sunstealth

so here we go 9 speed freewheels exist , made by sunrace , intended for use on E-bikes but they have the shimano thread type so they work on normal hubs!

saddly they are only 13 tooth small gear, no 12 or 11

https://www.ebikestop.com/sunrace_9sp..._32-FW2131.php

khatfull

But you'd probably need 130mm hubs to use it right (for the width)? What 130mm hubs have freewheel threads?

canopus 

Almost any late era 7-8 speed hubs. I have a couple of Sachs New Winner hub sets that are 130 spaced.

miamijim

What am I going to do with 24, 28 and 32t cogs?

ColonelJLloyd 

Not much, I suspect. Tampa isn't especially hilly is it?

cudak888 

Anyone want to buy some replacement axles?

-Kurt "Corner the Market" K.

noglider 

I guess you can hope they start producing a freewheel that's 13-14-15-16-17-18-19-20-21. It's a modern corncob.

But seriously, folks, this is a bizarre development. I don't see the point.

sciencemonster

Bragging rights - something to use as a selling point? Wonder how they do indexing on that? It'd have to be a made to order shifter, since nothing off the shelf goes to nine speeds...unless it's spaced like a 9 speed freehub, rather than a 7 speed freewheel.

I built corncob freewheels out of a couple cheap Shimanos and some loose sprockets. It was easy, and fits my riding style exactly. 13-14-15-16-17-18-28 for my ergo compact and 13-15-16-17-18-34 for my 39/53 DT shifters. Had to use the dremel for the 7 speed.

Zaphod Beeblebrox 

cudak's right, you'll be bending axles left and right unless you're a featherweight

honestly though I could dig a 13-14-15-16-18-20-22-26-34...and just a 50 up front. Maybe its time for me to start fiddling with cogs.

whats out there as far as like a 7 speed freewheel where you can swap all the cogs around?

beech333

I don't understand. Aren't these built to use on old bikes, where the user wants to keep it as original as possible but still have brifters? I know that the F/RD would have to be replaced, but still, it is an interesting option. At that price, I am thinking about giving them a try.

Edit:

Didn't think of this. Good point.

Zaphod Beeblebrox 

you could do it with a vintage RD and friction shifting if you wanted although I'd bet the shifts would be really close together.

sciencemonster

New cheapo bikes still use freewheels, from what I understand.

canopus 

I rode my Sachs for a year and I am not featherweight. Axle still straight even with some railroad jumps. Now I don't think I will be taking it out on tour but they aren't all that fragile if you have good quality under you.

noglider 

Yes, but they are 7-speed, at most.

Single chainwheel bikes aren't the panacea they look like on paper. Chainline gets to be a problem. The front derailleur, even when you don't use it, serves to keep the chain on the chainwheel. Take it off, and you have more mishaps.

Amani576

You could put it on a 130mm Phil Wood with freewheel threads and it wouldn't break.
-Gene-

nlerner

I have an 8-speed freewheel in the parts bin that I'm not using for fear of breaking an axle. I'm not a heavyweight, but it just seems like a bad idea, and that's why cassette hubs were invented!

Neal

Grand Bois

What's an E-bike?

noglider 

Yes, but why?

khatfull

Ok, I'll play dumb, why would an increase to 9-speed cause an increase in broken axles?

GrayJay

Same as an 8-speed FW, they both require a 130MM spaced axel, resulting in a longer overhang from the bearings to the frame, more likely to bend/break the axel than if 7 speed at 126mm. I had way to many nice 7-speed hub wheelsets to just throw them all out when I finally converted my race bike to 8-speed in the early 90's. I set a few of my race wheelsets up with 8-speed freewheels and had no problems when I used them just for road racing while using casette hubs on my daily training wheels that were subject to more abuse and miles. One adaptation I also came up with was to put a 30mm OD sealed bearing toward the frame end of the axel (on a "cone" from a sealed bearing hub). THe OD of the bearing fit right inside the outer small cog of the freewheel, giving the axel some extra support.

brockd15 

At some point I'd like to upgrade my Voyageur to 9 speed but keep the 27" wheels. It's not easy to find a 9 speed compatible, 40 hole hub without going real expensive (phil wood, white industries, etc.) or using a tandem hub...which isn't much cheaper. This at least provides another option, and at a fraction of the price (~$20 vs ~$150) of getting a new hub.

GrayJay

If you need the strength of 40 spoke wheels, a 130mm spaced conventional hub will likely be problematic in regard to bending axels. The increased dish of the wheel/spokes will make for a weaker wheel too.

brockd15 

40 spokes is overkill for me personally, but I like the idea of keeping it 36/40 on 27" rims.

rat fink

That's really clever! I will have to keep that one in mind.

roccobike

BTW, If you have to go to 130mm, I'm betting you'll have to redish the rear wheel because it won't be centered. I know when I changed my 7 speed freehub to 8/9/10 on the C'dale, I had to re-center the wheel. I'm guessing the same is true for a freewheel conversion.