RE: [CR]5 - 6 Speed Timeline (How'Bout 7-8-9-10)

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Content-class: urn:content-classes:message
Subject: RE: [CR]5 - 6 Speed Timeline (How'Bout 7-8-9-10)
Date: Sun, 25 Jun 2006 18:37:36 -0700
Thread-Topic: [CR]5 - 6 Speed Timeline (How'Bout 7-8-9-10)
Thread-Index: AcaYvCb9Usqq2WIFQUGw2FCAORD+hAAAa+QwAACR2SA=
From: "Mark Bulgier" <Mark@bulgier.net>
To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>


Also, from Chuck Schmidt's Campy timeline:

"1961 -- In July a revised Gran Sport rear derailleur is introduced With a 10mm spring cover (was 8mm) to improve shifting on six-speed freewheels."

Mark Bulgier Seattle WA USA


>From the archives:

Donald Dundee wrote: According to "Le Monde De Daniel Rebour", page 176, there is a Cyclo freewheel (French) six speed freewheel dated 1963.

Hilary Stone wrote: As far as I am aware the first production bike with a six-speed Freewheel was the Moulton Speed Six in 1964/5. Although not common it was a genuine catalogued production machine built in reasonable numbers. It used a special freewheel with small top sprockets and a modified Cyclo Benelux P60 rear derailleur (modified by Cyclo not Moulton).

Pete Geurds wrote: Thanks for the catalog pages. I was surprised to see a 13-26 six speed Regina freewheel in 1964(?) Was this intended for touring and would it have required 126 spacing?

Chuck Schmidt wrote: Good question! This always puzzled me. In the mid-1950s the racing bikes came with 4-speed freewheels, even though there were 5-speed freewheels available. In the mid-1960s the bikes came with 5-speed freewheels even though there were 6-speed freewheels available.

I have heard that the early 70s Raleigh Professional was the first production bike that came with a 6-speed freewheel (Atom) and I don't think 6-speed freewheels were generally in use until the mid-1970s.

Seems like there was a ten year lag each time before anyone decided they really needed another gear. Quite a contrast to today's drivetrains with the number of speeds in the rear increasing every couple of years.