333 half-devil hubs
November 23, 2007 1:21 PM Subscribe
Anyone have an idea where to find information on rebuilding old Shimano 3-speed hubs from the 1970s? They were on lowcost (Sears, Murray, Huffy) bikes, and often they are the only part of the bike that has not rusted into oblivion.
These were the precursors to their new Nexus line, and over the years they made a number of different models, including "333" and "3SC". They all shared in common a bellcrank that transmitted the gear setting from a cable to the innards of the hub with a brass pushrod running through the axle. Some models have the bellcrank on the right (sprocket) side, and some on the left. some came with a coaster brake and some freewheel. I've found an exploded diagram on the net, and discovered that the venerable Sheldon Brown is biased against the 333 (seems the Japanese metallurgy was not quite up to snuff). I'll bet that at the time they were current, Shimano put out printed materials on their feeding and care, but where to find such things today, for all the different variants out there? I'd like to try my hand at making a few working wheels for commuter bikes from the box of unknown condition hubs as a wintertime project. Help point me in the right direction. Muchas gracias.
These were the precursors to their new Nexus line, and over the years they made a number of different models, including "333" and "3SC". They all shared in common a bellcrank that transmitted the gear setting from a cable to the innards of the hub with a brass pushrod running through the axle. Some models have the bellcrank on the right (sprocket) side, and some on the left. some came with a coaster brake and some freewheel. I've found an exploded diagram on the net, and discovered that the venerable Sheldon Brown is biased against the 333 (seems the Japanese metallurgy was not quite up to snuff). I'll bet that at the time they were current, Shimano put out printed materials on their feeding and care, but where to find such things today, for all the different variants out there? I'd like to try my hand at making a few working wheels for commuter bikes from the box of unknown condition hubs as a wintertime project. Help point me in the right direction. Muchas gracias.
The good people over at http://sheldonbrown.com/ might be able to point you in the right direction.
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 4:40 PM on November 23, 2007
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 4:40 PM on November 23, 2007
This thread is closed to new comments.
IMHO though you're better off buying a NOS Shimano 333 hub (I see these all the time on eBay for cheap) than trying to rebuild on old one. These aren't particularly special or collectible - as such it may be easier and cheaper to chuck your old one and buy new.
posted by wfrgms at 1:36 PM on November 23, 2007