I have a older Linear Recumbent Bike with a rear 700 wheel and a 7 speed gear cluster. Can I change it to a 8 speed? Do I have a wide enough hub? I know I need a 8 speed derailleur and I already have a 8 speed grip shifter.
Mtrlpqbiker
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Derailleurs don't have "speeds" they do whatever the shifter tells them to do. Your 7 speed derailleur will work with an 8 speed shifter of the same brand. Your wheel is another matter. If your wheel has a freewheel you will need to buy a wheel that can accept an 8 speed cassette. If your wheel has a 7 speed cassette, you will have to change the freewheel body, check rear dropout spacing, re dish the wheel, and possibly re space the dropouts to accommodate a wider hub. Start by finding out if your bike has a freewheel or a cassette to determine what parts you need to buy
nodopenomore
I went from 7 to 8 in a mountain bike but I was already going to get a new wheel and shifers so it wasn't a big deal. If you have a freewheel cluster instead of a cassette, get a new wheel that has cassette, much better. The cassette will be narrower that a cluster and you may be able to put 8 on the spacing of old 7.
You can keep the same derailleur.
?
it depends
i did that with my road bike
nothing required
main thing is, is the hub and frame spacing matching>
derailleurs don;t have speeds
there are a dozen other things to check too though
since it is a recumbent it may have some oddball wheel and frame
wle