I've got a set of wheels I built on some 70's Normandy High Flange hubs. The hubs have solid axles with nuts on em. I want Quick Releases and the hubs are due to have the bearings repacked anyway.

Can I just swap the old solid axles out for a hollow one to accept a Q/R skewer? Are those hollow axles available? Are they hub specific or do you just buy the correct length and thats it?

any help is much appreciated.

The trick is finding the axles with the same thread and diameter of your original axles in QR form. Figure out the thread pitch and the diameter and look for them. We used to swap them out all the time but that was back then when stock was good. Its all about what you have on hand or can get.

I really don't know the answer because I haven't tried, but in general the axle thickness is different and there can be issues with the dust cover. The solid axle
is generally smaller and the quick release axle won't fit. Normandy quick release axles are, if I remember correctly, 9.5 for rear which nobody else used. Makes
it hard to find the an axle that will fix. Maybe the front is 8.5mm. Haven't looked at the numbers recently. Maybe if you grind out the dust cover to fix over a
9mm front and 10mm rear it might work. Then there are the cones. Don't know if generic ones are shaped right to fit a Normandy hub.

So, I really don't know, but you can see there are a few things to check out.

Yes- you can change to a hollow axle. The new axle will need to be shorter (i.e., not extend significantly past the dropout.)
Yes- axles are available. See a bike shop that has lots of old parts. Take the existing axle. Take an existing nut or cone.
No- vintage axles such as yours are not typically hub specific. Get the correct length, threading, diameter and you are good to go. Get a QR skewer that fits the length axle you need.

I'm thinking Made in France "Schwinn Approved" axles would work. On the other hand, if you find a new axle with cones of the right diameter, you can replace the cones along with the axle.

the simplist way would be to find a set of Normandy hubs no one is using and rob the cones and axles from them.

I did this to a set of Campi track hubs years ago, the trick is, as stated getting the right axle.

try Wheels Manufacturing. they don't sell direct to the public but atleast you can take down their part numbers and your shop can order exactly what you want from them.

JFTR are those 9.5?

I've converted QR Normandy hubs to solid axle, so I'm sure it would work going the other way.

Neal

Did you use a 10X1? I have a tubular wheelset with Schwinn-approved Normandy hubs.

Advance apologies for hijacking this thread, Dan. But, it is somewhat related.

I'm restoring a vintage Puch for a friend. It has Normandy Luxe Competition hubs (red label). I've read that the cones are of poor quality and pit/wear out. The advice I've received is to not bother with them and find another new/used wheelset. Economically that would seem to make the most sense as it would cost me $150 to have the wheels relaced and trued not including my own labor polishing the wheels and repacking the hubs. The spokes aren't SS and three popped when we brought it from the 95 degree garage to the 70 degree house.

Any advice?

what a do! that must be the ever stylish but flashy Porter Wagner on you avatar

Porter had some of the best album art going in his day. I've got several LPs framed including "The Rubber Room" that's pictured in my avatar. They're great conversation starters.

I have a set of QR Normandy high flange hubs that came on a Raleigh Supercourse that we bought back in about 1975. The rear has a 10mm X 26tpi axle. That's the same as Campagnolo. Most "metric" rear axles are supposed to be 10 mm X 1 mm, but not this one. In a thread here not too long ago (within a couple months) someone else posted a question about rear hubs and found out that the Schwinn approved Normandy rear hub that he had had 10mm X26 tpi also.

So, you need to check. If it's 10mm X 26, a Wheels axle #8 (as I recall) is what you get. It's 141mm for a 130 mm rear -- file or grind to the length you actually need.

I'd bet the front is the Campagnolo typical 9mm x 26tpi, but check it out. There is a hollow Wheels axle for that, too.

I have them if you need them.

Just for the record, I wen t to my Sutherland's to look it up.
French (No separate listing for Normandy) solid, 8mmx1, hollow 9mmx1 (same as Campy).
Rear Solid and Hollow 9.5x1.0, Campy (as above) is 10x1mm.
Also lists Italian Sport as 9.5x26tpi (same as 1mm), but I am guessing you won't find Italian Sport anywhere
other then NOS.

I have changed more to nutted from QR than the opposite. I like nutted hubs on the rear of vintage bikes. It looks "right."

I know I've got some schwinn approved hubs...they may have Q/R's. I may even have another set of Normandy Hubs hiding out somewhere that if I remember correctly have hollow axles.




If the depths of my basement don't come through I'll give ya a shout, thanks for the offer