FWIW, Popular Science magazine reported a 47% growth in USA bicycle commuting between 2000 and 2011 - in some cities it's well over 100%. So called 'bike share' programs (really, short term bicycle rental, the only thing that's shared is your charge card number) are springing up everywhere it seems - I heard the Chicago transportation czar talking about their system today on the radio.

Wasn't that the one with the first generation Gates belt drive system?

IGHs have been around since 1884.

Breezer has several IGH models available. So does Schwinn. And Civia.

Nope, it's the only IGH that doesn't have planetaries. It's got continuously variable rollers.

Conventional IGH do use planetary gears.

Rohloff 14 speed

Shimano Alfine 11

Sturmey Archer 8 speed

Sachs/SRAM 7 speed

The Nuvinci still uses planetary action, but does not use gears.

Yeah flip flopped the tech.

I bought a bike last year that had a Sturmey Archer IG 5 speed hub and I hate it. I thought I would be getting a nice quiet single speed with gears but I was wrong, it isn't quiet and it feels so disconnected and inefficient. Most of the noise is a product of the chain tensioner and probably a cheap chain and not the hub but I just don't like the system. It has to go.

Well my Alfine 8 is lovely. My wife's Shimano Nexus 3 isn't bad rise worse, but the pawls do tick loudly.

Keep in mind fold that the Rohloffs are VERY expensive.

I did a lot of research on the Shimano and SRAM units and came away with mixed feelings, especially relative to maintenance.

I ended up getting a single speed, which I love, but will be watching the trends on IGH closely. Thanks to the chap who posted the videos, very helpful.

Both of my bikes have Shimano 7-speed IGH's. I love them. Low maintenance, and being able to shift while stopped is handy in town. I wouldn't recommend picking one if your top priorities are racing or doing serious vertical challenges, but IGH's do well for urban street commuting.

Check out the Jamis Commuter 3 if you are looking for an IGH bike and have access to a Jamis dealer. I have one, and it has been a good bike.

Yea, but .. you only buy them once.. R'off cogs are less than 10 cog cassettes .

and I can flip my R'off cog over when worn and double it's wear life.



one of the places Racing that they do well is MTB endurance events.. particularly in Europe.

Where even Summers Are not Dry.

I believe his point is that mtn or road biking carries more sex appeall so the reps push all the gear.More people find Lance sexy than my middle age ass on a commuter w/rack and fender.

IGH bikes are out there but you migh have to search around depending on shops or if you want to order online. Online I think they are more common than they were a couple years ago. I've had a couple 3-speed bikes (bought both used) that were built in the later 2000's the latest a Breezer. Both were/are great bikes, but I like more than the 3 gears for my commuting and riding around town on errands as transportation so I'll probably move the Breezer on to a new owner. I really like the bike alot actually, but I have too many bikes the way it is so its leaving soon to help thin the herd.

Raleigh has a few nice IGH bikes with the Cadent & Misceo in 8 & 11 spd Alfine.

I don't know if you get Norco where you live, but the CityGlide 8 has the 8-speed Nexus hub. It seems to be a popular model here in spite of the awful mattress type saddle.
Opus isn't sold in the U.S.A. as far as I know, but they also have some nice internally geared city models. If you happen to be across the border and find a bike shop selling them, the Lugano and it's step-though counterpart, the Nuovella, come already set up with racks and fenders.
It definitely helps to find a shop where they are willing to work on them. At one shop here, the owner dismissed my questions about repairs and maintenance to my Alfine 8 by saying I should just run it into the ground and then buy a new one. Perhaps I won't be taking the IGH bike to that shop for any work in future.
e.t.a.: Did anyone mention Scott? I'm pretty sure there's a Scott IGH bike as well.

I agree. I had a Jamis Commuter for a few years. The Shimano hub broke, long story short, an $.85 retaining clip broke. Shimano told me they didn't make that part anymore (changed models) and that I would have to buy a new hub. I did, a Nuvinci. I've been happy ever since. Getting your base gear ratio (chainring/cog) correct to accommodate your terrain is important. It's a great unit for commuting.

Marc

i have a 2011 Scott SUB 10 - an alfine 8, hydraulic disc brake, aluminum hybrid (but still with a conventional chain, the SUB 10 model switched to a gates carbon belt drive in 2012).

it's an ok bike, but i wouldn't recommend it. the EBB necessary for chain tension constantly slips out of alignment regardless of how tight the mechanic at my LBS gets the external clamp bolts. if anyone is looking for an IGH/disc brake bike (ie. you have to have vertical drop-outs), i would strongly advise going with a bike with sliding rear vertical dropouts over an EBB for chain tension.

i also disliked the aluminum fork that came with the bike, so i switched it out for a carbon fork. the bike isn't awful, but it's also FAR from my favorite. it has served for over 2 years now as my foul weather/winter steed, but i'm currently exploring options in a disc brake CX that can take fenders and wider tires as a replacement. i think i'm done with IGHs. in theory i like the concept, but in practice i have found my alfine 8 to be heavy and draggy. it has worked flawlessly for me, but i just plain old prefer a conventional derailleur drivetrain.

Trek discontinued the Soho DLX -- might be worth calling Trek dealers around if you want one, because they should have them at closeout price, couple hundred dollars off. Last year, they ditched the Soho 7sp, and the year before, they got rid of the Fisher IGH model. FWIW, they also got rid of the District belt drive single speed.

IGH is a hard sell. People who want them, want them, easy sale, but trying to interest those who don't know what they are and think all bikes have those derailleur things is not easy. They just don't sell, and not for want of trying.

I like them, I can work on them, I try to sell them. I'd not like to be project manager at a bike company who spec's them...

Commuted on one for two years and loved it, but wanted more range and to try a derailleur commuter.

I have one of the Shimano "red band" 8 hubs which I guess is basically the same as the Alfine. One frustrating aspect is that it's hard to troubleshoot the things and a lot of shops aren't familiar with them at all. I had an issue for a time with mine "skipping" in 4th gear. When seemingly the only option is to send the entire wheel in for repair it becomes obvious there's not a lot the shops feel they can do.

I ended up doing my own troubleshooting/process of elimination and replacing the cable & housing seemed to have fixed it.

Set screw eccentrics work much better than the clamp sort.

Specialized Globe with Alfine 8-Speed as my commuter. Superb. It's my "do anything" bike, as I also tow my daughter on her Trail-A-Bike on it and use it for grocery or Red box movie runs.

There is something very cool about how that Alfine feels--solid, robust, efficient--I can't put my finger on it.

I'm building a Karate Monkey next with an Alfine 11...

Check out Breezer bikes for a line-up of practical IGH bikes.

Almost all the 'bike share' (short term bicycle rental) bikes worldwide are IGH. They seem to favor six-speed derailleur set ups for bike share in South America, but everywhere else I've seen uses three-speed IGH.

i've read just the opposite from others on this very forum.

regardless, it's all water under the bridge for me because i'll never own another EBB bike again in my life. the bottom bracket takes A LOT of force from riders like me who ride aggressively and out of the saddle a lot of the time, and on an intuitive level, it just seems to me that a conventional stationary bottom bracket that doesn't have the ability to move in the first place will always be superior to any kind of EBB.

for folks who need/want vertical drop-outs and aren't gonna run a derailleur or attach a chain tensioner (a clumsy solution), sliding rear vertical drop-outs like those on the Spot Acme/Ajax bikes seem like the most elegant solution to me.

just my 2 cents from my own experience with an EBB.

My Koga WTR uses what is largely following the Rohloff Blueprints for a sliding dropout.

see type F here .. http://www.rohloff.de/en/technology/...les/index.html