SetLaw

I've been biking for about a month now and I've grown to hate derailleur. I have a cheap 21 speed mountain bike and I only ever use 7-14 and 21 gear. Would it be possible to get a Gear hub that had the equivalent of those gears? I'm looking to have gears that are really easy to pedal when going uphill and then gears that are very hard to pedal for when I want to pick up speed going downhill.

Retro Grouch 

I wouldn't think it would be a difficult thing to find but I don't know if it will in your budget.

fietsbob

A Rohloff hub is made to function as a Mountain Bike drive train, instead of 27 speed ,
as Ratios, many of which are nearly redundant
https://www.rohloff.de/en/technology/...son/index.html

but 'speed' is a parts count, no indication of the actual gear ratio,
for that you need to count teeth and do the Math.

chasm54

There's really no need to "look" for gears that allow you to manage the hills and to go fast on the downhills. You already have these gears on your bike. So just use them.

SetLaw

I mentioned the "looking" part because I don't want a 8 speed gear hub that is only going to mimic the first 8 speeds of my current bike. Ideally I want the 1st speed to be extremely easy and the 8th speed to be extremely hard. I used "8" as a random number. If they had a 3 speed hub that would mimic the whole range I'd be extremely happy.

dynaryder

https://sheldonbrown.com/gears/

Plug you're bike's numbers in here,then try comparing to the list of gear hubs in the pull-down. Also understand that what you stated in your OP might be impossible,impractical,or very expensive.

Retro Grouch 

Not to worry. An 8-speed IGH will mimic the entire range of your current bike. It mostly just eliminates the gears that you don't use.

SetLaw

Are all IGH's setup to have a low, medium and high speed ?

fietsbob

3 speeds are .. the low is 0.75 of the middle, the high is 1.33x the middle

nuVinci is continuously variable. low and high are 180% above and below the middle

other hubs use different gear ratios eg sturmey 5 speed adds a high and a low above and below
the 3/4\-1-\4/3

Retro Grouch 

Three to some number.

The total gear range may or may not change with the number of IGH speeds. Too big of steps between gears is undesirable.

Retro Grouch 

Why don't you see if you can find a local dealer who has an IGH bike in stock that you can test ride to see how it feels?

fietsbob

in order to determine that you need to do the Math.. the ratios of chain wheel teeth are 1 set of calculations

the % of the direct drive external chain drive combo is another, as the range of the hub is applied top suit your needs.


the $1200 rohloff hub is essentially a 9 speed, 3-3speeds but the middle is the same so only 1 of the 3 1:1's is used

then the 7 speeds are used twice , 2nd time its a big reduction gear 1 thru 7 is a double reduction gear
8, 9 10 single reduction, 11 is the direct gear 12~14 are overdrive.

MichaelW

8 speed hub gears have the same range and ratios as the middle ring of a typical low-end MTB, nothing crazy low or super high. They dont have big jumps in gear ratio at the low or high ends like Shimano Megarange derailleur systems.
You can shift all the ratios up or down by changing the size of the rear sprocket or front chainring.

Dahon.Steve

Just go with a 9 speed cassette and a single chainring. The cheap mountain bike will not work with a hub and you'll have to get a whole new bike.

fietsbob

do learn about your bike in the next few months, and then see if the quest for perfection
has a budget to back it up for the next bike..

SolitaryRider

Why do you hate derailleurs? A decent-quality derailleur (Basically anything above department-store quality) is reliable and simple, and you can customize the gearing for your needs, if need be. You probably just need a better-quality bike, or to learn how to properly adjust and maintain your drivetrain.

MEversbergII

How much less work is involved in the hub gear, really? I've considered getting into hub gears, primarily from a robustness perspective (Can't snag a hub gear on anything!), but if they're lower maintenance that would be great.

M.

JohnDThompson 

My 1953 Sturmey-Archer AW hub just needs a few drops of oil every couple weeks or so.

chasm54

Decent hub gears are pretty much indestructible. They last for decades.

StephenH

The problem is crappy cheap derailleurs. You can get good geared hubs, but they aren't cheap, and if you spend a lot of money, you pretty much solve the problem with derailleurs, too. You can get the 3-speed hubs used for cheap maybe, but gear range is pretty limited (not that they will necessarily fit your bike, for that matter.) Best bet is spend a lot of money on a nicer bike, or learn more about adjusting yours (which won't entirely solve the problem!).

wahoonc

I have a 1970's vintage Sturmey-Archer AW 3 speed that has somewhere in excess of 35,000 miles on it. It finally got torn down for an inspection last year. I replaced the pawl springs just because. Chains typically last 10,000 miles cogs 15,000+ basic maintenance is to add a squirt of oil every couple of weeks if I think about it.

The range is limited, however they do make more than 3 speeds now. FWIW I own around 30 bicycles the bulk of them are 3 speeds.

Aaron

MEversbergII

Thanks; I think I'll give them a shot when I can.

I've been considering an 8 speed over a 3 speed hub for a good range of gears. Windsor, I think, bike company makes an 8 speed but I'm not about to drop 900USD just yet.

What I might do at some point when I invest in a folding bike is see about "upgrading" it to a hub for increased durability.

Now, if only I could find an old English 3 Speed

M.

wahoonc

They are out there and don't forget to look for Schwinn's too.

Aaron

brianogilvie 

As others have said, the gear numbers are meaningless without knowing the range of your cassette and the size of your front chainrings.

Also, comparing the number of speeds is misleading, because there are a number of duplicated gears on a derailleur system.

An entry level Trek mountain bike with a 48-38-28 crankset and a 14-34 7-speed cassette has a gear range of 416% (i.e., in the highest gear, in one pedal stroke you go 4.16 times as far as you would in the lowest gear). The only IGHs I know that approach or exceed that range are the Shimano Alfine 11-speed and the 14-speed Rohloff, which are both expensive. You could use an 8-speed hub and get a decent range, though. I have an 8-speed on my commuter bike.

The main disadvantage of an IGH is that if you get a flat, removing the wheel to fix it is more complicated than with a derailleur bike. For that reason, many of us who use IGHs also use reinforced, flat-resistant tires, which are heavier and stiffer than regular tires. They slow you down significantly. It's sometimes possible to fix a flat without removing the wheel, but that requires patching the tube while it's still on the wheel, and if the tube can't be patched, you have to take the wheel off.

MEversbergII

That is a cause for concern. I've been running self-sealing tubes a while now and they've held up much better than the standard type. Looking at kevlar soon, too, to kind of double up. I'll have to hit up youtube in a bit to see how it's all done, I don't know what kind of complications there would be.

M.