Freewheels and other retro stuff.

Does anyone around here know a source of decent quality freewheels and
how long they're likely to be available?
I've been thinking about restoring my 80's road bike and putting on the
Campag record hubs and brakes (preferably non-aero) that I couldn't
afford back then. Of course it's silly to try to be too authentic, but I
cant help thinking about chrome toeclips and shallow, polished rims for
'pressures' that look like tubs.
Oh, and while I'm about it the Campag Record BB axle has always been a
problem. I've got away with using a 5mm spacer between the fixed cup and
the BB shell in order to get clearance between the small ring and the
chainstay. I'd like to do away with that and I'm happy for that to be
non-Campag. Any suggestions?

Roger Thorpe

On Fri, 29 Aug 2008 15:38:09 +0100
Roger Thorpe wrote:

Does anyone around here know a source of decent quality freewheels
and how long they're likely to be available?

You'll be lucky - it's the sort of thing that shows up now and then on
eBay as new old-stock items. I always used Suntour New Winner or
Winner Pro freewheels, and they seemed to last for ages.

I've been thinking about restoring my 80's road bike and putting on
the Campag record hubs and brakes (preferably non-aero) that I
couldn't afford back then. Of course it's silly to try to be too
authentic, but I cant help thinking about chrome toeclips and
shallow, polished rims for 'pressures' that look like tubs.

Why not use tubs? Sprint rims are strong and light, tubs give a fast
comfortable ride. Fitting and repair are a bit more fiddly, but that's
part of the vintage flavour. :-)

Oh, and while I'm about it the Campag Record BB axle has always been
a problem. I've got away with using a 5mm spacer between the fixed
cup and the BB shell in order to get clearance between the small ring
and the chainstay. I'd like to do away with that and I'm happy for
that to be non-Campag. Any suggestions?

5mm seems an awful lot to space a conventional bottom bracket. We
sometimes used to put a crimp in the chainstay when clearance was a
problem, if using a longer axle was going to throw the chain line out,
but I'd first check that the frame tracking isn't out and the crank
isn't going too far up the axle taper.

"Roger Thorpe" wrote in message
...

Does anyone around here know a source of decent quality freewheels and how
long they're likely to be available?

Spa are flogging "Zenith" freewheels. Don't know how good they are, but
apparently they cope with a friend's tandem use fine.

IRD do posh if you want to spend money.

cheers,
clive

Rob Morley wrote:
On Fri, 29 Aug 2008 15:38:09 +0100
Roger Thorpe wrote:

Does anyone around here know a source of decent quality freewheels
and how long they're likely to be available?

You'll be lucky - it's the sort of thing that shows up now and then on
eBay as new old-stock items. I always used Suntour New Winner or
Winner Pro freewheels, and they seemed to last for ages.

depressing news, maybe I'll have to re-space the rear ends after all.

I've been thinking about restoring my 80's road bike and putting on
the Campag record hubs and brakes (preferably non-aero) that I
couldn't afford back then. Of course it's silly to try to be too
authentic, but I cant help thinking about chrome toeclips and
shallow, polished rims for 'pressures' that look like tubs.

Why not use tubs? Sprint rims are strong and light, tubs give a fast
comfortable ride. Fitting and repair are a bit more fiddly, but that's
part of the vintage flavour. :-)

Sorry mate, no amount of authenticity will get me back to sewing up tubs....


Oh, and while I'm about it the Campag Record BB axle has always been
a problem. I've got away with using a 5mm spacer between the fixed
cup and the BB shell in order to get clearance between the small ring
and the chainstay. I'd like to do away with that and I'm happy for
that to be non-Campag. Any suggestions?

5mm seems an awful lot to space a conventional bottom bracket. We
sometimes used to put a crimp in the chainstay when clearance was a
problem, if using a longer axle was going to throw the chain line out,
but I'd first check that the frame tracking isn't out and the crank
isn't going too far up the axle taper.

Yes, i can't understand it completely. I had the frame built for me by
Tom Board when I worked at Mosquito bikes. Of course I discovered the
chainring clash after it had been painted. Well I did crimp the stay as
much as I thought prudent and lost the lovely paintjob there (grease
soon covered and protected it). I had told Tom to make it stiff because
I thought that I was going to be a sprinter! He used mixed tubes from
somewhere Columbus and Reynolds, maybe with two left stays. A couple of
spacers from Sturmey sprockets have been there for about a quarter of a
century.

Roger Thorpe

Clive George wrote:
"Roger Thorpe" wrote in message
...

Does anyone around here know a source of decent quality freewheels and how
long they're likely to be available?

Spa are flogging "Zenith" freewheels. Don't know how good they are, but
apparently they cope with a friend's tandem use fine.

IRD do posh if you want to spend money.

cheers,
clive


I might try them before I commit myself to respacing the ends. I suppose
half a dozen might get me through a few years.
If I do as little cycling as I do now then one might last a lifetime
though, but next year.....

Roger Thorpe

On 29 Aug, 15:38, Roger Thorpe
wrote:
Does anyone around here know a source of decent quality freewheels and
how long they're likely to be available?

eBay still has some NOS ones. Similarly various specialist shops
still have a few quality ones left from way back.

They are being made in the US again, now, to meet demand for retro
bikes- very good quality I gather but quite pricey (small production
runs).

I've been thinking about restoring my 80's road bike and putting on the
Campag record hubs and brakes (preferably non-aero) that I couldn't
afford back then. Of course it's silly to try to be too authentic, but I
cant help thinking about chrome toeclips and shallow, polished rims for
'pressures' that look like tubs.

Go for it. Modern bikes lack class.

Oh, and while I'm about it the Campag Record BB axle has always been a
problem. I've got away with using a 5mm spacer between the fixed cup and
the BB shell in order to get clearance between the small ring and the
chainstay. I'd like to do away with that and I'm happy for that to be
non-Campag. Any suggestions?

I've had good luck with Stronglight BBs, but I don't understand your
problem, so I don't know if they'd fix it!!

Cheers,
W.

In article , wrote:
Go for it. Modern bikes lack class.

Depends on the modern bike:
http://bicycledesign.blogspot.com/20...ld-or-new.html

(And your personal tastes as well, I'd argue that there are obviously
modern bikes that are just as classy, but differently so.)

Alan Braggins wrote:
In article , wrote:
Go for it. Modern bikes lack class.

Depends on the modern bike:
http://bicycledesign.blogspot.com/20...ld-or-new.html

(And your personal tastes as well, I'd argue that there are obviously
modern bikes that are just as classy, but differently so.)
It does look good. I do like a horizontal top tube, but I also like a
nicely curved fork blade. There was a generation of Dawes Galaxy that I
thought was just perfect in that respect.
That Fuji bike doesn't come upon any UK sites yet, but it is on a danish
blog which google translates as.

"Personally, I thought that a classic stålstel is a greater aesthetic
pleasure than the klumpe dump kulfiberstel sam all bicycles."

I think that I can agree with that.

Roger Thorpe

Roger Thorpe wrote:

Clive George wrote:
"Roger Thorpe" wrote in message
...

Does anyone around here know a source of decent quality freewheels and how
long they're likely to be available?

Spa are flogging "Zenith" freewheels. Don't know how good they are, but
apparently they cope with a friend's tandem use fine.

IRD do posh if you want to spend money.

I might try them before I commit myself to respacing the ends. I suppose
half a dozen might get me through a few years.
If I do as little cycling as I do now then one might last a lifetime
though, but next year.....

He he. I've got one of those Zenith jobs on my "old technology" racing
bike. It hasn't been out this year :-( Which will make the 24 tooth
bottom sprocket useful if I head out to the downs :-) But I am
thinking about doing something about the miss-match of wheels on it.
The front of the good pair of wheels was wrecked when I fell down the
slot of a drain whilst manouvering in traffic so it has been a dark
grey MA40 on Campag Chorus on the back and a silver MA2 on a really
old Campag Tipo on the front for some time. I've got a pair of
lightweight 28 hole sprints that I fancy rebuilding with pressure
rims...

Also I've recently dug out an old pair of wheels I have which are MA2
on Campag Record large flange in the hope of letting my brother have
them but I have discovered why they have been sitting in the cupboard
for ages - the front rim is well past the safe wear point and is
staring to come apart. I'd also forgotten that they are 32 front 40
back which is seriously retro!
--
Phil Cook looking north over the park to the "Westminster Gasworks"

On Fri, 29 Aug 2008 21:11:26 +0100
Roger Thorpe wrote:

Rob Morley wrote:

5mm seems an awful lot to space a conventional bottom bracket.

Yes, i can't understand it completely. I had the frame built for me
by Tom Board when I worked at Mosquito bikes.

I don't suppose it was built for a dishless rear wheel, was it?