dweenk

When I over oil my hubs that have plastic oil ports, the oil drips out of the non-drive side around the axle (they all have kickstands and lean left - come to think of it, I lean left as well). On my older Sears/Steyr it seems to hold oil even upside down, but that's the first bike with a metal oil port that I've ever had that did not leak.

Velocivixen

@dweenk - that's what I figured.

Ive vey been telling myself that I should ride to the gym. Beats traffic & less than 2 miles away. HoweverI worry about it getting stolen. I finally decided to ride Prince Phillip - figured nobody would want to steal a 60 y/o three speed that's all faded. I think Phillip will officially be my beater bike.

dweenk

Prince Phillip looks too good to be a beater - I prefer "go-to utility bike". You should see my Sears/Steyr for a beater - I found a bent Wald front basket that is nearly as good as a U-Lock. Don'cha just love having a bike that is as ugly as sin that functions perfectly.

clasher

Well I scored a Superbe in my size with all the trimmings, but I didn't notice some dork had to crank down on the kickstand so much they crushed the tubes. I didn't pay a fortune for the bike and I'm sure it's more than rideable, in fact I rode it around the neighbourhood and nothing seemed wrong with it at all, but still I'm kinda bummed. The only thing missing is a key for the fork, of course. I even have a pair of aluminum rims I was thinking about rebuilding the wheels but now I dunno. I have a grand prix I am doing a 3 speed drop-bar conversion on so I might just leave this Raleigh unmolested.

Velocivixen

@dweenk - good call. It's my utility bike. I parked near a new Surly Disc Trucker. Figured a thief would want that more.


Here's Prince Phillip waiting for me while I do yoga at the gym.
I1955 Phillips aka "Prince Phillip" by velocivixen, on Flickr

BigChief 

I use heavy, 90 weight gear oil or lately, Phil Woods Tenacious oil for my hubs. I don't want oil to get into the greased bearings, so I add it sparingly. Only a few drops per season. Even after years of use, I've seen that the internals are still covered with oil when I have it apart for a re-grease.
With small amounts of heavy weight oil, leakage isn't a problem.

Velocivixen

@BigChief - I've been using 10w/30 motor oil because I had some & I have an oil can with a hose & a press down sort of nozzle handle. Anyway I'm likely putting too much in, and too often. I have Tenacious oil so I think I'll switch to that. I've got black dirt stuck to oil on my spokes & rim & hub all the time.

gna

I worked on the Popular Special today, and the cranks DO have Sir Walter on them. A standard Raleigh Headset nut fits fine on the fork. I say it's a Raleigh.

Sixty Fiver

I put a catch rag under the hub after I lube them... the oil is most often as clean coming out as it went in and then I use that little bit of oil to wipe down the bike.

This flushing action is removes any contaminants from the hub, a completely sealed hub would not be able to do this.

Harley Davidson tried to apply this to their motorcycles but it did not work as well.

Velocivixen

Oh, makes sense & perfect timing. I just put a catch rag under the oil port a few hours ago. I'm pretty sure I've been over oiling it, and using too thin of oil. Anyway...live and learn right?

Sixty Fiver

I use 10w30 synthetic in sparing amounts... the Aw hubs gets a little louder when it is thirsty and it does not take much to make them purr.

I have been building bicycles for our co-op and a huge number of old 3 speeds have passed through the stand and most have already found new homes.

Velocivixen

OK, I have to ask. What is the most modern frame you made into a 3 speed? Just curious. I've got an AW 3 speed rear hub & GH6 front hub, and have overhauled both. Not laced to anything. I'm getting creative in my head and thinking about what bike I could make into a 3 speed.

Fidbloke

That's interesting to hear. I wondered how they compared to other tyres.
I have some Michelin City Protek Plus tyres on my Raleigh Chiltern at the moment. It came with Raleigh Records, but they were starting to show their age and I replaced them with the Michelins for better puncture protection.
Initially, I ran them at 85psi, because I'd always run tyres at the max pressure for puncture protection, but I let them down to 60psi and the ride has noticeably improved. They won't stop bigger knocks, like the edge of drain covers etc., but they seem to soak up the little 'niggly' roughness now.

It's interesting to hear 'markk900's' remark about the rolling speed of the Panaracers as well. I might still try a set, when I get round to needing new tyres on one of my bikes..

Fidbloke

Many British motorcycle manufacturers tried the same method, but people wanted bikes which not only kept the oil inside, but they wanted bikes that started in the morning as well. They often ended up buying Japanese ones as a result.

Fidbloke

A modern 10w30 is going to be pretty runny stuff and more like a nicely brewed tea in its viscosity...
I thought that the 'ideal' oil for bikes was straight 30 grade, as used in lawn mowers and the like.?

Bandera

"Sturmey lubrication: the best oil with which to lubricate a Sturmey hub is an oil produced for petrol lawn mowers known as 30W four-stroke motor mower engine oil."
-Classic Lightweights UK Restoration

"Use machine oil, not a spray lube or other thin oil. Unless a hub has sealed bearings, also use grease, to form a seal at the bearings and help keep the oil in. "
-Sheldon Brown

The OEM Sturmey oil was non-detergent machine oil which is what 30W lawn mower oil is.



In practice use restraint in oiling an AW w/ Phil, mower oil or whatever potion one chooses, a few drops when the hub sounds like it needs it are all that are required.

-Bandera

BigChief 

When I have the hub apart for bearing greasing, I apply tenacious oil on the places I figure it would be
hard for it to migrate to on it's own. Like the pawl and planet gear pins. Then, I give everything a light
coating before reassembly. Over the years, I've had maybe 10 different SA hubs that I've serviced. Somebody
that services them for a living could give a better assessment than I can, but so far, I've never seen
a hub with worn down gear teeth or pins. And they always seem to be oily. There doesn't seem to be enough
heat and friction there to break down gear oil. What I have seen is badly worn ball bearing races.
IMO, that is the main area of concern, so I clean and grease the bearings on my daily riders every couple of years.
I'm just a backyard mechanic, not a pro, but what concerns me about over oiling SA hubs with light oil,
besides being messy, is oil getting into the ball bearings and lowering the viscosity of the grease.
So what we have with a SA hub is two different lubrication systems and they're not really separated.
Oil for the gears and grease for the bearings. So what you want is just enough sticky oil to coat the
gears, but not so much as to leak into the greased bearings.

clasher

I built an AW into a 559 rim and made a city bike out of a late 80s "ATB" frame. It was already had nice upright bars and was spaced to 120mm since it was a 5 speed bike in it's original form. Norco made a lot of frames that were like this in the 80s. I imagine most rigid MTB frames would make great 3 speeds if they have horizontal dropouts or even chain tensioners. I imagine brakes with a lot of pad adjustment could even work with 590 wheels.

I have the same pair of hubs I'm waiting to build into something and I think if I find a decent old frame I might make another 3 speed ATB.

Sixty Fiver

I converted my '88 Kuwahara Shasta with an AW and a dual drive setup... this worked really well.





The Shasta got tuned back into a fully geared touring / trekking bike and now lives with my nephew... put that wheelset into a Norco mountain bike after that for winter riding.

adventurepdx

I pretty much agree with you there, though I did find the Col de La Vies for about $25 each once, and didn't feel that they were slower. But yeah, there were clearance issues, and the worst part was how many flats I got with them.

Which is why I think they flat easy: That old-school "block" tread looks cool, but catches little things like pebbles...and glass. And with barely any puncture protection...

markk900

Slower for 2 reasons - compared to the cheaper Kendas (with the raised centre) that run at higher pressures, and secondly the width. Like I said though, they ride nicely....just not "fast". Main issue is the low pressure and the trouble getting them here in my area.

madras13

Thank you for posting the link to the Sturmey Archer heritage site. I am restoring 1957 Humber Sports with a SW hub and have found very little information about that hub. The heritage site has the manual for the SW hub so now I have something to work from. Most people say to avoid the SW and replace it with the AW but I am a die hard preservationist and will do my best to keep all the original aspects including the front dyno hub. Thanks!

ncrnelson

Not particularly new. 1987 Cannondale SM400 with an SA SRF3 hub. Soon to get a chain tensioner, somewhat to my dismay, but the magic gearing just isn't quite low enough for the fatter tires and dirt path riding. Moving from 17 rear 40 front to a 19 in the rear.

JohnDThompson 

Not a concern as long as you add new oil regularly so there is always lubrication in the bearing.

JohnDThompson 

I have a couple SW hubs here. My experience with them is that they're very easy to overhaul -- fewer parts than the AW and no fiddly pawl springs to deal with -- but the springless pawls do not catch as reliably as the AW's sprung pawls. Most of the time this just means you might go half a crank rotation or more before they catch, but in cold weather the problem is exacerbated. When it gets below freezing you really can't count on them catching at all!

I also have an SW modified to use flat springs under the pawls in the manner Brian Hayes describes on Sheldon Brown's site. This works well, but the flat springs do wear because the pawls rock on them and eventually erode through the spring.

N.B. I do have a supply of SW spare parts, if you find you need something.