Riders4Rights

Hello! I'm fairly new to this forum and bikes in general but I am hoping some of you may have some advice

I purchased what I am fairly certain is a 80's Puch Pathfinder 10 speed on facebook marketplace. It rides ~fine~ but the front derailleur is stiff and won't move at all (may be a cable issue?) and the gears have some hard residue on them.

I am going to try and clean it up as best I can but my main question is: If I wanted to replace the gear-set entirely, is there a brand y'all would recommend? I have been trying to do research on which gearsets would be compatible but it is rather tricky to find someone who has replaced them.

cyclist2000

When you say gear-set, do you mean the gears in the rear? are there only 5 gears in the rear? Photos would help, but you need 10 posts to post photos or links

Riders4Rights

Apologies, I mean both gears, the two in the front and the five in the back. They have some sort of hard residue on them. Despite using solvent and a gentle brillo brush it hasn't really done much.

Yeah - a little restricted by the ten post requirement, but I'll try and post some more so I can meet it.

cyclist2000

The rear is a freewheel and that can be replaced, its best to take it to a shop for removal, because it will need a specific tool that will cost more than the shop removing it. Do you have any idea about the gear range that you want to use? You can replace it with a 6 or 7 speed freewheel too, that would depend on your shifters.

Some example of freewheels

dsbrantjr

The gears are probably steel, possibly aluminum, I would not hesitate to use a scraper, putty knife or the like to get the residue off.
Never Fix A Running Piece. Many old bikes have very few miles on them. If the gears run smoothly there is not a lot to gain by replacing them.

alcjphil

Dirt or residue on the chainrings and freewheel cogs is not really a very good reason for replacement unless they are also very worn. As for the front derailleur, cable friction is far more likely to be the cause of the problem as opposed to the derailleur and shifter being worn out.

SurferRosa

Buy Park tools and do a full overhaul. Deanodize and polish the crankset. Replace chainrings if needed. Replace the freewheel with a new one (chromed Sunrace) and the chain with a new 8-speed (kmc or sram). Buy everything from ebay.

Mr. 66

Before an upgrade, (which is ok to do) if the wheels spin well enough to rebuild, I would wire brush the chain, clean and lube. Definitely lube up and clean the derailleurs, wd-40 is your friend. See if you can get that breakaway feel in the pivots.

Riders4Rights

OK thank you so much for the guidance!

Riders4Rights

Will do! Thanks!

Riders4Rights

Incredibly helpful! Thank you so much!

speedyspaghetti

Once you get to 10, definitely post some pictures. How you want to use the bike will dictate what you should do to "upgrade" it. As others have mentioned, if it works well and you just want a ridable bike, give it a clean, replace the cables and housings, replace the chain, and maybe pay someone to tune-up the shifting if you don't feel comfortable (although it really isn't hard and there a ton of good videos on YouTube that will guide you). If you want to modernize the bike with modern components, that will require more parts and money. If that's the route you want to go, it can be done, but you will spend more than if you just bought another bike with the components you already want on it.

rogerm3d

WD-40 is the key, anytime I pickup a bike that has been sitting for a long time I soak it down with WD-40. For the cables if they move a little bit you can shift into your biggest gear (do this on one derailleur at a time to avoid being in the biggest gear on the front and back). Once in the biggest gear drop some oil onto the gear cable and shift into the smallest gear, do this a couple of times to work the oil in and break things loose.
If the bike has been sitting for a long time letting the oil soak into the derailleurs may be all that's needed. Soak the pivots on the derailleur (any part that moves) and let it sit (or like with the cables running it through the range of motion will work the oil into it.

dedhed

This. I've brought back to life many derailleurs/cables/brakes on bikes that sat rusting in the elements and people couldn't afford (or justify) replacing those parts.
I'll use better stuff than WD though. Kroil/PB blaster/Screwloose work better. Clean grime off first, soak, Work back & forth while adding more lube. Wipe & repeat. Old galvanized cables I'll pull out and run over with emery cloth to knock rust off.