Upgrading wheels...7 SPD Drivetrain

Boomswing said:

This is the coolest bike site ever.

This may be a STUPID question, but here goes. I have a 1993 Specialized Stumpjumper with a 7 speed drivetrain and I am wanting to build up another set of wheels with slicks on them. Will I be able to use any rim brake specific wheelset along with a spacer for the cassette to accomplish this? Also, upon installation of the cassette does the spacer go to the inside or the outside of the cassette?

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Yes any rim brake specific wheelset should be right.

Unsure what you can get in 7 speed shimano hubs, I assume you're running Deore XT being a Stumpjumper. I just looked at the US Ebay site and Jones Bikes in Long Beach, California have the HB-730 Deore XT front hub as a buy it now for $18 if you wanted to keep the components of the new wheelset in a similar era to the ones on your bike. Unsure about finding a matching rear hub though and if you were using an 8 speed hub I guess you would have to use a spacer if using a 7 speed casette. My preference would be to place the spacer on the inside next to the spokes but someone with more experience here may help . Maybe check First Flight bikes for a 7 speed Deore XT rear hub of 730 or 732 vintage.

Hope this helps out.

Also the spacer would have to be next to the spokes because the cassette lockring could not be tightened otherwise.

You should also be able to use your current 7 speed freehub on the new hub (or find a new one: Bikeman has an STX-RC for $17: http://www.bikemannetwork.com/biking/p/COMPHUPRTFHSHMTN/FW8946).
According to Sheldon Brown almost all Shimano freehubs are interchangeable.

This assumes that you current have a Shimano hub as the previous poster speculated.

Wombat

Yes, you can and the spacer defenitly goes on the inside. Take care to select a pair of rims with the same width as your current ones so you don't have to adjust your brakes to much every time you swap wheels. If you're going to use a new cassette on the new wheelset you might want to renew the other cassette and the chain as well :thumbsup:

Yup, Any Rim Brake Wheelset Will Work

Any current 8/9spd wheelset will work. It doesn't really matter what kind of hub you're currently running, Shimano, Suntour, freewheel something or other, as you'll be getting a new cassette for the new wheel.

To throw a 7spd cassette on a current hub you put the spacer on the hub first and then the cassette.
Or you can just buy an 8spd cassette and no spacer and adjust the derailleur to lock out one of the cogs. The spacing for 7 and 8 spd is virtually the same and a 7spd shifter will work fine through 7 cogs on an 8spd cassette.