18-06, 09:44 AM
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Originally Posted by cyklehike
Hey Cyco--the mid 80's bike that you converted to the 130 mm hub---was it aluminum? I have an 86' or so Cannondale and wonder if I could pull that off--easier access to spokes would be an advantage--then I could leave my 12 in crescent wrench at home . thanks
I have a early '80s steel touring bike that I put a 130mm hub in and I put modern 9 speed hub in an '89 Cannondale (the 2.8 frame with the really short chainstays). I know the steel bike was a 126mm dropout but I can't remember what the Cannondale was. If your bike has 126mm dropouts, adding 4mm isn't that much. It makes the wheel a little tight to get in and out but otherwise it's not much of a problem. If you have a 130mm hub or a wheel with a 130mm hub try it to see if you can tolerate the effort to get it in and out.
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Old 01-18-06, 09:41 PM
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If you change wheels, check your brake pads and see if you can lower them by 4 mm. If so, use 700c wheels. And as you change the rear wheel, change the front one too so you'll avoid finding two sizes of tires in the middle of nowhere.
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Old 01-18-06, 10:10 PM
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Just go to eBay - tons of 5 and 6 speed freewheels for vintage hubs. Many are new old stock.
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Old 01-18-06, 10:58 PM
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Thanks all for your advice. I will explore all of the suggestions and come up with a viable option. Many had suggested that I would have to put my vintage Schwinn into cold storage due to lack of quality replacement parts. She has done me well in the past and I think that now she may have a long future ahead.
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Old 01-18-06, 11:19 PM
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Shimano 14-28 5sp, 6sp and 7sp freewheels are easily available and will be for a long time. There are a lot of cheap new bikes still using them.
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