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Old 10-07-08 | 09:23 PM
  #28  
feijai
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Joined: May 2007
Posts: 912
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From: Washington, DC
Myth: Since small wheels have less inertia they accelerate faster.

Fact: No. Since a properly designed geartrain will make small wheels spin faster (so you don't have to pedal more) they will not have less inertia and they will not accelerate any faster unless they are lighter. Physically speaking this is really the same myth as the "pedal more" myth, but, paradoxically, proponents of small wheels usually cite the former while opponents usually cite the latter.
This one needs to be retracted. I believe small wheels are generally lighter and so have less forward inertia: and they are both lighter at the rim and have smaller radii, meaning they typically have significantly less rotational inertia. How does this not translate into faster acceleration?

You seem to be talking about some equivalence to the pedaling myth: but it looks nonsensical to me. It doesn't have anything to do with gearing.
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