British Bicycles of Chicago

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Comment by James B on November 17, 2010 at 9:23am

ok, good to know!

Comment by Mike Bullis 5.5-6.5 miles on November 16, 2010 at 11:30pm

What mike w. said.

I don't know how many SA hubs I've had to pry the pawls out of because of dried out 3 in 1.

Just about any lightweight oil will work as long as it isn't veggie based. I use Mobil1 0-40w in my hubs now only because I swiped a bottle from the case I keep for my wifes' car. I used ATF for the longest time only because I had a lot of it. SA hubs do not generate appreciably amounts of heat or combustion by-products so the lubricant need not be fancy. Hell, sewing machine oil works.

Comment by mike w. on November 16, 2010 at 10:25pm

Yes! AVOID using 3-in-1. It's vegetable-oil based and eventually gums up the works. Left alone and it will gel and freeze the pawls. Use a petroleum product. Light motor oil or Sturmey oil if you can still find a can of it.

Comment by James B on November 16, 2010 at 8:21pm

Personally I use 3 in 1 oil - seems to work fine... anyone have a positive/negative opinion of that?

Comment by globalguy on November 16, 2010 at 12:29pm

Don't forget to lurk on eBay as well! Some nice Giles in there ... %-{)>

Comment by James BlackHeron on November 16, 2010 at 12:13pm

"Just Do It!"

This is NOT helping my addiction issues ;)

Garth, thanks for the link. That looks pretty cool. Right now I've got a modern seat I picked up for another bike and never used. If this bike becomes a real rider I will probably get one of those or an original Brooks.

It's nice to have options.

Comment by globalguy on November 16, 2010 at 9:38am

Or you could try a VeloOrange saddle? I have this one on my commuter bike and it's been great!

Comment by SlyRed on November 16, 2010 at 9:01am

There is never any excuse needed to buy a lovely new Brooks saddle for a fine vintage Raleigh. Just look at my fleet. Just do it! ;^D

Comment by James BlackHeron on November 16, 2010 at 8:48am

Thanks for the link. I've been all over the various pages on the Harris Cyclery page. I'm a big fan of Sheldon's writings but since his death there doesn't seem to have been much of an effort to clean up the vast storehouse of information he left behind. Sometimes it is hard to find anything and one has to sift through a ton of duplicate information found on a myriad of confusing links.

There isn't a lot of information on what kind of oil to use. Right now I'm torn between a lightweight synthetic (I've got a quart of Mobil-1 5W20 that I use for working on clocks -my other hobby) and ATF (I've got a bunch of that in the garage too -I am a shadetree auto/motorcycle mechanic).

From all the reading I've done I think it really doesn't matter too much as long as the oil isn't too thick or so thin it runs right back out. I plan on over-filling it a few times and working it out off the bike and letting it seep out on its own for a few weeks as the tires/tubes/chain/brake-pads I've ordered take the slow boat (UPS) to my front door.

Now I just need to stop myself from buying a new Brooks saddle to replace the one my dad threw away in the 70's when it fell apart. So far I've spent $50 in parts to get this thing back on the road and thought of spending $130-ish more on just a saddle is the only thing holding me back from WANTING that Brooks...

I don't even know if I"ll like riding this bike enough to make buying that saddle anything but a BAD expensive idea.

But I WANT one for this bike ;)

I'm in the throes of new-to-me-restoring-bike-lust/passion, and I just can't help myself. I must make her right! I can FIX this and bring her back to the way she used to be. I stopped doing this with women years ago (thank god and 2 failed marriages to broken people) but I still find myself doing it with neglected/unloved machines/cars/motorcycles/bicycles! At least they don't take half of your stuff when they finally leave you ;)

Comment by SlyRed on November 16, 2010 at 8:29am

Read Sheldon's page on internal geared hubs:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/internal-gears.html

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