speedyspaghetti

Hey guys -

So I found a Bridgestone MB-3 frameset on Craigslist here for $25 and I've been building it up to ride. I originally found a set of vintage wheels with a 7 speed freewheel, but I've found that the range on that cassette isn't great for the steep hills I live by and try to ride. I want to upgrade to a 8 or 9 speed setup, potentially 1x, but I need to find a new wheelset first since I need a freehub instead of a freewheel body. All the 26" wheels I find online seem to be for disc brakes, but I need rim brakes. Anyone know where I could find something suitable for this?

Thanks!

70sSanO

Look for a Sun Rhyno Lite. Velomine shows a set with non-disc hubs, but you can use disc hubs with rim brake compatible rims.

Measure your rear dropout to make sure it is 135mm.

John

speedyspaghetti

These? - Wheelset

Or these? Wheels

70sSanO

Amazon ($99) is for the rear wheel only.

Harris ($179) is for a wheelset, front and rear.

Depends if you are replacing both.

First measure your dropouts.

Also, are you sure it is a freewheel and not a cassette?

Hate to keep adding to this, is it a Shimano or Suntour drivetrain?

A lot depends on the year of the MB-3.

John

speedyspaghetti

Probably should do both for the sake of matching. It's a steel frame, so shouldn't I be able to cold set the dropouts?

Yes, definitely a freewheel, I took it off.

70sSanO

Yes you can spread the dropouts if it is not 135mm. I added another question on whether it is a Shimano or Suntour drivetrain. That only matters if you are running index Suntour.

Edit: I run matching wheelsets, but that is your decision.

John

speedyspaghetti

Its currently indexed Shimano Deore 7 speed, but I was considering switching to 8 or 9 speed microshift with a 1x up front.

70sSanO

There is a good chance your Deore 7 speed rear derailleur will work with 9 speed shifters. Something to think about if it is in really good condition. However, if you are looking at Advent, you'll need a complete system. Also, if you are looking at the really wide range cassettes, you will most likely need a rear derailleur to fit the max cog.

Personally I wouldn't even think about running a 1x8, you should go no less than 9 speed and probably more.

John

eshew

I'd look on craigslist/facebook for a good donor bike. Take the parts you need, sell the rest. Will most definitely be less expensive than buying new.

speedyspaghetti

Should I just go 10 speed then since it would work on the new wheelset anyway?

LesterOfPuppets

1x is likely going to have slightly less range than the original 3x.

On my 1991 MB-3 for instance I get about 23-91 gear inches.

With a microshift 9sp 11-42 and a 34t chainring you'll get about 23-86 GI.

There are 9-speed freewheels available if you want to do a 3 x 9sp cheaply (I don't think there are any freewheels with 42T big cogs to do a resonable 1x). Keep in mind, you might have to respace the rear axle to make room for the cassette on the driveside, then redish the rim.

LesterOfPuppets

I'd probably stick with 9sp or just go whole hog 11sp.

11sp will open up the possibility of 11-46T cassette for a tad more range, which may not exist in 9sp or 10sp land (I think 42 max). An SLX 11sp derailleur/cassette/chain/shifter group doesn't cost a whole lot these days.

LesterOfPuppets

BTW, do you have pics of bike in current setup?

What kind of riding you expecting to do?

70sSanO

I have never run 10 speed cassettes. Have used 7-9; my mtb’s are 2x8. I’m sure there are people here who can give an opinion on Microshift 10 and 11 speed systems. Right or wrong, my take on it is: the closer the cogs the more precise the drivetrain has to be.

The number of cogs is driven by the range you need and the gapping. If you are running a 34t chainring, for example, on a mtb, you need low enough gearing for the climbing you do. You also need a high enough gear for a top speed you want. Once you figure out what those extremes are, it comes down to gapping.

I don’t have a problem with a 28-34-40 low gapping, but I don’t want any more than that. Some might want 28-32-36-42 on the low end gapping.

On the high end I’m good with a low of 12t or 13t. But I don’t need a 1 tooth gap, 12-13-14, on a mtb. The 13t is a wasted cog that I ‘d rather have elsewhere. I’ve used 12-14-16 without any issues.

You need to figure out the cassette that fits what you want to do. That drives how many speeds.

John

speedyspaghetti

I'll snap a few photos tomorrow when I ride it again. Nothing crazy - I'm mostly a road guy but I've been getting into MTB a bit. There's a lot of hills around here, so a lot of up and down, but nothing technical.

2old

Nine speed with 11 - 36 cassette should work well with 42 - 32 - 22 triple as long as the small cog isn't too close to the frame. Be good if you could try before you buy. Also, (IMO), you can just "stretch" the frame 5 mm if necessary; no need to cold set.

speedyspaghetti

Ok so based on your (very helpful) input and that of others, maybe I will stick with the 3x on the front then but just move to a bigger cassette on the back. I did buy a wide range freewheel (this one) but I couldn't get the rear derailleur to shift into the biggest cog without rubbing against it. I wonder if this would be fixable with a derailleur hanger extender such as this in order to access the bigger cogs. Otherwise, I might just buy that wheelset and put a 9 speed cassette on it, but then I would have to buy a new shifter.

70sSanO

That Mega freewheel is horrific unless you use it as 14-24 6 speed road with the 34t as a bailout gear.

Here's the thing, everything depends on how you want to use your MB-3. If it is going to be a part time road and part time mtb, or you need to ride it on pavement some distance to get to a trailhead, a triple isn't a bad way to go. It gives you more top end. If you are not going to do that, I'd dump the large chainring.

If you were going to ride more technical trails at speed, a 1x10 or 11 makes a lot more sense as you do not have to mess with a FD shift when trying to maintain momentum. But for easy to low intermediate trails, you can go to a 2x. I was 61 when I built my bikes, which were out of the 90's, I decided to go 2x7, now 2x8, with enough overlap so I could minimize chainring shifting. In hindsight I should have gone with a modern bike with larger wheels and taken less of a beating, but that is a different subject.

By overlap gearing, I can ride my middle position 34t through all 8 cogs over a lot of terrain where the climbing is not too steep. A lot of rides are out and back or a loop where there are longer sections of climbing and then coming back down. I can run in the 24t when I am climbing and use 7 of 8 cogs, or all 8 in a pinch. But there are a number of ratios that are close enough to where it doesn't matter which chainring I'm in, so I don't shift chainrings until I need to.

Personally, I would never go with a freewheel on a mountain bike. I think a 2x9 is good option with the middle ring set up to cover nearly everything you need, and the inner ring for climbing and some overlap. I'm assuming you have a 110/74 crank. This will give you a minimum of a 34t in the middle and a 24t on the inner. Of course you can go larger.

John

speedyspaghetti

Thanks again for all the time and knowledge you're giving me here. Ok, so I do mostly use on the trails but I also use it to get to the trails as you mentioned, so a 2x or 3x setup would then be preferable based on that. The question is then whether to go for those wheels we mentioned above and slap on a 9 or 10s on the back, but then I would still need a new derailleur and shifter, right? I can handle most of the climbs I do with the current gearing, but its not fun and you're right, that freewheel is a disaster.

speedyspaghetti

Here a few photos I snapped today before my ride!

LesterOfPuppets

Nice 1987. Bummer the orig shifters are gone. I remember having trouble indexing suntour rear ends with shimano shifters, could get the top 5 or the bottom 5 shifting well, but never the whole cluster at once.

Also check rear end spacing. It might be 130mm, which would have to be spread a bit for a modern wheel. Seems like about a 50/50 chance between 130/135 in that era of 7sp freewheels.

70sSanO

Nice bike.

At this point, since you are able to ride it, just get a 7 speed freewheel and see how it goes. The best I have found are older Sachs Aris LYxx freewheels, but they are pretty scarce and very expensive. I have heard that IRD (Interloc Racing Designs) make quality 7 speed freewheels. You can get a 13-32 that will give you a little lower gearing. They are not cheap, but they are supposed to be well made.

You may want to pick up a spare rear axle or two in case you happen bend the one you have.

Ride it as a 3x7 and just enjoy it. You will know when to make the change.

Good luck!

John

speedyspaghetti

Yeah unfortunately it was missing a lot of parts when I found it. Some guy had the frame + crankset + brakes for $25 on Craigslist and I just jumped on it as soon as the ad went up. He said he got like 40 messages about it just in 1 day. I also have an MB-6 (which I think is a '91) and that one has a full Suntour XCM groupset so I'm planning on keeping that one all original. I did find a few Deore shifters on eBay but they are like $70 for decent condition ones so I figured I'd try these crap Shimanos for $11 for the pair before moving onto something else if they suck (and they do).


This is how I bought the MB-3

And this is the MB-6 the day I bought it

70sSanO

Unfortunately the prices on older parts have gone insane lately. It seems that during this pandemic adding NOS to anything bumps it up to a ridiculous amount.

Yes those shifters are not very good. I used to buy older STX for inexpensive 7 speed shifters ($15). I like the newer block shape over the early 90’s bowl cover design.

I have not tried Microshift or the newer Shimano M310/M315. I would be more inclined to try the M315 7 speed, unless someone here has experience with both Microshift and Shimano and can give better advice.

John

katsup

I've been throwing on the Shimano M310 or M315 on riders and they work well. They are now my preferred choice if choosing modern 7/8sp shifter.

The OP has a few additional options in the 9sp+ category.