3 speed sturmey issue.

[skelley2]

not sure whats up with a the old sturmey 3 speed i have

basically

it works lovely in second.

wont click into down first

and when clicks into third spins like chains come off and doesent pull.

v odd.

 

[chipper]

Could be one of a load of things , but as always try the easy thing first.
But the lever into top (#3) , now slowly unscrew the adjusting sleeve at the toogle chain until the chain stops slipping ,if your lucky, all gears will work now . If top gear still slips even when the cable is completely slack this means somethings stuck or broken in the hub.

 

[skelley2]

put into third there, and tried adjusting it until clicked through all three.

just tried a test cycle there and all seems well, its a new ish bike (1980's) and the rest of the bike isnt rusted/abused, so looks like this had done the trick.

 

[Jonny69]

Give it an oil as well to keep it all in good nick. There should be a little cap somewhere round the hub inside the spokes and you can dribble some engine oil in. If there's no cap then drizzle it in where the chain goes in.