Originally Posted by
wolfchild
In my experience, fixed gear drivetrain is the best for winter commuting. Nothing to break, nothing to go wrong, it always works even if you get lazy and neglect to clean and lube your drivetrain, it's cheap because singlespeed chainrings and track cogs last a lot longer then multi speed cassettes. Single speed is a close second in realiability...Derailleurs suck and I hate them.
Single speed hubs, not fixed, but with coaster brakes also have the benefits of nothing to break, nothing to go wrong, always work even if you get lazy and neglect to clean and lube your drivetrain, are cheap because single speed chainrings and track cogs last a lot longer then multi speed cassettes
and provide stopping capability in all weather under all all conditions with 100% reliability; in addition they allow the cyclist to coast.
If the OP really needs gears and wants reliability in all weather any S-A AW or Sachs Torpedo hub should provide it if 3 speeds are adequate for his winter bicycling tasks.