Well, my cutsey Raleigh sure has a lot of problems. Initially I was a little dissapointed since the bike was so clean and I thought there would be little to do to it. Well, I was wrong. Cosmetically it is very pretty but most parts have a thick coat of goo or varnish on them. Since I am so new, I thought maybe the chaing was supposed to be stiff. It took a long soaking and lots of brushing to get it clean and now I know what a chain should feel like.

I took off the rear wheel and replaced the tire and tube. At the same time I removed the bearings (the balls on one side had a funny color) One of the cones seems to have much more wear than the other but I figure I'll just live with it, unless I can find another cone.

However, HERE IS MY MAIN PROBLEM:

The cogs were stuck tight to the hub and I thought that was normal. That is until tonight when I realized that if the cogs turn with the wheel then the pedals and the chain would keep turning when coasting and that would be a real mess. When I thought of this I bolted out of bed and went out to the garage to inspect my wheel. Well, the wheel turns in one direction, independent of the cogs, but only with considerable effort. Enough effort that it scars up my hands from holding the cogs still. Certainly this is not normal.

What next?

I have thought of buying the tool that goes in a vice and removing the cogs (the freewhell?) but I don't think that would make much difference other than maybe giving me access to the inside of the freewheel mechanism. I see sets of cogs (freewheels) for sale on ebay but I don't think a new one of those will do me much good.

Everything I have removed from this bike has a thick brown muck wihch is obviously dry lubricant. Some of it has turned to varnish. I suspect that is the problem here. the dirrelaur was much the same way and it moves freely now after much soaking.

Any suggestions as to how I should proceed?

Lastly, I have forgotten how the shaft goes back in and which side the adjustable cone goes on and I gather this is important. Please enlighten me.

Sorry to be such a PITA but hey...I'm getting so smart!

Thanks,

Mirko

P.S. i am editing this as I distill some of this in the quiet cesspools of my brain. Is the freewheel mechanism integrated into the set of cogs so that if I buy so that if I buy and install this:

https://cgi.ebay.com/Regina-Extra-CX-...QQcmdZViewItem

...my worries are over?

Just get some solvent, like carb cleaner or acetone, and flush out the freewheel. It's got 40 years of petrified grease in it. Don't try to take it apart; you'll play hell putting it back together. I put the wheel over a bucket, cogs down, and pour the solvent through from the back into the bucket.

The adjustable cone ought to go on the side opposite the freewheel, where it's more accessible.

Thanks for your reply and suggestions.

I put the wheel, cogs down, balanced over a bowl overnight. The bowl was real full of mineral spirits, which sloshed over the freewheel "seam". Still turning real hard the next mornig...way wrong. Went to the LBS to get a freewheel removing tool. Turns out this is a Normandy freewheel and only one company makes the removal tool, not Park. While I sulked, a friend of mine came out from the back room of the LBS and removed the freewheel before you could say "What it is!". He had the right tool. Then he told me that it would be real hard to get it working again since it was so frozen. Sold me a new Shimano 5 speed freewheel for $15. Came home, replaced all ball bearings, packed with good grease, reassembled the whole thing and put on the freewheel. I am so proud! Looks like everything worked, at least so far. Rear wheel turns much better now. Removed lots of crud from the bearing cups and cones. I suspect I should have replaced the cones but could not find replacements. One has a worn shiny spot bigger than the other, although concentric.

Bought a NOS Suntour V-GT RD on ebay for around $15, should be here in a couple of days. I'll put away the ALLvit for now. I'll tackle replacing the front tire, tube and servicing front hub next. Then new cables, and maybe service headset (is that hard to do?).

I suspect in about a week I'll have her running tops. Then I'm off to look for a Mixte. I like girls bikes. I'm a guy. Should I be worried? It's easier to drag my creaking body thru the hole than over the bar, too.

Thanks again,

Mirko

Sounds like you are on the way to being an "experienced" bike owner...if the hubs are Normandy (or Atom) like the freewheel then you can often find replacement cones wherever vintage bike parts are sold, there were multi-thousands of these hubs made. If the wear you see on that cone is shiny, even and SMOOTH, then it's probably good enough to reuse. If it's uneven, rough or pitted, then it's junk. You will like the Suntour RD better than the Huret Allvit, if it's a long-cage model you *might* need a link or 2 more in your chain (I'm guessing not a long cage). You should do the headset for sure, it may have loose BBs that will fall over the floor if you're unlucky, so be prepared. Since you can repack and adjust hubs, the HS will be do-able too, just requires a little more fussing and back-and-forth adjustment, with the front wheel in place, to dial it in.

The V-GT should have a long cage so be sure to try the big chainring/big rear cog combination (but not when you're actually riding) to check chain length and, like Unworthy1 said, be prepared to add a link or two. The loose headset bearing 'gotcha' has gotten me a time or two and the best way I've found so far to deal with 'em is to grab a strong magnet (a cow-magnet or the like) and stick it to the lower headtube race before I pull anything apart. It may not keep ALL the bearings from hitting the ground, but at least you won't go kicking them all over the place while you go looking for a magnet to pick 'em up with . An old towel under the headset area would probably help keep the escapees under control too, but I never manage to think of that until it's too late.

What kind of hubs? I have NOS Maillard/Normandy/Atom front axles (which have NOS cones on them). PM me if you're interested.

Is the bike the appropriate size for you? Even with the right size bike, I stand to the left of the bike, and lean it over a little bit so I can throw my leg over it. Don't sweat it that you like girls bikes. Riding a girl's bike is way better than not riding.

"Don't sweat it that you like girls bikes. Riding a girl's bike is way better than not riding. "
But a Mixte is not a girl's bike...it's a "unisex" bike

1. Thanks VERY MUCH for the hints on keeping the bb's in place when doing the headset. It's hints like this that keep me coming back to this forum.

2. The cones have a shiny streak to them but even wear and no rough spots or pits so I'll keep them for now. We'll see how the front ones look.

3. Girls's bikes are not only more confortable but I find them pretty, more supple, with neat curves. The Mixtes are so aerodynamic, 50's Sputnik looking. I like them.

Now that I've started on one bike, I'm already thinking of the next. The learning curve is pretty fast on this. I've done a lot of reading, which is my favorite part of a new hobby. The internet, too, is a wonderfull tool, especially this forum. Nest time a better frame to begin with, than the Raleigh Sprite I'm doing now. This one just caught my eye. Here is a pic of the bike I'm doing now.

https://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...8389&rd=1&rd=1



Regards,

Mirko

Nice for a starter.

You know, you could mount 9 water bottle cages on that baby without cheating and putting any under the down tube.

Mirko,

I've had many "frozen" freewheels pass through my hands that I've been able to salvage. Mineral Spirits isn't going to do the job though, and you often need to remove the freewheel (as your friend did for you). Once removed, you hose the freewheel down with something like WD-40 or Kroil from the rear, into the gap between the cogs and the hub center. Spray, rotate, repeat. The freewheel will come alive in short order. If you haven't discarded the old one, try it and see.

And Mirkee, if you don't want to fool with rehabing the old freewheel, don't junk it. Some of us (including myself) would be interested in obtaining it in order to rehab it ourselves. I have the tools and patience to do this. ew

Hey!Hey!,
Sheldon does not endorse that kind of thing.