Eclat

Hi everyone, I have just joined and this is my first post. I am returning to cycling after many years in order to try and lose some weight and improve my fitness. I have an old Raleigh Eclat bike which served me well all those years ago and it generally seems okay for its age. I have had it serviced. It has a 501 frame and Shimano RX-100 Groupset (probably Tiagra equivalent nowadays). The wheels aren’t great so I bought a second hand set on eBay – Mavic MA40 Rims and Dura Ace 7400 Hubs for 7 Speed Cassette. A good deal I thought. Unfortunately, I didn’t consider that there are a variety of cassette types out there and the 7400 hub on my new wheel is a Thread-On Freewheel type, not compatible with a new Hyperglide 13-34 cassette I bought to aid my hill climbing until I got fitter. So I’m now looking for a similar ratio compatible cassette for the 7400 threaded hub. Can anyone assist and confirm if something like this Shimano MF-TZ31 Tourney Freewheel (14-34T Mega 7 Speed)?

Robot Check

Shimano - Tourney MF-TZ31 7 speed cassette - freewheel | eBay

Some photos of the wheels attached.

Thanks in advance for any advice and help.

FBinNY 

This is simple.

You don't want a cassette at all. You need a freewheel.

Search for 7s freewheel and you'll find a selection to choose from.

If you need more info on the subject, search for "freewheel vs. cassette" or similar.

Eclat

Thanks FBinY. It seems there are a limited range of compatible freewheels according to Sheldon Brown:

Freewheels (Thread on Type) for Bicycles from Harris Cyclery

My current 7 Speed Cassette is a 13-23 (13, 14, 15, 17, 19, 21, 23) with a 53-42 Chainring. I wonder if I would notice a big difference in helping me climb with the FW722 (13t - 15 - 17 - 19 - 21 - 24 - 28t) Freewheel?

FBinNY 

A 28t will give you a low gear roughly 20% lower than your 23t. Based on the progression of your freewheel it'll be similar to having 2 extra gears at the low end. But it's not free. The increased spacing through the mid range may leave you wishing for a gear between two when cruising along on the flats.

You have to make a decision, based on how often you're wishing for a lower gear, and how much lower you need. It might be that the 13-25 makes the most sense, but only you can decide that. Either way, don't forget to replace the chain at the same time, and measure it correctly so it's long enough to wrap the large/large combination with an inch to spare.

Eclat

I think I will go with a FW722 (13-28) and see how I get on. It is very hilly where I am, so lots of climbs - if I need the FW723 with the 34 Bailout ring I will get it later, these things are relatively cheap to purchase fortunately. At least the wheels I bought are not totally redundant. The other option I have is to keep these Mavic/Dura Ace wheels for good weather use and buy another trainer set for winter.

Thanks for your help FBinNY, it is appreciated.

dsbrantjr

Your rear derailleur may not handle that large of a cog.

CliffordK

If you had a 7 speed freewheel on the bike, then you're probably ok to replace it with a 7 speed freewheel (other than derailleur capacity as dsbrantjr mentioned). Sometimes freewheel spacing will vary. For example, the DNP Epoch freewheels run slightly wider than other brands, necessitating spacer changes.

With the derailleur, be aware of both chain wrap (can the derailleur handle fully cross chained big-big & small-small?), and clearance (can the derailleur, when properly adjusted, clear the large sprocket on the freewheel?)

Eclat

That had crossed my mind. I will get the Shimano TZ21 Freewheel 7 Speed 14T-28T.

I'm now considering whether to change the chainset now to smaller toothed version maybe in 105.

Eclat

Unfortunately, it's not a freewheel on the existing wheels. It's a cassette.

Does anyone know if the Dura Ace 7400 Hub Bearings are serviceable? I've just noticed that the rear hub isn't particularly smooth.

dsbrantjr

This might be a worthwhile change. Here is a discussion about it: Cranks, Chainrings
It is better for your cardio fitness (and your knees) to spin with lower gears than to mash overly high gears IMO.

Here is a handy tool to compare two sets of gearings: kstoerz.com | visual drivetrain comparison tool Play with it to get a feel for how changes in front and back alter your overall gearing and number of overlapping gears.

Bill Kapaun

IF this is the hub in your 2nd picture, you need a Freewheel. It's getting a bit confusing, so look here-
Freewheel or Cassette?

The bearings should be easily serviceable on that old of a hub. I'm assuming they are just conventional loose ball? 2X9 1/4".

VeloBase.com - View Group

Jeff Wills

Your first posting clearly shows that you have a freewheel style hub. In bicycle language freewheels and cassettes are similar and perform similar functions but are not interchangeable.

If you're looking for a replacement freewheel in the same size as you had, SunRace offers a 13-25 tooth freewheel, available through Universal Cycles:
https://www.universalcycles.com/shop...&category=1665

The hub you showed uses a standard cup-and-cone setup with loose bearings and is easily serviced. Judging by the rims those hubs are laced to, I bet those wheels are 30 years old. The grease has gotten dried up and gummy. Simple disassembly, cleaning, careful inspection, and reassembly will make them good for another 30 years.

The Park Tool site has good step-by-step instructions. Here's general instructions on how to overhaul a hub:
Hub Overhaul and Adjustment - Park Tool

Miele Man

So many sellers get cassette and freewheel confused.

You had a wheel with a cassette and bought a wheel that uses a freewheel from a seller who mistakenly said it was a cassette.

The 28 teeth low freewheel cog should work fine with your current rear derailler.

If you open up that rear hub and remove the bearings you should use new ones. One way to service a hub if you want to use the old bearings 9because you can't get new ones right away) is to back off the cones a bit then thoroughly flush the grease from the hub. That may entail using a thihn stiff brush to loosen the old greases as it can become quite hard just sitting. once the old grease is flushed you use a big syringe ( I have a syringe like baster that i use as a grease gun) to get the new grease into the hubs. I like MARINE GREASE best.

Cheers

Eclat

I've opened up the hub and there is very little grease in there. It's not dried up though. Bearings look reasonably okay, they aren't dull in appearance. Do I replace them or degrease and re-grease them? Any advice on what type of grease to use?

Jeff Wills

Ball bearings are incredibly cheap so many shops replace them as a matter of course. If yours are uniformly shiny, I would clean and reuse them. I would also clean the cups and cones and inspect the bearing tracks on both for imperfections.

Grease is grease. A $6 tub of bearing grease from an auto parts store will last many, many years.

Bill Kapaun

I buy bearings by the 100's and always install new.
To me, it's not worth the time to clean and inspect the old ones and hope I didn't miss a pit.
I'm at the age I need some kind of magnification to see that "small", so I takr the easy way out.
It's basically $1/hub.
Any kind of automotive wheel bearing grease is more than adequate. Some prefer boat trailer grease for (allegedly) more water resistance.

Still curious about which hub you actually are discussing.
Thanks for being vague.

Andrew R Stewart 

Take the axle/cones/balls out of the hub shell. Clean off all surfaces, WD40 is an excellent cleaner. THEN examine the surfaces, the balls/cones/cups. If the balls are all equally colored and still shiny then it's ok to reuse them. If the cones have pits in the ball track then replace them (and good luck finding proper duplicates). If the cups (in the hub shell) have pits then live with them. Reassemble with the grease of your choice. Adjust the bearing preload so that AFTER the QR is tightened there is virtually no slop but complete freedom of spin.

These hubs are quite nice if in good shape. Andy.

Eclat

Hubs are Dura Ace 7400 (Freewheel Threaded Rear)

Andrew R Stewart 

Bill- I have no problem with reusing still good balls or replacing them. I do either often depending on the situation.

To defend the OP, he did mention the hubs are 7400s a few times. Although I too get annoyed when info is missing. It wasn't in this case. Andy.

Eclat

The ball housings are plastic to my eyes, which surprised me. I'll take some photos tomorrow and post them. I suppose I should clean and grease them and see what they feel like, otherwise I'll need to look at replacement bearings and housings, which probably won't be cheap.

Thanks for the help all.

CliffordK

Caged bearings? I didn't realize that Shimano was using them in the Dura Ace hubs.

It is often easy to replace with loose individual bearings. Usually about 9, quarter inch balls per side. The grease will hold them in place as you're working on the hubs.

But it is also easy enough to clean and repack. Just the cages tend to trap the grease a bit. I like using a paint thinner solvent. You can do quite a few hubs with a tube or tin of Park grease.

Inspect the cones for pitting.

Do you have a cone wrench for the final tightening and adjustment?

Bill Kapaun

From my post 11
VeloBase.com - View Group

It appears "7400" hubs can be either FH or FW

Jeff Wills

Those probably aren't "ball housings"... I think you're seeing the dust covers on the outside of the the bearings. There's no need to take these out- just remove all the balls, clean everything, then put everything back in place using some grease to hold the bearings (either old or new) in place.

As several of us have said: those hubs use standard loose 1/4" ball bearings, 9 to each side. These are available anywhere, not just bicycle shops. Bicycle specialists are more expensive: https://www.universalcycles.com/shop...&category=3299

Andrew R Stewart 

Sorry Bill I thought that the OP including the photos would have confirmed which version along with " for the 7400 threaded hub" statement. But I don't always read/see every detain too. Andy.

Eclat

9 ball bearings to each side. I'm going to give them a clean and will check the housings and ball bearings. If they are okay, then new grease and I'll then see how they spin.

Some photos attached.