Five-speed turbo training

By Victoria Hazael
Can a five-speed hub be mounted in a turbo trainer? The attachment of the gear cable on this bike enters the hub parallel to the chainstay, not axially as in some three-speeds. Also, I want to repaint the frame of my Nigel Dean as some rust is now appearing after 30 years. Do you know of an affordable way of copying the Nigel Dean decals?

Tim Waterfield

A: In answer to the first question: in principle, yes. You do not state the make of the five-speed hub but from the description all you will need are nuts that fit the jaws of the turbo trainer. They need some sort of cylindrical face shaped similarly to the head and nut of the quick-release skewer supplied with the trainer. If those that come with the hub won’t fit, try Tacx Axle Nuts. They are made with a choice of 10mm or 3/8in thread.

There are several useful sources of old or replica decals, including H Lloyd Cycles of Penrith (hlloydcycles.com), who can supply decals for Reynolds tubesets. Search for ‘Nigel Dean Classic decals’ online and you will find a seller in France offering them on eBay for around £20 for the set.

Richard Hallett

Cycle's Technical Editor

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