chrissmedley

updates? i'm psyched and want to build something with this thing!

has the hub type been decided yet or is going to be a mixed order? if it counts for anything, i think i'd get the most use from 120 spacing, threaded cog, 32 or 36 holes. can someone clarify what a "snap on" cog is?

MixxMeATape

im in

Muttley

A "snap-on cog" is the cog with 3 small splines, held on by a circlip on the hub. It's what almost every coaster brake or internal gear hub uses. Sturmey-Archer, Shimano, etc.
Velosteel's cogs are made for 1/8" chains but you can get 3/32" cogs from other sources and use them, if you choose.
Muttley

Batavus

Raining on your parade: Velosteel hubs suck at braking. Shimanos are ugly but they stop you like no other,

shecky

I was wondering if my experience was unique. Maybe suck is too harsh a descriptor. But definitely not as good as the Shimanos, KTs, various Bendix, and Sachs cone clutch model I have. Do they have a reputation? Were the old Sachs hubs they copy better at braking?

Lets face it, though. Most of us are suckers for shiny things.

Batavus

In the shop where I work I only have experience with Sachs, Velosteel and some others which have the same basic design. they all perform poorly, but they indeed look the part. Sachs-made three speed hubs, that is another story. I have a 1970's vintage Torpedo (=Sachs) 3-speed freewheel hub built into my English 3-speed look-alike Peugeot and it spins ubersmooth. Took it apart, rebuilt it without replacing slighly worn cones and it is so ****ing smooth! Better than any Sturmey Archer design! I just put a few drops of Rohloff oil into the lubrication port now and then and it is good to go for another year.

joshuagawne

bummer to see some bad reviews in here. hopefully the majority of the people saying that it is one of the better hubs are somewhat on.

with that said i still want to do the order and now i have a question for you guys.

would you rather wait a little longer for the hubs (around a month for shipping) and get them for considerably cheaper? or get them sooner and pay more?

i'm leaning towards cheaper.

also starting this week i'm going to start compiling all the special orders and decide what the standard order is going to be.

soon!

corter

you can count me in for one too, i thought this was dead but if it's going strong im in for one, if not 2 or 3 depending on price

ihatesanity

Unfortunately, I sold the bike that I was going to buy the hub for, so I'm out. Good luck with the group buy you guys!

Cyclist0383

It's a cheap hub that you find on 100 euro sports shop bikes. If that's what you are looking for than you'll be happy with it. It's no magical-golden-dirt-cheap-hub-secret-from-Europe.

ERabbit

hey muttley what is the length of the axle on the ones we originally ordered? is it 120? i can't believe i've had this hub sitting here for so long without building it up (lack of time) i'm so stoked to finally get it going

nsk

I'm still in for one 36-hole 120mm snap-on hub, with a 16t sprocket. Velosteel spec would be : 36/2.8-180-120-K.

Muttley

ERabbit,
I ordered them all with 165mm axles and 120mm OLD. In hindsight, I would order the longer axles, probably the 171mm axles, to allow for track nuts.
Muttley

Muttley

Maybe it's a cheap hub across the pond, but it's far nicer than the Chinese hubs we get in the US which are intended for disposable kids' bikes.

shecky

It's far nicer as long as long as you don't count functionality. Once comparing how they actually work, I found Velosteel comes out behind.

Muttley

I find mine spins reallllly smooooth. Braking doesn't bite really hard, but I haven't really hammered it either - after riding motorcycles for years I don't use the rear brake too hard anyway.

YMMV
Muttley

Cyclist0383

As opposed to being made for disposable bikes on the European market? For all the BS talk about high-end parts that I hear on BF/SSFG I'm truly shocked that people are embracing this quite low end hub. But as I said earlier, if you don't have any high expectations it could be okay.

What are you folks paying for them anyway?

scotty82

From an incredibly newb perspective, it's becoming harder and harder to point out significant differences between the two manufacturers versions of a relatively straight forward braking design. All opinions aside, does anyone have both coasters that can provide a clear pro/con of each? I suppose my application isnt as performance based as many, so which coaster set up would provide sufficient braking for a flat land commuter type single speed? I've heard many say the velosteel champions the shimano coaster any day of the week, but the shimano coaster brake is much more readily available here in the states. Any input would be appreciated as i am excited to get going on my new project! thanks in advance.

ps: I'm quasi interested in the GB so will check often to see whats goin down.

shecky

I used both a Velosteel and Shimano hubs on the same bike, with the same rim, spokes, tire and gear ratio. This is my observation and description of some of the major differences.

The Velosteel has a roller clutch, where rollers expand against the inside of the hub shell to engage the hub when pedaled forward. The Shimano, and almost every other coaster brake hub in the US uses a cone clutch, where a cone engages the hub via a screw mechanism attached to the drive train.

Velosteel pro: theoretically less drag when pedaling.
Velosteel con: exhibits and odd behavior when rolling the bike backward where the rollers lock up the hub. Not sure if this is unique to my samples.

Shimano pro: Simpler
Shimano con: theoretically more drag when pedaling, due to clutch spring (a coil spring that exerts a small amount of friction on the cone clutch when pedaling to ensure it positively engages the screw mechanism driver both to engage the hub and engage the brake shoes).

The Velosteel hub's brake shoes have a spring retainer, which retracts the shoes when not engaged. The Shimano brake shoes are loose when not engaged.

Theoretically, this should be an advantage for the Velosteel. However in practice, I'm hard pressed to note any difference in drag. When coasting or pedaling.

Cosmetically, the two hubs are very different. The Hub shell of the Velosteel is machined from one piece of steel, with graceful curves and given a mirror polished handsome chrome plating. In contrast, the Shimano has pressed on flanges and a duller matte chrome finish, more prone to rusting. The innards of the Velosteel are similarly more handsome and nicely finished. The Shimano is utilitarian at best. The Velosteel is also heavier. About a half pound more, IIRC.

There are two significant differences in actual performance between the two hubs. One is the previously mentioned behavior when rolling backward. The Shimano behaves like a typical coaster brake hub, rolling freely with the cranks not rotating. This is the sort of behavior that is desirable with BMX folks and freecoaster hubs, as opposed to the way freewheels behave.

The Velosteel, when rolling backward, seems to engage, and in addition, lock up the wheel. This is a curious behavior, and I'm unsure if this is normal or an anomaly. I thought the clutch would engage as if it were a freewheel, but in addition, it also seems to engage the brake, too.

You may wonder, why such a big deal about rolling backward? Who rolls backwards? Well, I thought that, too, until I used the hub. Turns out, it happens all the time, negotiating traffic, bike racks, etc. I suppose most folks will work around this behavior. But I found it to be occasionally annoying when in tight spots, requiring the bicycle to be lifted rather than rolled out of some positions.

The second major difference was in braking performance. Which I have also mentioned before. In this department, the Velosteel came up short. Again, I wasn't sure if this was an anomaly. It exhibits less modualtion than the Shimano, being rather weak, until just the right (and generally excessive) amount of back pedal force is applied, when it tends to lock up. Initially, I thought perhaps the hub simply needed to break in a bit. Perhaps the cone that expands the brake shoes needed to wear into it's mating surfaces a bit, or the brake shoe retainer was a bit too stiffly sprung? Unfortuantely, after a couple years and no change in braking performance, I was not encouraged to carry the experiment further.

tcs

Nothing wrong with the Shimano that a little powder coating wouldn't fix.

Hmmm. Might wanna go with high temperature paint.

tcs

lz4005

Thanks for the write up shecky. It answered important questions I didn't even know I had.

scotty82

many thanks for that, shecky!

nsk

Whatever happened to that group buy? Did I miss anything?

rotharpunc

no, you didn't, don't worry.

oldstyle1970

hi, i'd buy into a few. karl in chicago