6 speed cassette

Robbie1958
Robbie1958 Posts: 148
edited August 2011 in Workshop
i recently bought a reynolds 531 mercian bike. not sure of the age, but the last two digits on the frame number are 86, so i am not sure if that the year of manufacture or not. i only mention it because i have a six speed cassette i am fairly sure it is a cassette rather then a freewheel (is there an easy way to tell?) if it is a cassette and i order a new one, can anyone tell me what chain to buy to go with it?.

sorry for the newbie question, but don't want to order the wrong thing.

Thanks Robbie
Colnago..............The name on the worlds finest bikes

Comments

  • rolf_f
    rolf_f Posts: 16,015
    Probably freewheel - ring up Spa Cycles - they'll have what you need!

    http://www.spacycles.co.uk/
    Faster than a tent.......
  • centimani
    centimani Posts: 467
    Robbie1958 wrote:
    i recently bought a reynolds 531 mercian bike. not sure of the age, but the last two digits on the frame number are 86, so i am not sure if that the year of manufacture or not. i only mention it because i have a six speed cassette i am fairly sure it is a cassette rather then a freewheel (is there an easy way to tell?) if it is a cassette and i order a new one, can anyone tell me what chain to buy to go with it?.

    sorry for the newbie question, but don't want to order the wrong thing.

    Thanks Robbie
    The lowest speed cassette ive seen is 7...i 'm not saying it IS the lowest, but anyway, a cassette is splined and slides onto the freehub, a freewheel is screwed onto the hub, so you're looking for threads instead of splines.
    Dont forget both have splines anyway, so you can engage a tool to remove either.
  • PieterM
    PieterM Posts: 167
    I used to ride with 6 speed Shimano cassettes in the mid 80s. If it is a Shimano hub from that era then you can tell if it is a cassette or a freewheel by looking at the hub. There is a distinctive bulge that extends halfway from the right flange to the middle of the hub.
    European Cycling Trips: http://bikeplustours.com
  • cabbage1879
    cabbage1879 Posts: 113
    edited August 2011
    More than likely a 6 speed freewheel, easiest way to tell is to take the wheel off and just look at the block front on. There will be a small recess on a freewheel, were as on a cassette the lock ring is almost flush.
  • Monty Dog
    Monty Dog Posts: 20,614
    FWIW if you have a 6 speed cassette, its proably a Uniglide which are long since discontinued:

    http://www.sheldonbrown.com/k7.html#uniglide

    As article says, best solution is to fit a later model Hyperglide freehub body and cassette which are readily available.

    If screw-on freewheel, these are readily available.
    Make mine an Italian, with Campagnolo on the side..
  • Robbie1958
    Robbie1958 Posts: 148
    Hi folks

    Thanks for the replies. i thought just to clarify i would post a picture. not sure if this helps or not.

    100_1371.jpg


    "can you tell what it is yet"?
    Colnago..............The name on the worlds finest bikes
  • Monty Dog
    Monty Dog Posts: 20,614
    Uniglide cassette - identified by 9 evenly-spaced splines and the screw-on top sprocket. As I said in my previous post, long since discontinued but you can fit a 7 speed Hyperglide freehub and cassette as a replacement. See my previous link.
    Make mine an Italian, with Campagnolo on the side..
  • Robbie1958
    Robbie1958 Posts: 148
    Thanks so much for your help.just wanted to make sure.

    Robbie
    Colnago..............The name on the worlds finest bikes
  • forcutty
    forcutty Posts: 1,055
    Yep thats a Uniglide for sure :D
    Looks in good nick tbh i'd keep it and replace/upgrade when needed. Any 7spd Chain will do
  • Robbie1958
    Robbie1958 Posts: 148
    Thanks guys. thought i would post a pic of the bike that it sits on.

    http://i959.photobucket.com/albums/ae73 ... 0_1363.jpg
    Colnago..............The name on the worlds finest bikes
  • Monty Dog
    Monty Dog Posts: 20,614
    Has somebody told you that the handlebar position is a bit wonky? Nobody will take you seriously if you ride around like that - otherwise flip them right round and ride like Graeme Obree?
    Make mine an Italian, with Campagnolo on the side..
  • Robbie1958
    Robbie1958 Posts: 148
    Well yes i agree. but this is a photo i took when i first got it home..it looks a lot less wonky now..

    Hang on no one takes me seriously anyway, so i won't notice the difference
    Colnago..............The name on the worlds finest bikes
  • keef66
    keef66 Posts: 13,123
    That looks like it's in exceptional nick for it's age, and judging by the close-up of the cassette, hardly ridden.

    Is it as good as the pics suggest?
  • rafletcher
    rafletcher Posts: 1,235
    And for the future, as it's a 531 steel frame (with 126mm rear dropout spacing) you could get it "cold set" to increase that to 130mm, which would allow the upgrade to 9/10/11 speed should uyou ever so desire and be able to afford. Mercians are frames worth cherishing.
  • Robbie1958
    Robbie1958 Posts: 148
    keef66 wrote:
    That looks like it's in exceptional nick for it's age, and judging by the close-up of the cassette, hardly ridden.

    Is it as good as the pics suggest?

    I don't actually know how old it is. The last two digits of the frame number are 86, so i thought that might be the year of maufacture,but not sure.

    I went all the way to Durham for it, because i figured it would be worth it. the bike is in exceptional condition with only two small rub marks on the rear stay. it's a dream to ride, but therein lies the problem. i convinced my wife that i needed a winter/audax bike and she agreed, but it's far to good to ride in the winter, so now i might be looking for another winter bike...My summer bike is also far too good to ride in the winter....How many bikes can a guy own?
    Colnago..............The name on the worlds finest bikes
  • Robbie1958
    Robbie1958 Posts: 148
    rafletcher wrote:
    And for the future, as it's a 531 steel frame (with 126mm rear dropout spacing) you could get it "cold set" to increase that to 130mm, which would allow the upgrade to 9/10/11 speed should uyou ever so desire and be able to afford. Mercians are frames worth cherishing.

    Thanks for that. i had heard you could convert to a 9 or 10 speed. To be honest it's such a lovely bike that i might try and keep it in it's original condition. i am even getting used to the downtube shifters now.
    Colnago..............The name on the worlds finest bikes
  • gaspode
    gaspode Posts: 110
    Robbie1958 wrote:
    I don't actually know how old it is. The last two digits of the frame number are 86, so i thought that might be the year of maufacture,but not sure.
    It's probably a 1986 model, however (just to confuse things) I understand that some of the earlier bikes had the year at the start of the number :? - I know that the shape of the forks changed (I believe in the seventies) - earlier bikes had horizontal fork crowns whereas newer bikes are sloping - my King of Mercia http://www.merciancycles.co.uk/gallery/34/gallery-image/179/ is a 1984 and that has a sloping crown so if yours is similar, that would indicate an 86 bike...if you want to know more, Mercian still have most of their records, so they can look up details of the bikes from the frame number (although they started charging for this a couple of years ago as they were getting flooded with requests from ebayers)
    For info, I've had mine refurbished by Mercian since the photo (now pearlescent white) and had it cold set to 10 speed (plus had some gear bosses added) - not cheap, but the bike is now as good as a brand new bike (and an awful lot cheaper......)

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