so i recently picked up an 86 centurion ironman. its pretty much all original (not that it matters much to me) with what i think are stock shimano 600 components. everything is in pretty good shape, but showing some signs of wear - sepecially the freewheel assembly.

i'm thinking of replacing the freewheel, but have a few concerns. i've seen some nos 600 freewheels on ebay, but they seem like they can be pricey. i've also found some new shimano freewheels (such as hg22 6spd) for under $20. are the newer one's cheaper quality? and would i be doing myself a dis-service by replacing a 600-quality freewheel with one of these?

these new ones, i think, are hyperglide style. i'm not sure if the original one that's currently on there is of the hyperglide design or if shimano ever made a 600 with hyperglide, or what. any suggestions or help would be much appreciated.

btw, if i should post this question in a different forum, please let me know, but i've asked questions hear about my old superior and was very impressed and pleased with the help i got. so thanks in advance!

j

I would look for a nice SRAM 7-speed freewheel and an SRAM 8-speed compatible chain, such as a PC-58.

Look into IRD freewheels. Excellent quality at a reasonable cost. Harris Cyclery has 'em - but shop around for better deals. Leaves Shimano in the dust IMO. They have 5, 6, 7 - spd. in a variety of gears.

The IRD freewheels are quite nice. Well, nice looking, I bought one, but haven't used it yet, so I don't know how it works. I'm waiting for the El cheapo new production Shimano one on my daily rider to wear out or disgust me w/its poor performance, neither of which has happened yet. Seems to work fine. My only gripe is the black large cog and the color, so I don't know if I would put it on a bike where looks were super important.

FWIW, the shimano freewheel has been submitted to fairly hard use, having to haul me (180 lbs) and my kid in a trailer around. Shifts fine, I have it mated with a Dura Ace RD-7700-GS rear derailleur and a pretty nice SRAM chain, one of their better ones. My only complaint is that they look department store - they seem to work fine in my experience (this isn't the first one I've used).

For comparison purposes, the cheapo Shimano replaced a Dura Ace MF7400 rear, the only difference I noted was they sounded a little different when freewheeling, couldn't tell any significant shifting difference.

I have used IRD frewheels on my bikes and can recommend them whole heartedly! Great quality, excellent shifting and easy on and off with the very common Shimano cassette tool. They are also available at Rivendell.

Look at it this way---a 1986 freewheel is 20 year old technology, even if it's just the ramping or the tool used to cut the cog teeth. If you're using the same shifters, 6-sp indexed, I assume, you're fine and probably better off with an IRD or a newer Shimano, even the cheaper ones.

I use a GT chain right now, but find the inexpensive SRAM's to work just fine. A good Shimano chain has been smoother on a couple of my freewheel bikes, but $40 vs. $15.

thanks for all the replies. the bike is still using the 6-spd indexed downtube shifters, but i was thinking of using the freewheel replacement as an excuse to use a 7-spd freewheel and the pair of sora 7-spd brifters that i have laying around. assuming the 7-spd freewheel fits on the hub without a problem, this should be pretty easy swap, no? from what i understand, i won't need a new derailer or anything, right?

I'm using a 7-speed IRD from Rivendell--very nice, very pretty, not cheap--with my 30+ year-old Shimano Crane and an SRAM PC-58 chain with no problems at all.

I replaced the freewheel on my '87 Ironman Expert (105 rather than 600) with a seven-speed SunRace. I've run their freewheels on several bikes with good results. Yeah, they're 'cost effective', but they work.
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