Upgrade/Repair options - 17 year old Claud Butler

Jamieg285

Just over 17 years ago I forked out £400 for a Claud Butler Centaur. In that time it's seen plenty of time doing nothing in the shed and a few odd commutes of less than 5 miles each way. In the last couple of years it been getting a lot more use, initially on 10mile road route, but more and more frequently around the trails around Luton. One thing it's not really had is maintenance (pretty much ever).

I'm looking to get a new bike in 2012, but was to try and make sure that this one will last that long. Things are now starting to show up as issues, which ideally need sorting out, but I'm limited on budget. Gear shifts are rough, often skipping up or down to far, despite trying to adjust them. The lower three cogs on the cassette have play in them, which I'm pretty sure shouldn't be there. The chain looks rough, as you'd expect given the lack of cleaning and lubrication.

I'm worried that if one thing breaks, i.e. chain or cog, I'll find myself having to spend a lot to get it sorted, i.e. replace the whole groupset.

It's currently equipped with original Shimano Alivio, 24/32/42 chainset and 11-28 7 speed cassette.

Being as almost everything I read is about 9 and 10 speeds, what (cheap) options do I have to make up for the maintenance I should have been doing?

What's the minimum I could get away with?
What's the minimum I should do?
What's the best thing to do?
Are there any upgrades worth considering?

cooldad

Cables and chain, lube and adjust, and see from there.

Raymondavalon

Off to the bike shop for new brake & gear cables as well as indexing and it should shift gears like a baby
It's very doubtful whether the "groupset" would need replacing, derailleurs work as long as the cables are in good nick.
Lastly, perhaps a chain and cassette (these should always be replaced together) at the very worst.
I'd be more concerned about the tyres perishing seeing as they're a decade old...

.blitz

Gear cables. The most overlooked part of the drivetrain. It's surprising how well it all works when the connection from your thumb to the mech is a smooth, clean cable.

Shift into the biggest cog at the rear then all the way back down again without turning the pedals, there will be enough slack in the cables to unhook them from the guides on the frame. Remove any dirt from around the ferrules then clean the inners with WD40 and wire wool, slide them in and out of the outers until they move easily. The slightest bit of friction will stop them from working properly.

SP41 gear outer is £3/m and the ferrules are 60-70p each. You can use the old outers as a guide.

Jamieg285

I've been taking a closer look and I'm now looking at replacing more than just the cables. The chain is well worn, as are the cassette teeth, and to a degree the chainrings. I'm a little concerned about the cassette/freewheel. The sprockets have a small amount of play between each other (rotational) - is this likely to be the sprockets which means a replacement will solve it, or could the freewheel be damaged?

Also, I need some help working out what replacement parts I can get.

I'm fairly sure an HG50 chain and HG30 cassette will fit, but I'm struggling with the chainset and mechs. The chainset is marked as FC-MC12 (on a square bore BB), with 5 arms. I've not been able to find replacement chainrings that would fit, and don't have a clue how to select a new chainset.

The rear mech is RD-MC12 - what can I replace this with, whilst remaining on a budget?

Any advice greatly appreciated.

andrewjoseph

sound like there may be wear of the freehub splines, allowing some cogs to move when they shouldn't.

so possibly a new freehub as well as a cassette and chain.