Originally Posted by
Sixty Fiver
The SA 3 and 5 speed hubs have been in production for a very long time...
The current SA 5-speed design, the 'W', has been in production only since 2009. It is similar in to the 'Sprinter' design produced from 1993 through 1998. It also shares some parts with the 'Summit' 5-speed manufactured from 1999 through 2008, but practically nothing with the earlier production SA 5-speeds, which date back to 1966.
The current SA AW-NIG design family dates to 1984. Surprisingly, one of the oldest IGH designs still on today's market is the Shimano Nexus 7, which debuted in 1992.