Index shifter on vintage 5-speed cassette?

Your mom must be really tall if she can ride a bike exactly like that one.

This may be useless info, but 6, 7 and 8 are spaced so similarly, an 8 spd shifter will run a 6spd drivetrain. Haven't seen 5 in a while, but I just stock 8 spd grip shift sets at the shop, and use them for all cheapo replacement situations, much easier, and with a minor explanation, everyone just rocks it and smiles. Worth a try if you have an old set floating around....

Well if changing the cassette is an option I am open to it, though I'd rather just index the 5-speed.

Are there 6/7 or even 8spd cassettes that will fit on a 130mm spaced wheel?

I think b/c it's a 5 spd freewheel on a 130 hub, indexing will be hard to achieve.

-Schmitty-

thaibuddie said:

Well if changing the cassette is an option I am open to it, though I'd rather just index the 5-speed.

Are there 6/7 or even 8spd cassettes that will fit on a 130mm spaced wheel?

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What I'm saying is, if you have a 6, 7 or 8 spd shifter, it may work. I've run 8 spd shifters on 6, 7 and 8 spd drivetrains, and it's been fine. I just haven't tried it on a 5 that I can recall, so I can't say absolutely that it works. :thumbsup:

Right.. but I haven't ever seen a 5 spd freewhell with any kind of tooth profile... even if the spacing was ok, seems like it would shift like hell on the road... hell they barely friction shift!

-Schmitty-

Yes, I have noticed friction shifting the thing is less than smooth.

So, I guess my best option would be replacing the cassette with a 6/7/8 speed. Is this possible on the 130mm spaced wheel?

THANKS!

thaibuddie said:

Yes, I have noticed friction shifting the thing is less than smooth.

So, I guess my best option would be replacing the cassette with a 6/7/8 speed. Is this possible on the 130mm spaced wheel?

THANKS!

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Campy has 11 sp cassettes on a 130mm hub. Nuff said!

'cassette' being the key word.

-Schmitty-

thaibuddie said:

So, I guess my best option would be replacing the cassette with a 6/7/8 speed. Is this possible on the 130mm spaced wheel?

THANKS!

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I don't recall anyone ever producing a 5-speed cassette. More than likely, if it is 5-speed it is a freewheel, not a cassette.

5-speed spacing is 5.5mm, which is the same as 6-speed spacing. 7 and 8-speed spacing is 5.0mm.

More importantly, what kind of derailleur is on the bike? If it's pre-indexing then you may have issues getting it to work without a lot of experimentation.

Yes, it is a Suntour 5 speed freewheel. I had just assumed is was a cassette as I am not familiar with anything else. I am assuming that a freewheel is part of the hub and cannot just be swapped-out for a freewheel of more gears?
The original derailer (Suntour MounTech) is what I would like to replace with a more modern indexing derailer. With the knowledge that the spacing is the same as on 6/7/8 speeds, it sounds like I can proceed with that. However I am still curious if it is possible to change the 5 spd freewheel or if it's just part of that wheel and cannot be changed. THANKS!

The freewheel can be changed. Your best bet will probably be to find an index compatible 6 speed freewheel and a matching 6-speed shifter and derailleur.

Sounds good muddybuddy, and recommendations? Are freewheels pretty universal or is there a specific type I will be looking for?

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/gloss_e-f.html#freewheel is a good read to learn more about freewheels.