rsterman

I am contemplating changing out the original se dis chain from my 1973 LeJeune TDF....I would appreciate any advice as to which screw-on Shimano freewheel will fit the LeJeune .....all I can find is a six speed freewheels......I feel certain that a 5 speed is correct.....there must be things I don't know here......I'm a ew i.e. @ this. bike maintenance stuff.

Thanks,
Rsterman

rccardr 

There are a plethora of 5 speed Shimano Ultraglide freewheels on eBay right now, from very used to slightly used to NOS, at various prices. Most of them seem to be in the 14-28 wide-ish cog range. To the best of my knowledge, all Shimano freewheels use the same threading. Unless your Lejeune hubs have an unusual threading, these should work.

Kactus

I'm not sure what hubs your TDF has, but if they are French threaded the Shimano freewheels will not fit.

JohnDThompson 

Assuming the wheels are original to the bike, a 1973 LeJeune may well have metric thread freewheel threads.

verktyg 

When you hear hoof beats, think horses not zebras....

Last week a Lejeune Tour de France model was discussed on Bike Forums:

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...l#post18369196

If your bike is the same as the one pictured above then it was a lower priced, bike boom era model equipped with the standard fare steel cranks, pedals, handle bars, seatpost, 27" steel rims, MAFAC brakes and Simplex derailleurs. The hubs were probably the Normandy Sport model and would have had a metric threaded freewheel. The rear hub would have been 120mm with a 5 speed freewheel.

Pictures of the bike including closeups of the hubs and rims would help a lot.

Unless your bike wasn't used much and has all of the original components it's hard to tell what changes have been made to it over the past 42 years. The freewheel may have been replaced, the wheels changed and so.

A lot of businesses that sold bikes back then weren't very sophisticated: bikes and lawn mowers, bikes and toys, etc. If someone replaced a metric freewheel and force a British threaded one onto the hub, that sort of makes it easier to find a Shimano FW.

BTW, I may have missed something in the previous posts but why are you specifically looking for a Shimano freewheel... and why do you want to change the old one?


verktyg

Chas.

rsterman

This was a bike that was bought in Annapolis, MD around 1974. Other posters here have mentioned that lejeunes that were made for the American market usually had American threaded freewheels, and that Shimano freewheels were still made that make this an easy swap out if I chose to go that way. I have contemplated this swap because LBS guy said the original Sedis chain had a few kinks in it. If I spring for a new chain, doesn't it make sense to change to a contemporary 5 speed Shimano freewheel @ the same time?

I may just clean the bejeezus out of the original chain and wrench the chain back and forth gently as someone suggested. They said chances were the kinks would come out of the chain, and that it may last longer than a few years. With a squeaky clean chain and freewheel perhaps I,will find I have no problem @ all. Perhaps it makes no sense to anticipate problems that don't exist. If it ain't broke, don't fix it I guess. The bike is in excellent shape over all. I have cleaned, polished, tuned up, and added new cable and housings all around. Added a new Brooks B17 honey saddle......maybe I should enjoy the ride and repair my old new bike when it suggests it needs a little TLC.

Velocivixen

KMC Z33 is. $5 chain for 5 speeds. How about just try swapping out the chain and see how things go. Are the teeth on the freewheel particularly worn? Yes, I know that it is recommended that when one replaces chain to replace freewheel & vice versa. It doesn't have to be that way. Just get a new appropriate chain and see how it goes.

davester

I agree with this except that it is generally not necessary to replace a freewheel when you replace the chain (though you should definitely replace the chain when you replace a freewheel). Only replace the freewheel if it has badly hooked or otherwise worn teeth. If the chain is replaced regularly then the freewheel will generally last a very long time, since worn chains are responsible for destroying freewheels and not vice versa.

I suggest that rsterman measure the chain for "stretch", using the method of Saint Sheldon: Chain Maintenance (scroll down)

verktyg 

That was the days of $5.00 chains and $7.00 freewheels.

Part of the reason was back in the bike boom days very few riders were familiar with derailleurs. They would ride around in 1 gear combination with a dry rusted chain. It was usually the small-small combo or else for some reason the 52-24 combo. The freewheel sprocket that was used the most was worn out and so the chain skipped.

When someone came into the shop with a squeaking chain we automatically sold them a new one plus a freewheel and took a few moments to show them how to get the most out of their gears and how to periodically lube them.


verktyg

Chas.

Velocivixen

@verktyg - I bought a KMC Z33 for $5.00 at Citybikes Co-Op recently. That's how much they charged & we don't have sales tax.