Okay, so my n+1 bike is a crappy little 7-speed Raleigh Serengeti off of Kijiji for cheap as a fix up, and one which I can ride to the store and ride with the kids. The frame's fine as is the drivetrain. It just needed some cleaning. The rear shifter is not good. I had to discard it. I had a 6-sp twist shifter. I have it tuned so that it doesn't go to the largest cog, but obviously the shifting is not great.

Any options other than getting a 7-speed shifter? Can I get a 6-speed cassette? Does one even exist? What is my least costly option? I already put on a new chain and a set of brake cables.

There where 6-speed Shimano UniGlide cassettes; however, even now they cost well over $100 and require a special UniGlide hub.

There are Shimano Altus 7-speed shifters as cheap as $19 US on EBay.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Shimano-Altu...item33a1e65c87

Thanks, JerrySTL. But with shipping and the exchange rate that's going to run well over $40. That's almost as much as I paid for the bike. I've look in the local classifieds, but nothing yet. So perhaps a bit of patience is in order. Something will likely show up for cheap. I'm just not patient like that.

Since you mentioned a twist shifter, Grip Shift 7sp is still readily available for less than US$20.00 but that could still put you "over budget" for just wanting to get the bike running.

Does Toronto have bike co-ops? I've never been to one, but I hear they can be good sources for piecing together bikes.

Some bike shops and co-ops have "salvage yards" where they keep old parts that you can rummage through. I would think that an older 7 speed shifter would sell for pretty cheap.

You could also post a "wanted" add on kijiji or craigslist stating what you're looking for and how much you're willing to pay. My guess is that there's a bunch of old 7 speed shifters around that nobody is using. You might even be able to snag a matching set of shifters for the same cost or close to it.

Oh yeah!!!!! There is a place called Bike Sauce in downtown Toronto. It didn't even occur to me. I'll have to remember to go check next time I'm in the area.

Thanks.

Thanks for the suggestion. I might very well do that.

The bike is okay for now; I just have to restrict myself to a few of the gears that work smoothly. It's not a bike that's going to get a lot of mileage anyway.

Here's a few pics:



The fenders are a set I purchased for my hybrid but turned out to be too wide, but perfect for MTB tires.
The rack is a cheap one from a Canadian Tire which I Macyvered to fit. It's at an odd angle, but haven't had time to Macyver something more suitable.

Notice the mismatched shifters. Hey, what do you expect for a $50 bike?

I'd get some cheap thumbshifters.

Generically 7 speed was made to add 1 cog in the space available for 6, and 8 was wider. adding 1 more with the cog spacing of the 7.

so 8 with a block out of one detent, will stand a better chance , as the inter cog spacing is similar ,

Given 6 is wider spaced between the cogs .. like the 5 speed freewheels before It.