Originally Posted by
Syscrush
4) Internal gear hub.
I expect that's contentious in some circles, but what can I say? I just really, really hate derailleurs for a bike I want to ride every day and just not worry about. Please resist the temptation to offer me an education on how nice derailleurs are if they're set up and maintained properly. I hate the looks and the weight of an IGH, and I hate the thought of sullying a nice Italian frame with one, but it's just the best compromise for my intended usage of this bike. The framesets I'm considering have either horizontal dropouts (Bianchi), or adjustable (Gios).
You must be new here. Ain nobody gonna give you no **** about an IGH. Though you yourself sound conflicted enough for all of us.
If there are any aesthetic problems I forecast, it's the deep-vs, due to their inherent hideousness.
However, they are no doubt tough. Srsly, if you can stomach the appearance, wheels like that will no doubt give you good service and be bullet proof. Anyway, the jackass is in the eye of the beholder. A very popular rim for this purpose is the Sun CR-18, double-walled, made in many sizes, almost a real box section, cockroach-after-the-apocalypse tough. Even available polished. Plus you avoid that johnny-come-lately-hipster look.
I would suggest looking into the 5-sp bar-end shifter SA makes to go with your hub. Problem solved, and you don't have to use a <
shudder> grip shifter.
There are about a 100-bazillion examples in this forum of IGH conversions with classic bike frames if you hunt around.
Welcome to the cool kids' club.