MacB
Lover of things that come in 3's
- Location
- Farnborough, Hampshire
SA 3 speed would be 33% and 25% down from the direct drive which is the middle gear. There are other variations but that would be the classic AW or the modern equivalent SRF3. A lot of people run this with a 2:1 ration chainwheel to rear cog so you get a low of 40 inches, middle 54 and top 72. The 72 is good for general riding and the 54 for heavy traffic and stop start stuff. The 40 is a bail out for a steep hill, heavily laden, or if you're just knackered. On mine I've only used the 54 and 72 in earnest so far. The ride style is different as in you tend to modulate via pedalling tempo rather than lots of gear changes.
Alfine will give more weight at the rear but overall weight of bike should be comparable to a reasonable groupset derailler setup. Rohloff is heavier, I-9 heavier again. The 3 speeds will give you something that's a bit lighter overall. None of these will be as light as a fixed/single speed and the weight is always going to be more rearward.
A 3 speed is simple, it has one planetary gear the others are all more complex, ie more to go wrong. SA 3 speeds are self maintainable or you can choose from many bike shops that can sort them, spares are easily available and cheap. Shimano are the next best for maintenance options available. SRAM and Rohloff are generally a return to Germany option for maintenance. However their track records, especially the Rohloff, are superior from a reliability perspective.
A negative on 3 speeds are the axle lengths available as many won't fit a modern frame of 130 or 135mm dropouts. I had to order my SRF3 from the US as I wanted the 175mm axle and they don't import that to Europe.
If you search on my posts/threads you'll find a lot of info on hub gears. Rogerxilla on YACF and CTC is pretty good and Graham on CTC is excellent for SA info, how to strip, maintain etc. Shimano are also bringing out an Alfine 11 speed which could be a serious bit of competition for Rohloff.
Alfine will give more weight at the rear but overall weight of bike should be comparable to a reasonable groupset derailler setup. Rohloff is heavier, I-9 heavier again. The 3 speeds will give you something that's a bit lighter overall. None of these will be as light as a fixed/single speed and the weight is always going to be more rearward.
A 3 speed is simple, it has one planetary gear the others are all more complex, ie more to go wrong. SA 3 speeds are self maintainable or you can choose from many bike shops that can sort them, spares are easily available and cheap. Shimano are the next best for maintenance options available. SRAM and Rohloff are generally a return to Germany option for maintenance. However their track records, especially the Rohloff, are superior from a reliability perspective.
A negative on 3 speeds are the axle lengths available as many won't fit a modern frame of 130 or 135mm dropouts. I had to order my SRF3 from the US as I wanted the 175mm axle and they don't import that to Europe.
If you search on my posts/threads you'll find a lot of info on hub gears. Rogerxilla on YACF and CTC is pretty good and Graham on CTC is excellent for SA info, how to strip, maintain etc. Shimano are also bringing out an Alfine 11 speed which could be a serious bit of competition for Rohloff.