Quote Originally Posted by oxysback View Post
The LBS couldn't get the bolt loose to get the stem out. There's some wierd rise where the bolt is that the rachet couldn't get around. I don't plan on saving the stem, so I guess it doesn't matter if it's dinged up a bit. The rims have this cool pattern on them, but if I want to upgrade the cassette I'll have to either have them re-spoked with a new hub, or get new wheels alltogether. I found some that might work at Sheldon Brown's website, I just need to verify the rear hub spacing. It'd be way cheaper to get the new wheels (only $100 for the pair!!!) versus respoking at $100 per wheel plus whatever the hubs will cost, but I really like the rim pattern on the old rims.
The rear spacing is 120 mm. It won't take a hub that fits a cassette. You'll have to use 5 or 6 speed freewheels. But you can take a 126 mm spaced rear freewheel hub and change the axle spacing to get 120 mm. Those rims are steel and heavy. If you want to ride this bike lots of miles, I'd suggest replacement wheels with lighter alloy rims. It has 27" wheels - it might possibly take 700c depending on the reach of the brakes. Before you do much else, I'd make sure that the cotter pins will come out and the bottom bracket isn't frozen. What does the freewheel sound like? Take off the wheel and drip some oil into it. If the freewheel is OK, there's no need to replace the hub.