Cassette for the AL Comp and other Big Box Bikes? Can it be done?
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- čas přidán 27. 03. 2022
- Converting a big box bike like the Schwinn Al Comp, Boundary, Taff or other bikes like the Mongoose Durham to a cassette. Can it be done? In this video I discuss what's required and why it isn't a direct bolt on freewheel replacement.
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I installed on novatec hubs from aliexpress on an al comp rim and spokes with just a multi tool spoke wrench, a few quarters and two zip ties. It’s not as bad as it seems when you get the hang of it. I used three different CZcams videos to figure it out and it took three tries to get the first rim right but the second one was laced, dished and trued in less than an hour. Very satisfying to do something everyone said was too hard to do on your own.
Awesome! it's just a tedious process. But so satisfying to build a wheel. Good for you!
Did you watch Ali Clarksons lacing video?
You are more patient than me 😁
Is go to a shop let them do the job
@@gulfcitynd True, but the whole point of me getting a cheap Walmart bike was to learn how to do everything. I have my Santa Cruz that I let the bike shop do everything on. Well at least I used to.
Thank you so much for this video! I'm new to mountain biking and I bought a boundary. After about 7.5 miles in the woods I destroyed the free wheel and had to walk home. I thought the bike was done. Then I found you. Thank you.
I bought a wheelset from cycling deals. WTB st25i with novatech hubs and RaceKing tires. They set up tubeless super easy. Also picked up a box three prime 9 e-bike groupset 12-50 cassette, single shift shifter. I converted my 2020 boundary to ebike with a bafang BBSHD mid drive motor kit. Ive upgraded every single component on the boundary and I love this thing now. Runs trails like crazy. Feels solid on jumps and turns.
Just recently bought an AL Comp, it had some issues right out of the box, nothing was tight, hub bearings were poorly adjusted with little grease, crank had a slight knock and was also minimally greased and thats how I found your channel..with your help and some bike tools I was able to remedy all my issues and even added some mods..just wanted to say thanks from Massachusetts 👍🏻
Love your videos. Been out of biking for far too long and man how things have changed. Keep up with the awesome informative vids.
This is a great explanation and answer to a question I've had for a while. Thank you!
Great stuff! Informative is the way to go. Thanks for sharing Kev!
A helpful and well presented video for we newbies to the whole DIY yourself bike "messing around" world.
I'd love to see you explain the different width freehubs for the various speeds/gear set combos and if they are interchangeable.
As always, thanks for the sharing of your time and information.
Most helpful! Especially for newbies like me. Thanks a bunch!
I appreciate your videos Kev they are some of the most informative truly have helped me a lot keep up the good work bud😉
Just converted my Boundary a week ago to Microshift Advent X 10 speed. I love it. I just put a new wheelset on it for a cassette.
That 38 tooth freewheel looks like the Falcon freewheel I bought on Amazon...three times. That one was a 42 tooth. I love it.
Already knew the basic difference, but you explained it extremely well. Didn't even think about bearing spacing vs strength that's makes alot of sense though.
Awesome video! Great explanation. Thanks !
Thank you so much. Somebody stole the rear wheel assembly, derailleur and brakes off my wife's Schwinn Standpoint over Labor Day and I had no clue where to go with fixing it. This explained a lot. The gearing opened my eyes some too for my bike.
thanks Kev, you cleared that up for me, great stuff
Thanks, Kev! Very informative!
Very well done. Very well explained. Very good video 👍🏽
it literally took me hours to understand this about a month ago.
thanks for the great work
So I have a boundary that I'm trying to use to get to work and back. It's about 8 miles with 1 hill about 1/4 mile long. But the 14T isn't fast enough. Is it worth upgrading? What's the best option?
Perhaps something with an 11t would give you the speed you need and/or increase the chainring size
What a great explanation, including why a cassette hub is considered superior! (Strength). One of the problems with too many mods is that you'll find that one mod requires 3 more mods! I've done some minor mods to my Aluminum Comp which work for my old butt, (your original stage 1!), and I'm happy with it, but know that a bike that already has all of the features that I would like to have will be in my future. Thank you for your informative videos! BTW, if I ever replace the AC it will remain in my stable as a spare to encourage friends and family to join me when visiting
Super informative! Thanks for sharing!
Thank You nery much for the FYI !!!
Excellent video .. funny I was just thinking about that yesterday for my boundary
Thanks Kev.. I did just go with a freewheel option on the Shwinn Womens Al comp, 13/36 , I have a 1x9 with a 11-42 and a microshift no clutch deraluire from a Kent Trouvallie but will upgrade to later time
Replaced my Al Comp freewheel with an inexpensive Shimano Deore hub. Can be found for less than $40. Laced my own as well with help from CZcams. Really not that hard. Just some patience needed.
I don't know
Lacing a hub is not for people to do
Must summon bike demons and make sacrifices
Nobody can learn lest the lacing guild comes for your first born
I just did the same on my wife's Al Comp. It was the 2nd one I've ever done and it wasn't that difficult. The only special tool I used was a spoke wrench. I trued and dished it in the frame so I didn't even use a truing stand.
it's the trueing for me..
Did the factory spokes work??
@@destinhook3826 sure did!
Local shop charge 150 per wheel to relace a wheel . So I plan on getting a wheel trueing stand this winter and learn how to do my own wheels . If things go as planned I’m picking up a ragley Marley frame to start another build .
Yeah, that is definitely a scam. My Local bike shop laces the wheel at just 30 bucks. To be fair, it is a fairly big city, but no reasonable bike shop should be charging 150 bucks
Funny! I just got a shipment of spokes and spent yesterday lacing a couple of hoops after the chain ate thru the spokes...Nice video Kev. I've been using JGBikes for my group sets and sometimes some brakes. DIY wheels is very easy--especially with Park Tool videos on lacing them. You can just follow each step by step with Truman...or the Christmas one where Calvin and Truman are each lacing a wheel.
I mean... a regular person *Can* lace their own rims. You can use your own bike as a truing stand in a pinch.
A regular person probably doesn't *want* to, though. I'll probably do it for my Comp at some point, since I've reached the point where spokes are clinking around after rides and I know that the wheels need re-trued anyway. But that'll be a situation where I pick a week where I absolutely won't need to go anywhere with it because I'll probably have to re-true it two-three times
didn't know you could bend your freewheel, yikes. I don't *think* the TSDZ's got the torque do that on it's own, but I also wouldn't be too surprised if it did.
Even though there's wider geared options.. some rear derailleurs that work with say a 32t first gear, won't be able to shift onto something bigger. Only mentioning, because I bought a folding bike 3 or so years ago - it wasn't until I replaced its worn freewheel all this time later was it able to shift into first gear - even the manufacturer flubbed that one, by putting on a Shimano "wide range" freewheel and a Tourney rear derailleur that wasn't matched to it.
I laced a new hub onto my comp, its a shimano deore fh-m525A 36h, its a direct bolt on. if you follow park tool's guide its pretty easy. Not to mention it looks factory because the rim is still stock
Always love the infotainment. Such a valuable resource!
As someone who's built my own wheels, swapping the hub is horribly tedious. First, you gotta make sure the spoke count is the same and calculate how long of spokes you'll need, since the hub flanges change significantly between different models. The measurement will also change a LOT depending on the lace pattern you use.
Then of course there's making sure the tension is even across the wheel, and truing it properly.
I enjoy building wheels, just the calculations done beforehand get tiring.
Thanks for posting. You explained the difference in a manner that I could understand. Well done.
I was able to get a Taff comp for $125 recently, it had a few issues and 1 was the rear axle was bent and the wobbly sprocket was causing it to shift erratically. I'm changing it to a freehub. BTW, it came with a pro rush sprocket but the shifter and the derailer is a Ltwoo T8s
This is the video I needed today! I'm a beginner in anything mountian biking, just purchased a Schwinn Boundary and have been trying to learn about upgrades I can do over time and the cassette vs free wheel was something I didn't understand. Thankyou for the video
In the Philippines, it is common practice to change stock bike hubs to cassette type hubs without changing the rims since it is cheaper to go on that direction to have the hubs laced to your existing rimset. About 6 dollars to 10 dollars in a bike shop.
Well explained tutorial. I was wondering what the purpose of the guide slot on the freehub body vs all slots equal width.
ok! Now i get it . thanks
Hi thanks for the informative video. What is a good budget wheel set and cassette to make this conversion to an Al comp? Thanks
Great video.
You explain it very well.
I remember a few years a go I went to a bike shop and I asked for a tool to remove the "freewheel cassette" they man looked at me confused, he said "a what ?"
He explained that a freewheel is one thing and a cassette is another thing.
I laced a cassette freehub to a new rim myself, and I didn't think it was that hard. There's lots of videos on CZcams that show how to do it.
The hard part is making sure you have the right length spokes...
i've laced up rims myself and by the time you pay for hubs spokes and a rim you don't end up saving much if anything, but you can get something special for you and the satisfaction of learning a new skill
Congrats. You have more patience than me
@@jmswilliams70 I saved a lot, I picked a hub with the same diameter as the freewheel hub I was replacing, and reused the spokes.
As it turned out, I had to do a 4 cross instead of a three, but it all worked out O.K.
Yes the spoke length will determine the angle it engages the hub thus affecting the dishing attributes. Main thing is to ensure the wheel is centered onto the frame/fork.
@@GokkunGuru Yeah, you have to dish the wheel.
It's funny, because the wheel I replaced wasn't dished at all, I found out about that when I built the new one.
I knew this but still found it very informative!
Great explanation with visual demonstration. Another advantage to the new wheel set is usually less weight.
This was an awesome informative video. I’d love to see more about how you plan your project bikes, how do you know what parts fit your bike, and what modifications often require other upgrades.
The reason you want to get rid of the free hub for a cassette is more range and that's at the lowest gear for climbing . There is a cheaper and easier alternative is get a smaller chainring maybe 28 or even 26 if that will work with your cranks and bike . I went down to a 28 tooth which was the smallest I could use in my suntour zenon cranks . I think most don't care or need that top end speed that you sacrifice a tiny bit but gain so much on those more difficult climbs . Not sure why they put those larger chainrings on a 7 speed hub with single chain rings . When they give you a 2 speed derailleur on the front with a free hub you might see a 22 tooth as the smallest ring . Going to single rings on free hub just doesn't make allot of sense and should have went with a 2 speed derailer on the front
On my Malus (ready to ride: 50#) I run a 1x7 with a 22t chainwheel and an 11-34 DNP freewheel. High is 60.0 gear inches. Low is 19.5 gear inches. Even on mostly flat suburban roads and bike paths in Illinois, I use the lower gears often and I rarely miss having higher gears.
I finally got an Al Comp so this is perfect timing for this video!!!!
Mr. Kev Central just thinking ordering a rear 29 wheel cassette freehub from swin what would be the range of the cassette
Also important to note free hubs come in varying types (HG, XD, Microspline) and varying points of engagement (low, mid, high).
Yes, but the overall point is still the same; a cassette won’t work on a freewheel setup
Bought a new bike. I've notice my rear wheel rub against the frame, its an freewheel hub. I replaced the axle and the new one bend within a day.. i dont know if its a cheap axle are im too heavy for the bike but im seeking a freehub to buy under 50usd. Any gòod recommendations???
I just installed a WTB/Novatec wheelset (recommended by you) onto my _Mongoose Ledge X1_ over the weekend and installed my first cassette (50t-11t) in the process. I also installed a new Shimano 11 speed derailleur and chain as well.
I also installed the new Archer Paddle Shifter... and anyone wondering if it's better than the original I'm not sure if it is yet. It's just different. I did accidentally shift a couple times which I never had an issue with before with the "clicky" one.
All in all I'm pretty happy with my build and now that the weather is great I can't wait to hit the trails!
You’re a good teacher. Ride safe
Awesome walkthrough. I would love to learn more about the workings of the head tube and front sprocket. Thanks!
Best video , great explanation thank you 🙏!!!!
I was looking back at your older videos and it is crazy at where the bike prices have went.
I found a freehub that's almost identical to the freewheel hub on my partner's bike (dimensions wise) and just swapped it, kept the spokes and all and it was the first time I ever did that. If I can do it ... it means it's not that hard.
Always wondered what the difference was between a freewheel and a cassette. Thanks for clearing it up.
Now all I have to do is determine if I have a freewheel or a cassette.
Thanks for the infotainment, Kev. Well done!
KC, Baby!
And appreciate the Ukrainian flag in the background
I inadvertently bought a freewheel bike thinking I could just replace it with a freehub. On the plus side I can have a try at lacing my own wheels
Good luck 👍🏼
Hey Kev. Just got to watch your freewheel/ freehub video. I don't know if I missed it or not and I don't want to ask a silly question, but if you do convert to freehub/cassette, can you still keep a 3 by, or do you have to convert that, too?
No questions are silly You can run a 3x
KevCentral, what kind of Wheelset do you recommend for my Al Comp that I just purchased from my local Wal Mart?
I’ve had good luck with the cycling deal wheelsets that are listed on my Amazon page, but it doesn’t take much to be an improvement over the factory wheelset when it comes to weight and being able to use a cassette instead of freewheel
Excellent video! I look forward to the next in the series, presumably on the SRAM XD Driver and the Campagnolo freehub body?
I have a Schwinn Taff bike (bought new at Walmart for $90 new) with a Pro Rush 1x8 free wheel that is loose and needs some shims removed. The diameter for the removal tool is much wider (35 to 40 mm). Does anybody know of a tool to loosen this ring so I can use my snap ring tool to loosen the cone to remove a shim?
100% infotainment.
Infotainment and freehubs got it 🤓
And whether it's a hub or a wheel neither is free, 😂 ! I changed out hub on my old boundary rear wheel just to see if I could do it and with the help of CZcams it was a successful project!
Congrats
You can usually only go one speed up with a freewheel. I've done it a few times.
The freewheel was old when I started riding mtb 30 years ago! Cant believe they are still here.
I use the dork discs too. Better than fixing spokes...
Freewheel is simply cheaper to mass produce with fewer parts and less time. Back in the day, my Schwinn 10 speed was great, but there never was an issue with torque as it was a street bike. MTBs and hard racing bikes can shred the threads on the Freewheel, hence the development and need for the spline cassette.
Freewheels are simply just cheaper, being the 100 year old design. They will never go away so long as single speeds live.
u best
Much easier to get a new wheel set. I actually tried to find a wide-range freewheel for a budget fat bike upgrade, but no luck. 14-34 was the biggest I could find. Those pro-rush freewheels don't seem to be available aftermarket, so it looks like you can only get it if you have a bike that came with it.
Anyhow the bike turned out much, much better with new wheels and an 11 speed Deore drivetrain with a 11-50 cassette
$45 for a hub change? Here in my country it only costs $4 if converted from our country’s currency. They actually do a pretty good job and I know it because I can do it but i dont have the time
I put a 46t wide range on my deore xt 11spd and bent the freehub on the first ride. The bike shop said some of those freehub bodies can't handle the torque
what brand and model was the hub? That is ridiculous.
@@DaveCM
Deore xt and a cs m8000 11-40t. And I switched to a cs m8000 11-46t. I've been mountain biking since 81 and rode professionally in the 90s, I've replaced the hub twice and bent it twice in two rides. So I went back to the 40t
@@harryfritter8266 that is crazy. I've been riding my whole life and could put down a lot of power and have never done that. It isn't like you were using cheap, crappy hubs either.
@@DaveCM
I live in western Colorado and the bike is a salsa bucksaw. I can ride with the 40, but some of the hills are like 20 percent grades or steeper and the 46 was really nice until it wasn't
@@harryfritter8266 so you put some serious stress on the drivetrain.
Ali Clarkson made a great video on lacing wheels. Boost spacing makes the wheels even more strong.maybe on April 1st you could make a gag wheel lacing video!😂
If I made a video of me trying to lace wheels it would be a constant beep for audio 🤪
I was going to say the same thing. His wheel build video is superb 👍
@@KevCentral after you laced about 20 or 30 you’d get the hang of it!🤪
@KevCentral Great videos and I have always enjoyed them. I began my Bike Journey last year when I got lucky and found a Al Comp. Anyways I have been wanting to do some upgrades and have already started. But my question is. I want to broaden my range and am on a very tight budget is there a better freewheel gear set that I can get that has more range than the stock one on the Al Comp? cheers and keep the videos coming
Shimano megarange
@@KevCentral tyvm I am going to search right now
@@KevCentral Would this be a good bet over the stock one I am wondering SHIMANO TZ500 7-Speed 14-34t Freewheel
14-34 is the megarange freewheel
@@KevCentral ok cool cause I can not remember what the the tooth range is on the stock one is why I asked. if you say it's an upgrade I beleive you, and gain ty for the help
XD free hub also used threads, but that doesn’t accept a free wheel. It takes a cassette.
in the early 90's there was a company that made a cassette retrofit for freewheel mounts i have been looking for old stock no luck
Interesting. Thanks for sharing
the shop where I work charges 60 euros (about 66 dollars) to lace a wheel, and we do not do it if you buy a hub at some other place.
really more economical to just buy a rear wheel for about the same cost that comes with a freehub
I knew the diffrence Kev, but to be honest? I love that you made this video since it's a resource i can point to now for other people.
I had to let my redneck flag fly a bit.
Shifter cable? frayed apart. Can't fix it. I have whatever gear i can force my derailleur into. I don't LIKE that because it's just a little bit more than I'm comfortable with. So i do what any sane sensible broke person who has spare parts and tools does.
I knocked the lockring on the freewheel loose enough to disassemble. Take all the gears out. Put back in only the gear i want along with spacers, screw the lockring back on. Remove derailleur, break the chain down (left the pin in the 'broke' section on the hopes i can put it back together later.) And turn my bike into a single speed til funds become available to 'properly' do what i want. Truth be told I'm going to need more spacers since there's too much wobble in that one gear, and i think I messed up on chain tension but like... 'this is fine. It can be tweaked. Errors can be corrected.'
I'm aggravated because bike worked perfectly fine until I swapped derailleurs out and planned on doing that little added bit, but at the same time? 'Oh hey I did this. YAY.'
Also no you can't put a seven speed casset cluster on a freewheel body. The casset is a straight shot hole the same all the way through. Freehub the spindle flares out at around third or fourth gear.
That said I probably will try ordering a megarange. Dismantle. Take out the 20t gear, add a 28t gear so that there is a smoother transition instead of taking the 28t off of a more common gearset and sudden jump up to granny gear.
Because yes. I am redneck enough to try it. Especially since THEORETICALLY I can undo it all if things don't work out.
shift cables are cheap bro
Not when all of your money is spoken for 'bro.'
Everything wil lget sorted in a couple weeks. I figure opprotunity between now and then to do something dumb.
its way i love my GT Men's Aggressor Pro use a Cassette
Nice video! Where can we buy 14-38t freewheels?
I haven’t seen them available outside of Big Box Bikes
The small end of cassettes is the bigger avantage IMO. a 10 tooth small cog is 40% higher than a 14 tooth. 9T ones are even better though somewhat controversial. You get all that range and save grams compared to adding on the other end, plus more chainring clearance for the same ratio.
What about a wheel video? Buying the set is the easy part, the steps before that however, are important.
Why do you keep saying a new wheel-set? Perhaps my lingo is wrong, but I have always understood a wheel set to be both wheels, hence, set. You would really only need back wheel (that is DEFINITELY the way to go).
Idk I like to have matching wheels personally. I think you're technically correct, but aesthetically I don't want mismatched wheels
@@davidharvell3191 Well, f the wheels are painted, I can see your point. A lot of cheap bikes do have a painted brake surface. So there's that.
OTOH, the front wheel is going to be just as cheaply and badly made as the back wheel, so a set might not be a terrible idea. What IS a terrible idea is buying a new hub and paying someone to lace it up for yo.
Good job! Why don't you talk about the bottom brackets the two piece and the three piece.
To be honest, I just found it easier to swap the wheel on my Mongoose Ledge X1 and that's why I did it.
Kev, let them know a freehub axle is less likely to bend. Bearing load is wider on freehub axle.
If it's a freewheel you basically need a new wheel set up just do that and honestly it's not cost effective really
Confusing bike terminology - maybe you could discuss 'clipless' pedals and the special shoes that clip into them.
I've heard a lot about how freewheels can bend axles... the physics and theory seem plausible, but in practice I've never had it happen. My Mongoose Dolomite axles are fine after 4000+ miles with a 1000w /1560w peak mid drive. Also have a 750w mid drive / 1200w peak on a Taff Comp which is a quick release, that's been fine as well.
I have worked in the industry for eons, and I can tell you it is relatively common occurrence. If you ride on smooth roads, are lightweight, or don't have a rack with loads, you may not have a problem.
I’ve bent 3 or so during my time on this channel.
@@KevCentral interesting, I’m not doing any jumps or heavy impacts, just riding on pavement mostly
Oh my god ive rebuilt like 12 freewheels. This feels patronizing.
Also factor in probably needing a new chain if you go way up in range? More teeth = more length
New Chinese pricing is out, and its staggering. Get your stuff now before its too late.
6:15 That is an incredibly BAD idea. The cost of relacing that wheel far exceeds what it would cost to just buy a new wheel. I bought a double wall rim 2 years ago for like 55 dollars at my LBS. Not hand made, but miles above the entry level crap.
@@cup_and_cone It doesn't say replacing, it says relacing (re-lacing).
For me the biggest downside to the freewheel setup is the fact that heavy riders or riders who ride hard will bend the rear axle pretty easily.
The difference is where the drive clutch/ratcheting system lives. On the free wheel, the ratchet lives in the wheel. On the free hub, the ratchet lives in the external hub (under the splines). This is how I keep the two distinct in my primitive brain.
Forgot to mention that the hub holes have to match the rim holes. And the spoke length might not match anymore either.
I think modern bikes should ditch the freewheel system and adapt 100% to the free hub.
Anything that's being sold as a 'mtb' could do without them. Plus they can be a huge pain in the butt to try and remove compared to a cassette. I think they're fine enough for light duty bikes.. but I have a weird love-hate nostalgia for them lol
Lacing is not really that difficult.
I don’t have the patience for the lacing, dishing and trueing
I did not buy either an Al Comp, nor a Boundary bike! Who is feeding you this wrong info Kev? You don't mind me calling you "Kev", do you Kev? Well, I will anyway.
I spy an acolyte