densolo

Is drivetrain swapping a possibility?


What I mean by that is, swapping a french threaded freewheel (and drivetrain) with an english threaded freewheel (and drivetrain)?


Why would I want to do that?


I've got an extra rear wheel with an english threaded hub (which is different than the original french threaded hub/freewheel). But I have a Sunrace freewheel that I can use instead. So I figure I'm half way there to have a swappable drivetrain.


But I'm not sure (hence my question). The thing is, I've read that because of wear, the chain should be swapped with the freewheel. My question is, does that also apply to the chainrings? Lastly, is there anything in the bottom bracket that would prevent me from swapping in (and out) the drivetrain? Or is it a bad idea?


Thanks

Bianchigirll 

I'm no expert but I don't think you can do that

densolo

I figure the answer was no (why hasn't anyone tried it before?) as well, but I thought I'd ask. I've never seen it written anywhere.

But theoretically, if I leave the fixed cup, adjustable cup in the BB, and the spindle doesn't change, and I change the chainrings, chain and freewheel, then along with my wheels I can swap out the entire drivetrain.
I just figure if I can do it, I can extend the useful life of the bike (french parts will become harder to come by).

Thanks

Moe Zhoost

French freewheel threading is not compatible with English. You can mount an English freewheel on an Italian threaded hub, but not the other way around (well, maybe you could but it may be a loose fit). If all you are doing is swapping wheels around, your bottom bracket is not a factor. Replacing chain and chainrings when you change the freewheel? I would say that this is neither mandatory nor even recommended. It all depends on wear. If you've maintained your chain well and replaced when stretched, you should be ok with the other components.

dedhed

You really need to define what you mean by " drive train". It sounds like you have a second English threaded hub wheel and freewheel to "replace" the French ones completely. Swapping in the second wheel isn't an issue if it's the same size. Might need to dial in the brakes a bit and check derailleur limit screws. They both use the same 3/32 chain so the crank/derailleurs don't care what wheel/freewheel they're driving. There are some changes once you get to 9 speed related to the width of the chain, but the pitch doesn't change. Now if you want to start swapping cranks you open up a whole nother set of questions

See also above.


Maillard french-threaded freewheels - South Salem Cycleworks

JohnDThompson 

You can replace your metric thread hub and freewheel with an English thread hub and freewheel. Some derailleur adjustment is likely as the chainline could be subtly different. If the replacement freewheel is new, a new chain is advisable to avoid problems. If it is worn similarly to the original freewheel, you may be able to use the current chain. You have nothing to lose by trying it; if it skips on the small sprockets, replace it. Chainrings spread the wear over far more teeth than freewheel sprockets and seldom present a problem. Nothing in the bottom bracket is likely to be relevant.

SurferRosa

Wording in the op is overly complicated. The main issue here is that French and standard/english threading are not compatible.

densolo

Awesome. I think you answered my question! So it is possible.

By drivetrain, I mean the chainwheel (Dancing Chain uses this term instead of chainring, sorry), plus chain plus freewheel. So the idea of swapping is to remove the french threaded freewheel vs english threaded freewheel problem.
I just wanted to ask whether the chainwheel has any affect in my proposal. And your answer is no. And also, your comment about the chain is helpful as well, i.e. I can use a standard chain (for 5sp.) and it would work interchangeably (between my original french-threaded freewheel and substitute english-threaded freewheel).

So that means I can just swap the rear wheel and it might just work out!

Thanks

Random Tandem

I would not hesitate to go ahead with your plan, but I think I would stick with your idea of using a different chain with each wheel/freewheel set, even though they are the same size chains. My hesitation to using the same chain is that I would not want to have to replace the French freewheel any sooner than necessary (as they are difficult for me to obtain replacements YMMV). It means you are going to have to split the chain every time you swap the wheels, which is a hassle, or worse. I would not have any concern with using the same chainrings for both chains, as so many more teeth are engaged (so wear is slower and I rarely encounter problems with differing wear), and replacing chainrings is just one of those things we do. I suppose if it were me, I would expect that I would eventually mainly ride the non-french set, and keep the french set for “special occasions”.

I think this is not different in principle from people who back in the day had a lighter set of racing wheels for days when they want to go really fast, except you will have a special set for when you want to go really french! (I did not add any photos of “really french” as they may not meet with community standards.)

-Will

dedhed

You buy a couple $10 6/7/8 speed chains with quick links and it's not a big deal.