Speedub.Nate

Back in March (shoot, a whole 6 months ago) I posted a whole bunch of photos of my new, bare naked Hollowpoint MkIII frame that I had prepped to build from the frame up.

Weeks turned into months and I took all kinds of delays scraping together the right mix of parts, but I finally finished the deed: Rohloff Speedhub, White Brothers DT 1.2 fork, Hopey steering damper, stripped & polished rear triangel and a bunch of other treats.

I've got a zillion photos plus a bunch of "How To" articles posted over at MTBR:

Link to MkIII / Speedhub Build Pics (Main Post)



Plus all this and then some:

Hopey Steering Damper Installation

Drilling Out Cable Stops (Full Length Cable Run)

Stripping & Polishing an Aluminum Frame

Homemade Headset Removal & Installation Tools

Star Fangled Nut Removal (Drilling out the Star Nut)

Cane Creek AD-12 Air Chamber Volume Adjustment

Bottom Bracket Drain Hole Drilling & Installation

Dremel Cut & Prep of Cable & Housing

zx108

what is that little black box by the rear brake?

Speedub.Nate

That black box is the external shifting box for the Speedhub. The hub has no return spring, and uses dual cables in a "pull-pull" configuration from the twist shifter to the hub. A thumb screw holds the box to the mount, and allows easy disconnect in the event the rear wheel needs to be removed from the frame.

It's a little intimidating to rig up, especially for a first-timer, but once it's set, you'll not touch it for a long, long time.

Dannihilator

You must be næstep from ridemonkey, bike's looking good, saw the pics this morning, but didn't post.

valbowski1980

Nice bike.

How much does a Rohloff Speedhub cost? Those things are amazing.

shane45

Well done! Nice "how-to" write up.

Dannihilator

They cost an arm and a leg.

the wonginator

you may as well sell your balls, because after you realized what you've just bought your balls will shrivel up so much that you're never gonna have kids (again?) anyways.























ugh.

Speedub.Nate

That'd be me.

Speedub.Nate

I haven't paid full price for one yet, but I usually see them advertised retail in the $900 to $1000+ range.

My first hub I imported from New Zealand at close to wholesale (~$600), one came pre-installed on a bike at just an impossible price (a manufacturer was having a cash-raising fire sale ~$1000 for the complete bike), and another I bought used (~$500).

So deals are out there -- but scarce -- if you're looking. Everyone who asks where to buy one I direct to eBay. Unfortunately, even on eBay they seem to be popping up with less frequency and selling for higher and higher amounts.

Actually, I guess that's a good thing: The Speedhub is being accepted and sales are increasing. 'Course, the weak dollar in Europe doesn't help us afford that German engineering, either.

And of course any time I switch to a new bike (this Iron Horse MkIII is the third bike this particular hub has been mounted to since I purchased it in 2001), I get to sell the entire derailleur-based drivetrain & rear wheel off on eBay -- "As New" -- which drops a few hundred more bucks back in my pocket that I wouldn't otherwise have. Sort of a Speedhub dividend.

I agree with you, the hubs are amazing. If you haven't checked out the reviews, here's a link: https://www.mtbr.com/reviews/manufacturers/2998/

harov3

My dream bike just got that much more expensive- damm! thats nice.

Decadence213

How much did you pay for that frame? I like it.

MattP.

Holy cow, nice.

redls1camaro

OK What exactly is that speed hub?? Bike looks very nice!

swifferman

What are you talking about?

the wonginator

i dunno.

Speedub.Nate

I bought the bike complete (MkIII Expert). My M.O. is to strip the bike down, sell off the drivetrain on eBay (well, in this case, the drivetrain along with everything else), and offset the cost of the new bike.

You'd probalby be surprised: with the right parts spec (usually an XT-level build), and the right price on the complete bike, a frame can often be had for anywhere from $0 to $200 after selling off all the parts that come with it on the complete bike. Makes frame upgrades somewhat cost effective.

Speedub.Nate

I tried digging up an old but very comprehensive discussing the Speedhub, but to no avail. I'll be sure to post it later if I find it -- it's very interesting reading with input from various Speedhub owners.

In the meantime, take a gander at this: https://www.sjscycles.com/thornpdf/Th...thARohloff.pdf

In a nutshell, the Rohloff Speedhub is 14-speed internally geared hub. It does away with multiple shifters, multiple chainrings, multi-speed cassette & derailleurs. I covers a wide gear range of 526%, about the equivalent of a 24-speed (8-speed cassette) drivetrain. It's about one gear shy of a typical 9-speed setup.

Depending on what level of components you're replacing, the Speedhub adds anywhere from 0 to 2 pounds. The disc brake, full-suspension version of the hub adds approximately 1 to 1.5 pounds over my normal mix of XTR & XT components I'm replacing. It also shifts displaces all that weight to the rear of the bike, centered in the hub, which of course is non-suspended weight.

But in return, it provides a stout zero-dish, symmetrical rear wheel build, it eliminates most external moving parts (all the gearing is sealed inside the hub in an oil bath), is internally indexed (no shifter adjustments), and so far has no history of mechanical failure. Plus I get to run a singlespeed-like straight chainline, can shift at a standstill or even riding backwards if I saw fit, and can shift from gear 1 to gear 14 as instantly as I can torque the shifter. My chain life expetancy has probably increased by 3x or 4x, and my rear cog and chainring can both be flipped over when they eventually wear out, for twice the already extended life. Annual maintenance involves changing the oil, which is a simple procedure and (wheee!) involves a ride after adding rinse oil to the hub to help clean everything out.

If you can get over the weight, the only real hiccup is the up-front price, but even that works out in my favor over a few years.

cryptid01

I like the hopey, but I've only ever seen them bikes that spend most of their time bombing rock gardens. I guess the weight is a consideration for most non-dhers, but they're definitely slick units. You should be pulling no-hander landers with ease...

redls1camaro

Thanks For the info. Does anyone sell them online? j/w.. Sounds preaty nice.

Speedub.Nate

The weight, surprisingly, ain't bad: 140g for the whole shebang. I ain't no weightweenie, but still pay attention to stuff like that. In this instance, the Hopey damper (so far) seems like a good trade for 140g.

Speedub.Nate

I refer most folks looking for a deal on Speedhubs to eBay. They pop up with regularity, although of late thier prices have been creeping upward. But set up a "favorites" search for "(Rohloff, Speedhub)" and their system will generate an email every day if a new one is put up for bids.

HarrisCyclery.com is big on Speedhubs. I believe WebCyclery.com stocks them. They're listed in the QBP catalog, making them available on a ton of "cookie cutter" LBS websites, plus places like aebike.com and bikeman.com. There is also a Canadian website called FreerideHubs.com that appeared to have centered their business around the Speedhub before having a fallout with Rohloff, which is the main subject of their website of late.