For the love of English 3 speeds...
03-22-21, 09:17 AM
Bikes are okay, I guess.
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Not mine. Some guy on a motorcycle forum said he went by his local bike shop to pick up some patches and was given a bike being left out for scrappers, a Lenton with an S/A four-speed. I told him to post here but in case he doesn't...
Last edited by thumpism; 03-22-21 at 09:26 AM.
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03-22-21, 12:29 PM
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The SA four-speeds are excellent. I really like my FW and its useful for many situations at least in my part of the world with lazy rolling hills. Once its set up, its a great IGH - of course the lowest gear requires more tender use. I went with buying an alloy 50s FW instead of FM (medium-ratio 4sp) due to the FW's hardy internals, similar to an AW. Knock wood it hasn't let me down. The FM looks to be more temperamental. I'm currently building up a UK lightweight - a 1953ish Sun Wasp "Massed Start" 531 frame courtesy of a member here with this hub + dynohub front and other era-appropriate goodies for a weekend tourer. Spring is here!
03-22-21, 12:35 PM
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Looks like an aluminum four too. Good for him, wish him luck!
-Kurt
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03-23-21, 09:23 AM
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Hey guys! Servicing the SA 3spd rear hub and found one of the planetary gears is goofed. Anyone know a source for new ones? Tires are on order and can’t wait to ride this thing!
03-23-21, 09:34 AM
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Fastest way is go to LBS and see if they have any old hubs in the back; you can always use spares. Otherwise google HSA 115 and lots of choices pop up.
03-23-21, 09:39 AM
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Is it an AW? I have a spare. Yours for cost of shipping. PM me.
-Kurt
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03-23-21, 11:33 AM
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Thank you for the offer! I ordered 4 from Harris Cyclery and just gunna keep the others as spares. I appreciate it though! I did end up scoring a 70s Schwinn Suburban for the Ol lady, she was jealous of my classic restoration lol.
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03-23-21, 07:13 PM
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That Suburban would be a nice candidate for a Nexus 8-speed swap.
-Kurt
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03-23-21, 07:19 PM
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03-23-21, 09:11 PM
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I'm a Sturmey FW fan as well. The bottom gear is nice to have. The S5 probably has a bigger fan base, but my preference are the FW and AW.
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Classic American and British Roadsters, Utility Bikes, and Sporting Bikes (1935-1979):
https://bikeshedva.blogspot.com/
Classic American and British Roadsters, Utility Bikes, and Sporting Bikes (1935-1979):
https://bikeshedva.blogspot.com/
03-23-21, 09:14 PM
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03-24-21, 08:37 PM
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03-25-21, 05:39 PM
Bikes are okay, I guess.
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03-27-21, 08:46 AM
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considering the ridiculous prices some are asking for a simple cog/spring etc.
New bike shops often throw them out..
Look out back.in the trash/bin.
03-27-21, 08:54 AM
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I've been guilty myself before I understood how they worked.
03-27-21, 09:12 AM
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I remember the recommendation that the drive side cone have more play than usual, since the NDS cone is used to finalize the hub bearing adjustment (a trace of play to allow for axle nut compression). I don't remember admonitions about play when reassembling the internals; they always fit within tolerances. The biggest and easiest error is putting the low gear pawls backwards for infinite neutral! I learned that as long as the beveled side of the pawl faces the hub shell, it's good!
03-27-21, 09:17 AM
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I'm lost on what you mean here. I remember the recommendation that the drive side cone have more play than usual, since the NDS cone is used to finalize the hub bearing adjustment (a trace of play to allow for axle nut compression). I don't remember admonitions about play when reassembling the internals; they always fit within tolerances. The biggest and easiest error is putting the low gear pawls backwards for infinite neutral! I learned that as long as the beveled side of the pawl faces the hub shell, it's good!
03-27-21, 09:28 AM
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I know that Raleigh folders were sold here in Canada rebranded as Canadian Tire Supercycles but here's an Eatons Road King version.
Previously, Eatons sold rebranded Raleighs as the "Glider" brand.
**I re read the ad and it says made in Hungary**
Previously, Eatons sold rebranded Raleighs as the "Glider" brand.
**I re read the ad and it says made in Hungary**
03-28-21, 06:32 AM
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Hello, I haven’t looked in on this thread in a while, and I hope everyone is well, spared from Covid (please) and enjoying their rides. I’m getting plenty of enjoyable miles out of my three-speeds, the step-thru Sports in particular. Had a bit of a mystery problem with the BB, which turned out to be a worn-down fixed cup.
But lately my friend Max has posed a challenge. He doesn’t want to get rid of his old Raleigh three speed, for reasons I won’t go into but understand, but insists he needs lower gears. He knows the cog can be swapped out for a bigger one, but he wants not just a lower low gear but more gears.
Is there a reasonably simple way to do this? I can’t think of it. We might be able to find an old FW or S5 hub and shifter and have a new wheel built or swap the internals into the existing hub shell. But here in the USA, those hubs and 4 speed shifters are hard to come by. Max might also be dubious about spending on such old parts. I'd have to find out.
Max thinks he can buy a new five or eight speed hub off Amazon and have a wheel built with that, but Max doesn’t know about overlocknut dimensions, rear triangle spacing, or the width of the slots in the rear dropout. SA offer a current 4 speed hub with 120 mm spacing, which at least isn’t too far off, but would the slots need to be filed back?
Convert the bike to an old style 5 speed derailer bike. Used parts should be cheap and not hard to find. There must be a way to fix a derailer hanger to the dropout. Would need to swap the drive side crank to work with the narrower derailer chain, I think (not sure). But those slots would need filing, wouldn't they?
Maybe swap the front drive side crank for a two-ring from a derailer bike, add a front derailer and a rear chain tensioner?
Or add an extra sprocket and derailer to the existing AW hub. But that’s hardware from the old days. Again, very hard to find all that in the USA.
This one has me scratching my head.
But lately my friend Max has posed a challenge. He doesn’t want to get rid of his old Raleigh three speed, for reasons I won’t go into but understand, but insists he needs lower gears. He knows the cog can be swapped out for a bigger one, but he wants not just a lower low gear but more gears.
Is there a reasonably simple way to do this? I can’t think of it. We might be able to find an old FW or S5 hub and shifter and have a new wheel built or swap the internals into the existing hub shell. But here in the USA, those hubs and 4 speed shifters are hard to come by. Max might also be dubious about spending on such old parts. I'd have to find out.
Max thinks he can buy a new five or eight speed hub off Amazon and have a wheel built with that, but Max doesn’t know about overlocknut dimensions, rear triangle spacing, or the width of the slots in the rear dropout. SA offer a current 4 speed hub with 120 mm spacing, which at least isn’t too far off, but would the slots need to be filed back?
Convert the bike to an old style 5 speed derailer bike. Used parts should be cheap and not hard to find. There must be a way to fix a derailer hanger to the dropout. Would need to swap the drive side crank to work with the narrower derailer chain, I think (not sure). But those slots would need filing, wouldn't they?
Maybe swap the front drive side crank for a two-ring from a derailer bike, add a front derailer and a rear chain tensioner?
Or add an extra sprocket and derailer to the existing AW hub. But that’s hardware from the old days. Again, very hard to find all that in the USA.
This one has me scratching my head.
03-28-21, 07:05 AM
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When I was a kid in the 1960s I had a English 3 speed. By the time I was 16 I added front and rear derailleurs. I used 2 sprockets on the rear 3 speed hub and 2 front chain rings which gave me a total of 12 gears. By the time I went to collage I took it all off as all that extra weight wasn't worth it for riding around campus. Roger
03-28-21, 07:54 AM
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When I was a kid in the 1960s I had a English 3 speed. By the time I was 16 I added front and rear derailleurs. I used 2 sprockets on the rear 3 speed hub and 2 front chain rings which gave me a total of 12 gears. By the time I went to collage I took it all off as all that extra weight wasn't worth it for riding around campus. Roger
03-28-21, 11:54 AM
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My bomber 1981
03-28-21, 02:29 PM
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03-28-21, 03:56 PM
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When I was a kid in the 1960s I had a English 3 speed. By the time I was 16 I added front and rear derailleurs. I used 2 sprockets on the rear 3 speed hub and 2 front chain rings which gave me a total of 12 gears. By the time I went to collage I took it all off as all that extra weight wasn't worth it for riding around campus. Roger