7 to 8 freewheel

I'm trying to decide on which kit to use on a bike and am erm'ing over to an old Campag Chorus group I have however I do not have the brake levers. Rather than trying to source some I thought I might go for some 8 speed ergo's instead.

The wheels I've got have a 7 speed freewheel will the ergo's work on a 7 or is an upgrade to an 8 speed freewheel straightforward unscrew the old screw on the new?

Am I likely to have any compatibility problems between the ergo's and the old style Chorus mech?

Campag's 7 and 8-speed index systems used the same spacing, so you should be fine from the point of view of the shifters. If your mech is from before the days of Synchro indexing, you may need to change it for a more modern one.

If you want to use an 8-speed freewheel, you'll want a longer axle, a longer spacer on the freewheel side, and the wheel will need re-dishing. It's not a big job if you know what you're doing, but you'll end up with a hub that's a touch wider that it was before. Most 7-speed systems are around 126mm, while 8-speed went to 130mm. Unless you're frame's something exotic, you can just spring it a touch and slot the wheel in.

Thanks OEJ. Hmm sounds like it's getting expensive, think I'll just locate some brake levers and use the friction downtube shifters. Appreciate the advice anyway.