Liquidfusion

Hi. Just received a fantastic Campagnolo freewheel hub for a bike that has a 126mm dropout width. Great because my Peugeot's rear wheel 's hub is bent by former owners accident. Special thanks to a great guy here Stuart Black.

What do I do now? I see that I'll need to find a freewheel gear speed for the hub. My present tire is supposed to be good: Kendra 27 1 3/8. Campagnolo wheel measures 25" across (rim to rim). Really new at this!!! Wheel : Campagnolo Omega Strada Hardox.

This forum is really great!!!!!

Brewer

cyccommute 

Nashbar sells a house brand 6 speed freewheel for $20. Or try your local bike shop. Not much call for freewheels these days but you might be able to find a dusty one that they want to get rid of quick. The rim's a 700C so you'll need to get a new tire...sorry

Liquidfusion

Nashbar sells a house brand 6 speed freewheel for $20 / rim's a 700C.

Have info now to work on.

Thanks!!!!!!!!!!
Brewer

mirkee

My local bike store had a Shimano 5 speed freewheel that they sold me for $10-20 (I forget exactly, I was so glad to have it). New in the box. They seemed glad to be rid of it. I would ask you local store. You never know.

MichaelW

Make sure you get the appropriate removal tool before fitting the freewheel.
Take the std precautions when fitting to prevent damage, if you havent done this before let us know.

TallRider

It's nice to have a hub, but if you're going to the trouble of having a new wheel built (you don't sound knowledgeable enough to build one yourself) then maybe you should just buy a used wheel that's in good shape, perhaps with a cassette hub.

miamijim

Tim ,I think he has an entire wheel with a 126mm Campagnolo hub. If it is 700c and he currently has a 27" tire theres goona be a problem. I had a difficult time reading that.

search for parts here:

www.qbike.com

TallRider

Okay, in that case it's worth articulating terminology
hub where the bearings are and the spokes hold into at the center of the wheel
rim the metal part on which the tire sits and the other end of the spokes hold into
wheel spokes+rim+hub
tire not the rim, not the wheel, but the rubber thing that goes over the rim and touches the road while riding.

miamijim

I should know better than to try and drink and read this stuff at the same time....

Liquidfusion

Thanks. Learning!! We're dealing with a 32 spoke 126mm 700c wheel. Need to add: freewheel / tire. Reading on the net I see that 700c is smaller (622mm) than a 27" wheel (630mm) which are both larger than the 26" wheel (600mm). Aslo tires can be applied to several size rims, but a 27" tire won't go on a 700c rim.

Further reading from Sheldon's site: grease freewheels before putting them on to make removal later easier / possible. Also occassionally add oil to a freewheel while wheel spins.... You might later want to remove that freewheel without breaking / destroying the wheel. Good point.

What speed freewheel do I try to get? 5 / 6 ? The SunTour Derailleur (Friction) works fine with a a 5 speed freewheel. 6 speed freewheels require narrower chains? Better to use the 5 speed? Better to go with 6?

From Sheldon's Site: Freewheel

6 Speeds
In the 1970s, there was a move toward 6-speed freewheels. These were of two types:

• "Standard" spaced 6 speeds had sprocket to sprocket spacing the same as the existing 5 speeds, around 5.3 mm Standard spaced 6-speeds required increasing the frame spacing to 126 mm, aggravating the problems introduced with the move to 5-speed, but still providing satisfactory service in most cases.
• "Ultra Six ®" spaced 6 speeds used a closer spacing, arond 5 mm. This permitted an Ultra Six ® freewheel to directly replace a standard 5-speed unit on a 120 mm hub. The key to making this work was the use of a narrower chain. The interior width of the chain was the same as always, but the new narrower chains used shorter rivets, so the ends of the rivets didn't protroude past the outer chain plates, as the rivets in traditional chains did.

Moving On..... Do I need to replace the chain / front chainring? Is is best to get the rear wheel complete with freewheel / tire and then see how the chain / chainring works? I love the way the Campagnolo wheel spins!!!!!

Can I ride safely w/700c rear wheel (32 spoke) and a 630mm 27" (36 spoke) front wheel?

What freewheel / tires / chainrings / chains do you like?

TallRider

You're on the right track with all of this.
Generally it's not much of a problem to have a 700c and 27" wheel on the same bike - doesn't change the geometry much at all (4mm difference in wheel radius, rather far apart from each other). If the Campy wheel is well-built then it's being 32-spoke is fine as long as you're not a heavy rider.

Go with a 6-speed freewheel, or even a 7 if you're lightweight. But a 6 will work on the Campy hub without modification. You might need a slightly narrower (external width) chain, but it doesn't hurt to get a narrower chain anyway. New SRAM's can be had for less than $15.

No need to replace the chainrings for chain compatibility though.

And yeah, Campy are reputed to have very smooth bearings.

Liquidfusion

Great!!!!!!!!

Spokes seem think / strong
5'7" / 195lbs // starting working out (situps / pushups) // goal: lose 15 -20 lbs

Email from Sheldon Brown - he says go w/"7". Stuart Black says: "6." Need to really understand this more.
Could be just personal preference. Road surface. Rider weight. Will there be enough room for 7 gears?

Check this out: I swear by Campagnolo rims.

Photos:
https://www.liquidfusion.net/Peugeot/Campagnolo__0L9.JPG
https://www.liquidfusion.net/Peugeot/Campagnolo__3L9.JPG
https://www.liquidfusion.net/Peugeot/Campagnolo__5L9.JPG

Again: many special thks to cyccommute // Mad bike riding scientist!!!!!!!!!!!

Brewer

miamijim

liquid, your freewheel choice depends how much room you have before the freewheel hits the frame. A 6 will fit...a 7 should, but may not. You may not know until you try. Sevens are available in different widths so one may and one may not.

Welcome to 1983.

rmikkelsen

IRD makes a nice ramped freewheel. I just put a 7-speed on my bike. They also make 5- and 6-speeds. Avail from Harris and others. https://www.interlocracing.com/freewheels_steel.html

cyccommute 

The spokes are DT 2.0/1.8 and the wheel doesn't have too much mileage on it. They were built for me and I'm bigger than you are


A 7 would probably work. I quoted a 6 because you could get one cheap at Nashbar. That wheel was hanging in my garage for so long that I've forgotten what I had on it.

Liquidfusion

Hi. Right now it's cold. Snowing here and there. Perfect time to learn about this wheel and see what's best. Spokes look great!!!!

Is there an advantage of a 6? a 7? Why not 5? Here we go again!!!!!!!!!!!

TallRider

A 7 is nicer because it has one more gear. This allows you to have a wider gearing range than a 6-speed freewheel, or to have smaller jumps/gaps between gears if you stick with the same range.
A 7-speed freewheel has the sprockets spaced closer together than a 6-speed freewheel, so it's barely wider than a 6-speed freewheel. Will probably work but not for certain.

I have two little-used 7-speed freewheels (both ramped cogs, too) sitting around. A 13-28 SunRace (nearly new) and a 14-28 made by Shimano (only a few hundred miles). Both of them have only been used with new chains and the teeth aren't worn out at all. I'd part with either for about $15. PM me if you're interested. Cheaper than buying a new freewheel, and just as good.

Liquidfusion

Thanks. Will think it all over. Having fun seeing what possibilities can exist!!!
Brewer