elbowging

Hello c&v enthusiasts,

I'm looking to upgrade my 70s-era Sturmey AW hub with a Sturmey Archer XL-RD3. However, I'm kind of at my wits' end trying to source this hub. It seems to be sold out everywhere. Sturmey-Archer's website seems to be down and has been down for months. I bought the matching front hub (XL-FD) about five years ago and I'm now kicking myself for not buying the rear hub back then when it was available (I opted instead to build a new 26 x 1 3/8 alloy wheel around the existing 70s AW). After about 3-4 years I wore down that alloy rim since I kept the original rear caliper brake, and figured it was a good time to upgrade and switch to rear drum. This is on a 1970s Raleigh sports, my daily city commuter.

Does anyone have tips for where to get this hub, or more info on what the heck is going on with Sturmey Archer? AND/OR... recommendations for a different 3-speed rear hub with a drum brake, or similar... I suppose one option is Shimano's nexus 3 with roller brake (is this any good? I actually have a nexus 8 w/roller brake on another bike and it's OK) but darn it, I do like the Sturmey hubs and I'm annoyed that the XL-RD3 seems to have vanished.

nlerner

Here's one on eBay for not a lot of money: https://www.ebay.com/itm/363520438232

I'm also seeing model S30 X-RD3 available: https://www.treefortbikes.com/Sturme...Drum-Brake-Hub

Finally, the Sturmey Archer site seems to be working for me at the moment: https://www.sturmey-archer.com/en/pr.../detail/xl-rd3

tcs

The 90mm brake (XL-RD3) on the rear is unnecessary unless I suppose you regularly descend long steep grades.



As has been pointed out, the 70mm model (Sturmey-Archer X-RD3) is widely available.

JaccoW

Doublepost

JaccoW

That's because as far as I know, that's the older model that uses the narrower 120mm spacing and has internals that can be swapped out with the classic AW hub.
But the website is up and running as far as I can tell. The 70mm RX-RD3 would be its modern replacement and is probably a little more reliable but uses the larger diameter cogs.

While I run 90mm front and rear on my Koga-Miyata SilverAce commuter the regular 70mm would be more than enough in the rear. Mine has a tendency to lock up but then again I ride pretty fast around town. Sometimes you need the extra braking power.

I you really want I could send you the shell from my XL-RD5(w) which should be a direct swap for the AW or 3-speed. The 5-speed gave me too much trouble and eventually destroyed itself because it was impossible to keep adjusted correctly.

JaccoW

Bonus 70mm RX-RD5 shot.

elbowging

Thank you for all the replies. Oddly, the S-A website seemed down for me no matter which browser or device I was using, but it seems that it is being blocked by both my university *and* workplace firewalls. Strange!

I've seen the rotary models (RX-RD3 / S30 XRD3) but had been hesitant due to the difference in mechanism, shifter, and spacing, but maybe that's the way to go. I've definitely spread dropouts before on other bikes.

JaccoW, that's a beautiful commuter! My AW hub is in fine shape and I did a full tear-down/rebuild recently, so swapping the guts into a new shell with a drum brake may not be so far-fetched. I've never done such a thing. I will direct message you because I'm intrigued!

tcs

The XL-RD3 (S30-series) is a 90mm drum brake with AW-NIG type gears and standard, classic pull chain shifting & shifters. These hubs use the classic 3-tab sprockets Sturmey has used since 1952 (Shimano, SRAM and many modern coaster brake hub use these, too.).

The X-RD3 (S30-series) is the same but with a 70mm drum brake. They are available with either a 165mm or 185mm axle for OLDs between 116mm and 135mm.

The RX-RD3 (C30-series) has rotary, inside the dropouts shifting, and has a 70mm drum brake. It uses C30-series shifters with different pull ratios than the S30 (classic, traditional) Sturmey 3-speed shifters. Because of the rotary, inside the dropouts shifting, this hub is wider and only comes with a 185mm axle for use in 135mm OLD frames. It uses the same classic 3-tab sprockets Sturmey has used since 1952. Unique among Sturmey IGHs, the C30 hubs have a 3/8-26 threaded axle.

tcs

Note: the two hubs (AW & X-RD3) use different axles.