Touring - Just a musing,meandering post - 10 speed touring and Internal Gears

So, because I'm building up an internal hub bike I've been surfing and searching out as much info on internal hub gears as possible - its mostly for commuting, but I'd consider doing some short touring on it or something perhaps -- anyway... everyone gets down on internal hub gears - even though they've shown to be somewhat more efficient than people seem to wish to acknowledge. Here's the deal though - didn't people tour on 10 speeds back in "the day." I understand that the 10 speed tourers might have been lighter due to the derailer system, but also let's also postulate they were relatively heavy (by today's standards perhaps) steel frames. So, my question is - 27 speed gimmicks behind us (I commute soley on a single speed and I can get up some serious hills on this, so the addition of 6 or 7 extra speeds would be quite extraordinary I would think)... why wouldn't you use an internal gear (sans Rohloff because let's discount a 900 dollar hub) to do some touring or some range riding? Supposedly the new Nexus 8 might pretty be durable under load. So is this just a question of - well, technology has increased us to 27 gears, so let's use them or what? I keep trying to go back to derailer systems after riding SS and I just can't get into it - I don't like the shifting, the chain moving and all that jazz. Hi, my name is Dave, and I don't like deraillers.

I'm bored, so I'm musing and rambling.

The reason derailliers may be better for touring are:

- greater gear range - not just number of gears
- more fixable - in the event of a problem, replacements are easy to find and can always be manually rigged as a single-speed

Having said that, I'm intrigued by the newer internal hubs. The Rohloffs sound like they have a good range and are bulletproof (well, they better be for that price :eek: ). I'm also curious about the new Shimano hubs, just don't want to be the guinea pig!

Heh, I want to be a guinea pig on the 8... I work with computers so I know version one is not the way to go... but I'm still willing to do it here... just a matter of them being available. I'd really *like* to get a Rohloff... but man, I'm just a gov'ment worker... I can't afford that!

I keep trying to go back to derailer systems after riding SS and I just can't get into it - I don't like the shifting, the chain moving and all that jazz. Hi, my name is Dave, and I don't like deraillers.

Hi, my name is George and I don't like derailleurs. I ride mainly fixed. Although I've been using my derailleured Mtb convert for light duty touring, I am looking at an internal hub for my next project.

Maybe I should start a website and club: "Hi my name is _____ and I don't like derailleurs." We could have an 8 step/gear program ;).

We could have an 8 step/gear program ;).

:p :p :p :p

alright, enough time has passed, anyone using an internally geared hub for touring?

I am currently building a bike (frame and all) for my wife to use as a commuter to and from work. The catch is she drives part way and then rides the final 6 miles on a bike trail So it needs to be convenient for her to get from in and out of the car without getting grease and dirt all over everything so I opted for the Nexus 8spd redline. (redline version supposedly has better bearings and more durable) The shifting is precise and effortless certainly easier to shift than the old 3spd Sturmey Archers with thumb shifter. Gear range is pretty broad . I have it set up to span from about 28GIs to about 78GIs there is several different drive sprockets available. You will need a frame with horizontal or sloping adjustable dropouts unless you move the rear cable stop 4" closer to the crank you will need to use the supplied cable housing and clamps for the gear shifter. I mocked the bike up and rode it before stripping it back down for paintiing. It really is smooth. I'll post pics in a couple of weeks after I spray the frame and assemble.

I rode a fixed gear bike when I raced track...My knees have lasted through 25 years of riding because I try to give my self enough range of gears to ride the intended terrain and maintain an 85rpm cadence most of the time. I built a randonneur bike for myself this year using the new Ultegra 10spd with a triple sugino crank and retro friction shifters. My knees love them close ratios!

i'm seriously considering a tensioner so i can keep a double on the front (with a chain guard and the widest gearing the tensioner will allow) and a 5 or 7 speed rear for my city bike. Right now it's a 9 speed double. With one gear lost on the big front, big rear and two lost little front little rear due to cross chaining chatter and another 3 that are duplicated i have like 12 good gears.
only thing i'm concerned about is the issue of drag and building a wheel with a rear disk. I've never built a wheel... so that might be fun. And one poster said that his hub "was like riding through treacle." Now i don't want to feel like i'm riding through thicker treacle than i'm normally riding through... i already have a head full of treacle most nights...

Yes...I've used a Rohloff mounted on a Thorn Raven (exped. type bike) and as far as the gear range was concerned it gave the same range as a Triple equipped i.e. 17.4 ""-95"" which is pretty good. What did impress was the ease of shifting with only one twist grip and no need to remove pedal pressure which made it so easy that after a while you never had to think about it at all. That and the ability to change any amount of gears at once and also to change while stationary made it ideal for loaded touring. What I did find irksome was the weight concentrated on the back wheel. That said, if we can discount the potential difficulty of repairs being needed (and I think we can given the reports over the last ten years ) then it's a good bet.

This guy (http://www.sandsmachine.com/a_syc_r1.htm) has used an internal geared hub for a few miles. I'm thinking of a SA three speed the replace the fixed wheel on my bike as well.

Maybe I should start a website and club: "Hi my name is _____ and I don't like derailleurs." We could have an 8 step/gear program ;).

Yes, 8 is good. Calling it the "14 step program" (Rohloff) might put people off...