Originally Posted by
GamblerGORD53
It did a test ride with those on a Simcoe I really liked. They stopped well, but the crunchy grinding sound and feel is grotesque. IMO.
Imagine doing that at 40 mph on a hill. NO thanks.
OTOH... My SA XL-FDD has done 26,000 miles, including 8,100 on tour, and will likely do that again. One bearing change, otherwise all I do is have a look once a year and rough up the glaze a bit. They are basically self cleaning. The dirt just gets grinded up and falls out. Plus it's silent with NO drag.
It doesn't sound as crunchy as it sounds metal-on-metal, even when greased. Makes you think of one wheel of a freight train going through a curve.
I've run the smaller Sturmey drum front hub. It's pretty nice - not as linear as a good set of dual pivots, but improved over the original drums from the '30s through the '80s. I've also used the RXL-RD3 in the rear - no complaints there, even though they're a bit spongier, and downright strange when paired with the 6000-series roller in front.
Originally Posted by
bwilli88
Did you grease them well? Pop that dust cover and see what the pressure band is like. Put about that much grease in them.
I haven't looked under the dust cover, but I can guarantee that I
overgreased one of the two.
Originally Posted by
JaccoW
Yup, once they have too many miles on them there's very little you can do. Even the higher end 6000's turn mushy after enough miles. I have a bike that I did well over 40,000 km (25,000 miles) on and where I swapped the brakes out for the higher end model after a few years. By the end even those started to turn mushy and would barely stop the bike anymore. When I tried cleaning them the brakes fell apart and I just didn't bother cleaning them up anymore and tossed them.
I think I have done those kinds of speeds on a hill once in the Belgian Ardennes, when they were new. It was lots of fun.
But like you said, seeing how much bite the 90mm Sturmey Archer drum brakes have I'm not sure I ever want to go back anymore.
Well, there's nobody I'd figure to know best than someone who's basically surrounded by roller brakes. Had I known you ran some sets into the ground as you describe, I would have gone straight to you with my question
I'm on flat land, so 40mph downhill on a Social Bicycles 3.0 isn't happening. Not that I wouldn't try it though; they're very stable in the handling department.
-Kurt