new(ish) project with townie

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scored a townie locally on the cheap to use as a beer bomber to friends' houses, putz around the neighborhood with the kids. want to change it up a bit. since i bought it, i always wanted to try a big/little wheel setup on it, just not sure what will fit/work. so i took a 700-38 off one of my other bikes to see if it would clear (tire has about 3/16" or so clearance to the bottom of the steerer tube.) and now i'm pretty much set on this look, so now i need some advice from more experienced guys.

kinda going for a chopper/rat/lowrider mashup. want to keep a pretty clean look, minimum cables, no derailleur, etc. prefer white walls in front and rear, but hard to find (not matching, but similar) tires. i want to do 700 with disc brake in the front, maybe a little wider than the 38 in the pic. i know some townie path bikes have 27.5 & disc brakes, so will probably use one of those forks. would like to try a 24x3 on the rear, but unsure if it will clear the frame. (i found this thread, but no real solid answer: https://ratrodbikes.com/threads/3-inch-wide-tires-fit-on-electra-townies.114647/ ). if 24x3 doesn't work, will go with the fattest 26" that fits. the 26" on the rear has a 3sp hub with coaster brake. would love an 8sp w/ coaster, but fine with 3.

other considerations:
- banana seat? (HA!)
- or a low-profile sprung seat?
- 72 spoke front wheel?

thoughts? opinions? would like to get the functional/mechanical stuff done prior to any paint, etc.
image_50771713.JPG
 
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so one question i'm having a hard time answering:
if my current rear hub is a shimano 3-sp, is a shimano 7-sp internal a direct drop-in?
 

MattiThundrrr

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Measure the distance from outside nut to outside nut on your 3 speed. That is called OLD (Over Locknut Dimension) the dimension you will want to match when acquiring your hub.
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ok so it seems my townie has 120mm dropouts. smallest 7sp hub would be a 127mm. is that too much of a difference? i've seen both sides of the argument & don't know who to believe
 

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