Freewheel Upgrade trouble

[capner2112]

I have a 1980 Schwinn World Sport and recently switched out the freewheel from a 5-speed to a 7-speed. The axle does not want to line up into the dropouts and it seems the new freewheel is interfering. I've been suggested to stretch the frame but I do not want to do that. Any ideas?

[Bill]

(06-14-2011, 08:30 PM)capner2112 Wrote:  I have a 1980 Schwinn World Sport and recently switched out the freewheel from a 5-speed to a 7-speed. The axle does not want to line up into the dropouts and it seems the new freewheel is interfering. I've been suggested to stretch the frame but I do not want to do that. Any ideas?

Best option: redish the wheel and realign the axle.

[nfmisso]

The wheel you have does not have enough space for a seven speed freewheel. (Been there, done that )

You need to increase the OLD of the wheel a millimeter or few. I used 1mm millimeter washers between the cone and the locknut of the bearings to do so. Ideally, these should be placed symmetrically on both sides, but practically up to two millimeter extra on the drive side will not make a difference.

Once you do this, you will have to pull slightly on the frame to get the rear wheel in and out.

Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on your view on wheel truing), what Bill suggests will have no effect; as it is the width of the new freewheel plus the hub width being too much for the OLD (stack up on the axle).

If you do not want to adjust to the OLD stack in your old wheel, you can purchase a newer wheel intended for 7 speed freewheels, which have longer OLD and/or narrower hubs. Or try a six speed freewheel, which are narrower.

[GeorgeET]

10-4 to what Nigel said.

Here is some wheel info. They all require spreading the rear stays a bit.

http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/wheels/630.html

[nfmisso]

with George's hints; most likely you have a hub with a 120mm OLD. You need a bit more for a seven speed freewheel - 126mm is typically what is sold.

On my red bike ( http://forums.bikeride.com/thread-3216.html ) the mid '80s vintage sealed bearing 36/40 Suze-Araya wheel set I purchase was 120mm OLD at the rear. I found that I only needed a bit less than 2mm additional clearance for the seven speed freewheel, and I used two McMaster 97725A750 washers inside the lock nut to provide the needed clearance.

[capner2112]

Thanks for the tips. I decided to switch back to the 5-speed. Considering the riding I do, it really wasn't worth the hassle of reworking the hubs and frame.

[trevgbb]

Best idea to go back to 5 speed, you won't go any faster with 7, and stretching the frame is not a good idea, especially on older bikes, you can't be sure you have kept the wheel central, and you can induce a stress point in the chainstays which could lead to failure.
You would also need to replace your RD, chain and shifter.

[GeorgeET]

Ye 10-4 to that . That makes it a 10 speed bike. When I ride I mostly use one or two gears. If you are doing lots of hilly rides more gears may help some. But mostly sales gimmick IMO, unless you are up to tour de France.

After redoing the cones on my bikes and having to find and adopt available parts, I learned getting a new wheel is easier. Especially is spokes are rusty, respoking with SS spokes costs as much as a wheel .