Have questions or want to discuss cycling? Join Now or Sign In to participate in the BikeRide community.

New: Take Part in the March Giveaway: Coming Soon


7 speed block
#1
My bike and myself are now antiques. I have a wheel (which I recently rebuilt) that has a Campy thread-on 7 speed block. It is now apparent that it is badly worn and no longer acceptable. I cannot locate a compatible replacement and I was scratching my head and thinking whether it would be any easier to find an 8 speed. I certainly no longer use the 11 tooth sprocket so I would be happy never being able to shift to it. I believe that the cog spacing on 7 and 8 are the same, so it should work.
Can anyone give me any help with this problem? Thanks.
  Reply
#2
Hi Limey;

Most of us on this board are not familiar with Campy. I would suggest that you check out:
http://www.bikeforums.net/forumdisplay.php/181-Classic-amp-Vintage
where there are a significant number of people with Campy.

From: http://sheldonbrown.com/cribsheet-spacing.html it appears that Campy 8 speed spacing is 5.0mm; the same as Shimano compatible 7 speed.

You said thread on block; which in USA terms is a freewheel, a very different animal from a cassette - not interchangeable.
http://sheldonbrown.com/free-k7.html

All Campy 8 speeds are cassettes, not freewheels (thread on block).

If you have a freewheel, an 11T sprocket is unlikely. Suntour had a 12T, but just about everyone else was 13T or 14T for the smallest sprocket.

Also, I you have a freewheel, you are not limited to Campy; other brands should work. Personally, I have had poor experience with Shimano, and good with DNP, SRAM and Sunrace.
Nigel
  Reply
#3
(01-13-2014, 01:27 PM)nfmisso Wrote:  Hi Limey;

Most of us on this board are not familiar with Campy. I would suggest that you check out:
http://www.bikeforums.net/forumdisplay.php/181-Classic-amp-Vintage
where there are a significant number of people with Campy.

From: http://sheldonbrown.com/cribsheet-spacing.html it appears that Campy 8 speed spacing is 5.0mm; the same as Shimano compatible 7 speed.

You said thread on block; which in USA terms is a freewheel, a very different animal from a cassette - not interchangeable.
http://sheldonbrown.com/free-k7.html

All Campy 8 speeds are cassettes, not freewheels (thread on block).

If you have a freewheel, an 11T sprocket is unlikely. Suntour had a 12T, but just about everyone else was 13T or 14T for the smallest sprocket.

Also, I you have a freewheel, you are not limited to Campy; other brands should work. Personally, I have had poor experience with Shimano, and good with DNP, SRAM and Sunrace.

Thanks. I didn't realize that when campy went to 8 speed, that they changed from spin-on (threaded) to cassette type - that blows my idea out of the water. I guess that I have to keep searching for 7 speed and any compatible brand will be fine.
  Reply
#4
Do you have the tool to remove the old freewheel, or are you going to destroy/remove?
Any 7 speed freewheel should work as your bike does not have indexed shifting (you said antique).
  Reply
#5
Hi Jef, I made a tool to remove thread on blocks, so I will be removing. It should be fairly loose cos I've only done one ride on it since refitting it. Actually I do have index shifting. A few years ago , Sachs made 7 speed index shifters unders contract from Campy and I fitted those. With some fine tuning, they work well enough with my Shimano Ultegra wheel too. At the moment I am trying to locate a 7 speed block that will screw onto a Campy hub which I presume is Italian thread. Not worried about brand, Regina, Suntour etc., but I don't want to pay $250 for an antique Campy Record. If push comes to shove, I'll have to break the wheel down again, buy a 7 / 8 cassette hub and rebuild it.
  Reply
#6
So it's not that ancient! Do a simple test fit to check the thread, a local shop or friend should have something to test with. If not an excellent hardware store (ironmongers) can gauge the thread pitch.
I thought campy indexed was different from shimano.
  Reply
#7
It is slightly different, but as I said earlier, my days of using the smallcog are over, so if I adjust within the range I use, I can set it so that it's smooth.

My problem right now is with my spare wheels, I hadn't used the Campy block in a couple of years and when I rebuilt the hub and reused it, I found that it was 'grinding' under pressure. Plus it wouldn't change smoothly - the chain wants to jump multiple cogs. I will be fitting a new chain, but from experience, I know that the block is most to blame.
  Reply
#8
(01-14-2014, 04:13 PM)1FJEF Wrote:  ...
I thought campy indexed was different from shimano.
That varies with the number of speeds (cog) in the cassette/freewheel. See Sheldon's cribsheet (link in my 1st post above)
Nigel
  Reply
#9
In practice, using the Campy designed 7 speed index shifters on a Shimano 7 speed block, results in a slight chain rubbing at the extremes as the slight spacing difference builds up. If you discount the line-up on one cog (small) and adjust the changes between the remaining 6, you get almost if not perfect shifting. If you want to use the entire block, you have to accept a slight rub .

Since I have problems with my Campy set up at this time, I will be swapping to my Shimano wheel today and will be problem free. I will continue my search for a suitable thread-on block. Thanks everyone.
  Reply


Possibly Related Threads...

Forum Jump:

[-]
10 Latest Posts
2010 Specialized Hardrock
Yesterday 07:02 PM
Why do spokes break?
Yesterday 02:34 PM
Vilano Warning
Yesterday 02:13 PM
Scram Force Front Derailleur
Yesterday 01:55 PM
Hello from Connecticut USA
03-17-2024 02:57 AM
Bicycle Touring and Camping
03-17-2024 02:48 AM
New hip fracture, looking for some words...
03-17-2024 02:44 AM
Upgrading The Vilano Diverse 3.0 DriveTr...
03-16-2024 12:21 PM
Lectric One
03-15-2024 07:19 PM
PAS Level 4 and 5
03-15-2024 07:16 PM

[-]
Join BikeRide on Strava
Feel free to join if you are on Strava: www.strava.com/clubs/bikeridecom

[-]
Top 5 Posters This Month
no avatar 1. meamoantonio
23 posts
no avatar 2. GirishH
19 posts
no avatar 3. ReapThaWhirlwind
18 posts
no avatar 4. ichitan
18 posts
no avatar 5. Painkiller
17 posts