Desperately need some advice for my bike wheels :(

blueschill

Hey guys I have posted before but from last time I fell ill again and haven't managed to get on my bike yet.
I'm ex-military and after my cancer I got a bone disease and have had two hip replacements done so when they are all healed I want to start cycling for fitness more than anything.
I have been ill for so long I am very unfit!

I bought an Apollo 21" men's hybrid cx. 10s a couple of years ago for very cheap, I checked it the other day and somehow in storage the wheels have buckled and a spoke has snapped.
So first thing is getting some new wheels!

I haven't got a lot of money so getting a different bike or frame or brand new wheel is kinda out as I can only really spend around 40-50 quid max!
I know that'll be a stretch.

But my question is what do I buy!! I don't know what will fit and what won't, I know they are 700c wheels but am confused by things like the rear hub!
The bike I have came standard witha shimano 7 and 3 setup = 21 speed

I'm looking at wheels like these
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/380698375258? ... 1423.l2649

What's confusing me is how do I know that they will fit the width of the back and front slots, plus often wheels are advertised saying the hub will fit 5/6/7 or 7/8/9 cassettes.
The shimano cassette I have is 7 speed but if I bought a wheel that only took say 8/9/10 could I put an 8 cog cassette on my bike and would it still work normally?

I'm confused guys could you tell me what I'm looking for exactly please?

I can sail round the world fight pirates and save lives but I can't work out a frigin' bike for the life of me!!! Ha ha ha

Cheers.

Bob.
blueschill, 16 minutes ago EditReportTop#1Reply

thegibdog

You can fit a 7 speed cassette to a 8/9/10 freehub with a spacer. You couldn't use an 8 speed cassette without changing your gear shifters too.

You might currently have a freewheel rather than a cassette and freehub though, so you might have to buy a 7 speed cassette as well if you buy new wheels with a freehub. Probably best checking at your local bike shop as your current wheels could be easily repairable.

ugo.santalucia

Can you not get your wheel repaired? It's buckled because a spoke has snapped, replace the spoke, tension and true the wheel et voilla'...

desweller

What you really need is a good mate who will replace all the spokes for you and rebuild the wheel at cost plus a few beers. Would you contemplate doing it yourself? This[.url] book is a good resource if you fancy taking a shot at learning a new skill!

However, I reckon chances are you've got a 7-speed screw-on freewheel, whereas most modern hubs use freehubs. See here for a detailed description of the differences; it should give you the pointers you need to identify your hub type.

Road rear hubs come in either 130mm width (road) or 135mm (MTB) standards. Older (by which I mean, 1980s) bikes had 126mm rear hubs. Front hubs (MTB and road) have been 100mm width for yonks.