Tour de Holdsworth
Retro Newbie
Hello all. I'm new here so bear with me. I've come by a 1982/3 ish Holdsworth Mistral in pretty nice, ridable condition. I'm thinking of using it for a little fair weather touring and possibly some shorter Audax/Sportive style rides. I've been out on it a few times now and it's certainly a comfortable and fairly rapid ride.
The gears occasionally slip when I put a lot of pedalling effort in (big gears on short uphillls, typically) and also occasionally when I change without remembering to ease off.
The guy I had the bike off had it from new and I think must have had it built up from a frame because there are a lot of non-standard parts. The crankset is a very nice TA Cyclotourist, but I think the ratios are a bit big for my potential uses (it's a 36/52).
On the rear is a 14-32 5 speed freewheel (Suntour fitting). The shifters are a Cyclone Mark II Triple derailleur on the front and a Shimano "Deer Head" Deore XT (with Super Plate) on the rear (there seems to be quite a lot of play (i.e. 1 to 1.5 cm on the cage on this, and the spring action on the mount to the bracket is very weak). The shifters are Suntour stem-mounted.
I want to solve the chain slip problem and go for lower ratios. I know this'll mean changing at least the chainwheels if not the lovely crankset ultimately, but for now let's get her working properly.
Is replacing the freewheel with a new (Hyperglide or equivalent) one and replacing the chain going to help me? Or is the RD a problem?
If I go forward with the chain and freewheel replacement I was thinking of the IRD Defiant freewheels as these look to be nicely made and generally more in keeping, but should I go for a 5, 6, or 7 speed? The 5 and 7 speeds come in 13-32 varieties and the 6 in a 13-32 - all of which would at least not make my lowest gear ratio any worse in the short term.
Finally, can anyone suggest a source for a spare boltset for the TA crankset - it's all held together with four instead of five at the moment... I've tried eBay!
Many thanks in anticipation. I've rally enjoyed looking at some of the great stuff on here guys...
Jim
The gears occasionally slip when I put a lot of pedalling effort in (big gears on short uphillls, typically) and also occasionally when I change without remembering to ease off.
The guy I had the bike off had it from new and I think must have had it built up from a frame because there are a lot of non-standard parts. The crankset is a very nice TA Cyclotourist, but I think the ratios are a bit big for my potential uses (it's a 36/52).
On the rear is a 14-32 5 speed freewheel (Suntour fitting). The shifters are a Cyclone Mark II Triple derailleur on the front and a Shimano "Deer Head" Deore XT (with Super Plate) on the rear (there seems to be quite a lot of play (i.e. 1 to 1.5 cm on the cage on this, and the spring action on the mount to the bracket is very weak). The shifters are Suntour stem-mounted.
I want to solve the chain slip problem and go for lower ratios. I know this'll mean changing at least the chainwheels if not the lovely crankset ultimately, but for now let's get her working properly.
Is replacing the freewheel with a new (Hyperglide or equivalent) one and replacing the chain going to help me? Or is the RD a problem?
If I go forward with the chain and freewheel replacement I was thinking of the IRD Defiant freewheels as these look to be nicely made and generally more in keeping, but should I go for a 5, 6, or 7 speed? The 5 and 7 speeds come in 13-32 varieties and the 6 in a 13-32 - all of which would at least not make my lowest gear ratio any worse in the short term.
Finally, can anyone suggest a source for a spare boltset for the TA crankset - it's all held together with four instead of five at the moment... I've tried eBay!
Many thanks in anticipation. I've rally enjoyed looking at some of the great stuff on here guys...
Jim
