[eshew]

I just picked up a 1992 Kona Explosif pro with full Suntour xc pro & have run into a bit of a problem. I know absolutely nothing suntour related in terms of cassette removal, compatibility & replacement.

The original cassette is on good shape aside from the 2nd to last cog which is missing 75% of it's teeth. I was planning on a quick swap like I've done on my shimano hubs plenty of times but suntour is a different bird.

I don't want to sink a ton of $$ buying "NOS" on ebay. What is the cheapest and easiest way to get a new cassette. Due to the micro drive crank this bike comes stock with an 11-24 tooth cassette.

Please oh VRC guru's, bestow your knowledge upon me.

 

[ameybrook]

You'll need two chainwhips to remove the cassette. One to hold the cassette and the other to turn the bottom two cogs which act as as a lockring. The 11t threads onto the 12t.

Cheapest and easiest way is to by something Suntour that isn't NOS... they pop up fairly often.

 

[THE ARS]

I think you'd be happier converting this to a Shimano compatible 9 speed.

No reason to chase NOS parts for that bike, it will be worth more with a modern drivetrain.

Good luck boss.

 

[02_NRS]

keep it suntour/

great find/so the 22t or 23t sprocket is whacked? http://http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Old-Stock-Suntour-Accushift-Plus-23T-Cassette-Sprocket-6-7-8-Speed-Black-/271077127409?pt=US_Cassettes_Freewheels_Cogs&hash=item3f1d74b4f1 should be fixable IF you can remove the first gear.I have had to cut them off at times being impossible to thread off.as previous poster mentioned the first 2 gears thread together.....good luck-post a pic or 2 of the Kona.

 

[unicrown junkie]

Oh God, the worst cassettes ever made, I know since I still have tons of cogs and a few hubs in my garage.

If you plan on actually riding this thing hard, take it off and put a real real wheel on. I blew two XCPros back in the day, and a XC Comp a few years back w/o even trying.

I still use the shifters and brakes, even my Suntour version of Pedersen's just got a 20 mile workout this AM. But those hubs and cogs are total garbage, avoid them like the plague unless this is strictly for show piece stuff then its OK.

 

[DoubleCentury]

But those hubs and cogs are total garbage

Could you elaborate? The hubs are pretty fool proof with sealed cartridge bearings, so I would assume that the freewheel hub version works well. Is the cassette mechanism the weak point? I've not experienced very crisp shifting on the Power Flow cassette, but I mostly blame that on the non-index (brake) cable housing I was using.

 

[Jak0zilla]

Could you elaborate?

They lack the shift ramps and profiled teeth that just about every cassette made since these has. (A grudging thank you to Shimano for that innovation.) So under the best of conditions they don't shift crisply.

The teeth broke off the smaller cogs a lot. Noticeably so. I remember dremel'ing flats onto stripped 1st and 2nd position cogs to use the vice to remove them on numerous occasions.

The cassettes weren't always the easiest to come by BITD when they were new. They didn't have enough market share for them to be deeply stocked at shops. Distributors would run out of 12-30 cassettes routinely.

I always wanted to love these hubs. The thread-on version are some of my favorites. But I've never thought the cassette hubs were a good thing to buy or own, and I'm about as much of a Suntour-o-phile as one can get.

It gives me no pleasure to say these things.

 

[DoubleCentury]

Ha ha!

I hear you on the broken teeth and lack of tooth profiles.

It seems like the hub mechanisms were pretty solid. There are too many versions of the cassette body: 7 and 8 speed, standard and micro.

 

[jeff]

A Suntour to Shimano freehub conversion would be the ticket.

 

[DoubleCentury]

I'll get right on that.

 

[unicrown junkie]

Double Century, I am about as big a Suntour fan like Zilla is just above my post here.

The XC Pro and Comp freehubs would fail in the middle where the freehub is joined to the hub. Ever tried to replace one? I haven't been able to get my hands on one much less install it. So, mine sit at home looking pretty and that's about all they can do.

It ends up "wobbling" right in the center of the hub, and getting indexing to work is almost pointless since the spacing keeps changing constantly.

I love the regular FW hubs(and have two pair at home now), but they too have a serious issue.

The seals in those things aren't meant to withstand any sort of pressure, they let in copious amounts of contaminated grease into the center section of the hub, thereby making GG irrelevant!

 

[DoubleCentury]

Aren't those cartridge lip seals pretty standard on all hubs like Phil, Bullseye, WTB etc.

I've swapped cassette body mechanisms from 7 and 8 and micro and standard many times. Sometimes back and forth as builds change.

Not too long ago, you could get the bodies on eBay fairly easily. What configuration do you need?

 

[unicrown junkie]

On mine the seals are different on the inside, I couldn't understand why I was still having dirty grease in the dang thing until I took it apart and discovered the problem.

I still love the hubs and accept that limitation. But I won't ever use the cassette versions again for regular riding. In fact, I like my Special Ed hubs for my 86 Stumpy Sport, those are beefier and I wish those had come along with cassettes back in '88!

Just next to me on my '91 Ibis is an '89 XT hub, it may look ugly in comparison but tye dang still kicks butt 25 years later, thats what I call longevity