Originally Posted by halfbiked
I emailed him that he probably will have to find someone to braze on a derailler hanger & that he'll have to cold-set the drops to fit a wider hub. Did I forget anything?
First of all, it might well be a serious post... considering the amount of JB Weld questions we see around here- as just one example.
Secondly- it is possible to fashion a deraileur hanger that fits over the axel, and is essentially bolted on. He could run a clamp on friction shifter, and use a clamp on cable guide for the housing noodle on the chainstay. He would only need some sort of cable guide under the BB shell. It would be ugly- but it could be done without too much butchery.
A hub could easily be respaced if he used some vintage parts- maybe ran a seven speed freewheel- or go even older. He'd need a road drive train, of course.
trouble is, with all those extra parts, it would be as easy to buy a yardsale bike.