Anyone commuting with hub gears?

[hennbell]

I do the bulk of my winter commute on a Scott Sub 10 8 speed shimano hub with gates belt. Works a charm but the rear wheel is so heavy.

 

[Edgy Dee]

This idea also appeals to me; Reynolds lugged frame, alloy crankset, alloy 700c's, alloy stem & seatpost, lightweight mudguards. Should be possible to build a sub-30 lb bomb-proof and totally reliable sports roadster. You could even go for drops and have a copycat old-school weekend clubman's type bike from the pre-derailleur era. Other than possibly the occasional puncture, you could go anywhere in complete confidence that you would never have a journey-stopping mechanical.

Yikes I was thinking 'ultra' light! My Peugeot 653 Athena tips the scales at 23lbs with a component hotchpotch. Sub-20lbs has got to be the target. A wolf in sheep's clothing on the daily commute. Eat my dust at the lights!

 

[Pale Rider]

Yikes I was thinking 'ultra' light! My Peugeot 653 Athena tips the scales at 23lbs with a component hotchpotch. Sub-20lbs has got to be the target. A wolf in sheep's clothing on the daily commute. Eat my dust at the lights!

Small wheels for acceleration, and a Brompton comes with hub gears.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Yikes I was thinking 'ultra' light! My Peugeot 653 Athena tips the scales at 23lbs with a component hotchpotch. Sub-20lbs has got to be the target.

I'm defining light as light compared with the sort of weight you'd expect on an all-steel utility bike - which may be around 36-37 lbs. depending on size. 23 lbs is already ultra light to begin with - that's what I consider a "one finger" weight bike, meaning I can pick it up off the ground and carry it using only the strength in one finger . Thing is, how robust & durable are the wheels & mechanicals going to be at that weight? A commuter machine needs to be tough enough to take regular punishment without things breaking and wheels going out of true every five minutes. With a pro set-up there will be mechanics on hand to keep the things in good shape along with spare bikes, so they will make that trade-off between weight and durability. You as an unsupported commuter are not going to want to spend half your free time on bike maintenance as well as riding to and from work. I'd be very surprised if it was actually possible to get sub-20 lb on a steel frame, even if you ran super-skinny racing tyres and the lightest possible set of mechanicals. i doubt it would be at all comfortable on real-life crappy road surfaces.

 

[biking_fox]

Rohloff since 2008 or so. No idea how many miles that is 30k+ easily. Mostly commuting but a couple of longer tours too. It's started slipping a little, occasionally in one gear, now. Suspect it needed a few more oil changes than the one a year I've given it. Only other service is replacing the change cable, which I've done twice. It's a little fiddly, but not hard.

Very very easy to ride and robust ideal commuting.

Gear range is superb, spacing slightly wider than a dedicated racer, but no overlap. I do use all 14, and would feel very restricted with just 8.
I would recommend getting disc brakes though (I don't), as having to have the wheel rebuilt when the rim wears out is a pain, but otherwise no issues (apart from cost!)

I'm riding the Raven Sports Tour ~ 12kg with mudguards, rack etc. At the time the shifter didn't fit on drops, so I have short flat bars, with drop bar ends that works very well, and hard;y notice it isn't actually 'proper' drop bars.

 

[MichaelW2]

After about 40,000 miles of all weather commuting, utility and fitness riding my Alfine 8 seems to have packed in. It is slipping a lot but not like it does with poor cable adjustment. The only cure seems to me new innards. There may be some simple internal spring or something that needs replacing but it is too complicated to figure out what is wrong.

 

[John_S]

Hi mustang1,

If you're considering buying a drop bar IGH bike then the Pinnacle Arkose Alfine recently caught my eye.

https://www.evanscycles.com/pinnacle-arkose-alfine-8-2018-adventure-road-bike-EV275630

https://singletrackworld.com/gritcx/2018/04/11/review-pinnacle-arkose-alfine-8/

https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/pinnacle-arkose-alfine-8/


When I bought my bike, a 2014 Genesis Day One Alfine 8, there weren't many (or any) other drop bar IGH bikes within my price range. Whilst a Stand Stoater with a Rohloff would have been lovely that was beyond my budget.

Genesis still do an IGH Day One model but it's nice to have some more options to choose from out there. Whilst the Genesis is steel versus the Pinnacle being aluminium I like the fact that the Pinnacle comes with hydraulic disc brakes versus the Promax cable disc brakes on the Genesis. However the Alfine hub does need the gear cable to be set up just right and I see that the cables on the Pinnacle are internally routed I think (please correct me if I'm wrong) and I wonder if this could potentially cause any issues with gear shifting.

John

 

[glasgowcyclist]

I see that the cables on the Pinnacle are internally routed I think (please correct me if I'm wrong) and I wonder if this could potentially cause any issues with gear shifting.

What problems do you envisage this might cause with shifting?

I'm nearly three years commuting on my internally cabled bike and never had any problems because of it.

 

[mjr]

[QUOTE 5271570, member: 259"]Might be worth calling in the pros. Or it might be worth calling it a day?[/QUOTE]
Sadly, unless you find one of the few pros (or artesans like Brucey on the CTC forum) with enough broken old examples of the hub to cannibalise for spares, Shimano's approach is only to sell complete innards which is one of the reasons I switched to Sturmey Archer. I suspect you could build complete hubs from the spares SunRace-SA sell, rather expensively, if you were crazy enough.

 

[Crankarm]

Rohloff hub on a Surly Troll, hydraulic disc brakes, fully enclosed chain cover. Almost as little maintenance is a belt drive bike. I ride about 8-10k miles a year commuting and touring. Have covered just over 15k miles on this bike so it's just run in and rides perfectly. It can go for months and months without maintenance except for the hub oil change which I do 3 times a year. It is completely reliable like a modern car. Bike weighs 14.3 kgs but once on the move you don't feel it. If I took off all the racks and accessories I am sure it would be nearer 12kg. It's very nimble and comfortable to ride. I love it. I don't have any urge to upgrade/change this bike or set up. It's a strange feeling as previously with derailleurs it was one long constant chore of maintenance thinking there must be a better system. Now I have found it. Would never go back to riding derailleur bikes and seldom ride my road bike (Trek with Ultegra groupset), only on dry hot summer days which aren't that common. My other bikes with derailleurs I just haven't ridden since. Even my Brompton doesn't get used that much any more and I love that with it's 6 spd internal hub. Rohloff hubs can can do huge mileages and their customer service is excellent. Gear change is so easy and you can never be in the wrong gear. Great for cycle touring with a loaded bike. You can ride up almost vertical roads and speed down the other side full pelt and still slow right down for hairpin bend after hairpin bend. And because maintenance is minimal and reliability so good, touring is so much more fun. This bike is definitely a keeper. I now enjoy cycling so much more.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

Rohloff hub on a Surly Troll, hydraulic disc brakes, fully enclosed chain cover.

Did the chain cover come as standard or did you add that? If the latter, where did you get it?

 

[Crankarm]

Did the chain cover come as standard or did you add that? If the latter, where did you get it?

I built the bike myself. The chain cover is a Hebie Chainglider for Rohloff which I got from SJS cycles. Although they don't currently do this type any more, well it wasn't on their website about a week ago as I looked for one for some friends that also have Rohloff hub bikes. So I ended up finding the right combination on Bike24, CRC's German website. You just order the casings to match your Rohloff rear sprocket size 15-17T and then the front section to match your bike's front chain ring size and that's it. It can be a little fiddly to fit at first to get the correct position so it doesn't rub on the chain but once you have nailed it, it's fine. I would suggest making small marks with a white pen on the outside of the casing so you know where to reset it to on re-assembly if you take it off which takes about 1 minute. It's easy to take on and off though. It keeps the chain, sprocket and front ring really clean. The chain, sprocket and front ring have all covered about 15k miles and still look like new with negligible wear. The chain has next to no stretch which is amazing. I used to get about 6k miles out of a chain on my derailleur bikes. When I first fitted the Hebie Chainglider cover it was a love hate relationship as I couldn't get it sitting properly as it would rub and rub which drove me nuts but now I have conquered this and got it spot on and have it on the whole time even in summer which stops dust and grit accumulating on the chain, so inside it's just clean with lube. Also no more oil or crud over the rear wheel or chain stay or hands when you lift the bike. Mine cost about £35.

Also bear in mind that with a Rohloff hub the maintenance costs of your bike should plummet as the components of the transmission last so much longer and you will have so much more time to ride your bike rather than spending money and time maintaining it. So over time the Rohloff hub pays for itself and is such a well engineered reliable hub. Well this is what I have found.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

Thanks @Crankarm , I'm using an Alfine 8 IGH so I'll investigate my options for that.

 

[Crankarm]

Thanks @Crankarm , I'm using an Alfine 8 IGH so I'll investigate my options for that.

Not sure if they do one to fit the Alfine hub as it is not specifically listed but I guess you can try. It's the rear section which needs to fit the Alfine hub. Maybe email them.

 

[swansonj]

I built the bike myself. The chain cover is a Hebie Chainglider for Rohloff which I got from SJS cycles. Although they don't currently do this type any more, well it wasn't on their website about a week ago as I looked for one for some friends that also have Rohloff hub bikes. So I ended up finding the right combination on Bike24, CRC's German website. You just order the casings to match your Rohloff rear sprocket size 15-17T and then the front section to match your bike's front chain ring size and that's it. It can be a little fiddly to fit at first to get the correct position so it doesn't rub on the chain but once you have nailed it, it's fine. I would suggest making small marks with a white pen on the outside of the casing so you know where to reset it to on re-assembly if you take it off which takes about 1 minute. It's easy to take on and off though. It keeps the chain, sprocket and front ring really clean. The chain, sprocket and front ring have all covered about 15k miles and still look like new with negligible wear. The chain has next to no stretch which is amazing. I used to get about 6k miles out of a chain on my derailleur bikes. When I first fitted the Hebie Chainglider cover it was a love hate relationship as I couldn't get it sitting properly as it would rub and rub which drove me nuts but now I have conquered this and got it spot on and have it on the whole time even in summer which stops dust and grit accumulating on the chain, so inside it's just clean with lube. Also no more oil or crud over the rear wheel or chain stay or hands when you lift the bike. Mine cost about £35.

Also bear in mind that with a Rohloff hub the maintenance costs of your bike should plummet as the components of the transmission last so much longer and you will have so much more time to ride your bike rather than spending money and time maintaining it. So over time the Rohloff hub pays for itself and is such a well engineered reliable hub. Well this is what I have found.

Good for you for getting the chainglider to fit. I haven't tried myself but I recall Robin Thorn saying that they'd tried and failed which was why they didn't offer them as an option on Thorns.