Originally Posted by fender1
All of this info has been great. Next question, is it worth building this 1970 Sturmey AW hub into a new wheel to use (26" MTB wheel) to use on a around town bike or would a new nexus 3spd hub be a more realistic choice?
One thing to consider;
You can easilly obtain parts for a 1970, or 1950 for that matter, AW. If you can't get them locally, I have everything you might need. All you need to work on them are cone wrenches, a beat up screwdriver and a hammer. Service instructions are available on-line for every SA hub ever built.
Someone will correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think internal parts are available, at least in the US, for newer Shimano 3 speeds.
I talked to SRAM before ordering one of their 7 speeds for a customer. I was told that, in the US, they are considered Non-Servicable so they don't stock internal parts here. But, I was told, there is a 1 year warrantee
I recently took apart a high milage SA AW from '59. The innards were in such good shape I only replaced the "R" springs, just as a precaution. Pawls, pins and clutch were all in great shape