rhm

Okay, I don't know how to do it, but I know you can convert a four speed hub such as an FW (wide-range four speed hub) or the FG (wide range four speed hub with dynamo) to a five speed like an S5.

I know the advantage of the four - speed hub is that it works with one shifter, but the disadvantage is that that shifter is getting hard to find and wears out prematurely. I also know the disadvantage of the five speed hub is that it requires two shifters and may require parts, such as a bell crank, that are hard to find.

So, my question, is can you take a four speed hub and convert it to an ultra-wide range three speed hub? So you'd end up with a hub that has the 1, 3 and 5 gears of the five speed hub, but needs only one shifter-- the garden variety three-speed trigger?

Don't tell me I wouldn't like that, because the gears would be too widely spaced. This may be true; but that's not what I'm asking. I only want to know if it's possible. If it is possible, I'd probably run that hub with two cogs, spaced 4 teeth apart, so I'd have an ultra-wide range six-speed system.

So, esteemed Sturmey Archer gurus... what do you think?