Originally Posted by
1saxman
I've been out of biking for a long time. What took the place of the freewheel? Are you saying that current bikes don't have coasting capability with the rear cassette?
Freewheels have been largely replaced by "freehubs," in which the ratchet mechanism is incorporated into the hub body rather than cog cluster. This allows the drive side hub bearing to be located further outboard than is possible with a freewheel; an important improvement as more and more cogs get added to the rear cluster. Axle breakage occurs with freewheel hubs because of the distance between the drive side bearing and dropout creates a lever that flexes the axle, eventually fatiguing it. The problem is exacerbated as more cogs are added, increasing this lever arm. That's why you seldom find freewheels with more than 7 cogs, and never with the 10 or 11 cogs than have become popular lately.