Hub geared bikes...

Highway_To_Hell

I am looking to get a bike for my daughter, - She is 14 but at 5'8" I hope she has fully grown.

She likes the idea of a single speed (simple clean lines) but as she will have a few hills to contend with I though a hub geared bike could be a simple solution. Anyone know of either online or LBS (Dublin) that sell hub geared bikes and not of the Hybrid/city bike variety. Other option I was thinking was to get a SS bike and swap in a hub geared system, is this an option and if so would I be able to use any SS frame.

I was going to flip the wheel on my fixie and let her use that but apparently using your Dad's bike is not cool, no matter how cool/hipsterish I think I am. :-(

I don't know if it is possible with hub gears but would like to keep the price at €500.

Thanks, HTH

droidus

Difficult to find anything decent at that price - part from 3 speed stuff ala: http://www.wiggle.co.uk/bobbin-daytripper-gun-metal-grey-2016/, though this looks OK:



http://www.wiggle.co.uk/chappelli-vintage-three-speed/

Might be better off looking for a 2nd hand nexus or Alfine 8.

droidus

Shimano nexus for about €700.



https://www.norco.com/bikes/city/lifestyle/cityglide/cityglide-8igh/

NiallBoo

This might sound a bit smart-assed but...

Just give her a budget and let her pick?

She's old enough to make this kind of decision and it could be a good learning experience is decision-making.

(Sorry if that veers into stepping on your parenting toes)

Highway_To_Hell

She is picking her own bike, i.e. she pointed out steel framed Single Speed that passed us and said "that is the type of bike I would like". I just want to see if I can get the same look but with internal gears so she won't spend more time pushing it up hills instead of cycling it.

Highway_To_Hell

droidus wrote: »

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/chappelli-vintage-three-speed/

Might be better off looking for a 2nd hand nexus or Alfine 8.

Thanks, Style of bike found, just need to find it in a smaller size :-(

Wishbone Ash

Highway_To_Hell wrote: »

I am looking to get a bike for my daughter, - She is 14 ....

Highway_To_Hell wrote: »

She is picking her own bike, i.e. she pointed out steel framed Single Speed that passed us and said "that is the type of bike I would like"....

I have a 14 year old daughter and I'd be delighted if she had even a passing interest in cycling. She finds me, my bikes, my Lycra and every other cycling relating thing highly embarrassing (especially when her friends are around).

Highway_To_Hell

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

I have a 14 year old daughter and I'd be delighted if she had even a passing interest in cycling. She finds me, my bikes, my Lycra and every other cycling relating thing highly embarrassing (especially when her friends are around).

She has no interest in cycling as a hobby and like your girl gets distraught at the thought of being seen anywhere near me when I am in my cycling gear. The sole purpose of the bike is a means of transport to get her to where the friends hangout quicker :-) Her twin brother does cycle and would be out for a group spin of 60+km most Sundays.

saccades

Throw a stick at me if I sound patronising.

Does she want SS because of the clean lines or because of the lack of gears?

It might be that she doesn't like the idea of 90 zillion gears at the back and 60 bazillion at the front with the twiddly bits going different ways (if she is anything like my missus) to each other.

Fixed that problem by fitting a rapid rise mech so that each shifter was push up with thumb to go up the gears.

I'm tempted now with advances in the cassettes available to go 1x10 on the wife's bike which is only used for pottering with the kids.

I've owned 2 IGH bikes after messing about with a flip/flop hub.

Pompino with 45:18 (alfine SG501) - used as a pub/commuter mainly (also did W200 etc on it) and a EBB inbred456 32:20 (alfine SG500) as a winter hardtail.

Your idea is perfect but I suspect your budget is a little low for a new bike as the alfine system isn't cheap, about 180 for the 8speed hub alone. MAybe look at a sturmey archer 3 speed instead?

You need a 135mm OLD for an alfine hub, so MTB or a steel frame you can coldset to the wider spacing.

Also fit a crank with an oil/dirt guard.

Or a revolutionary idea is to let her learn like I did just how daft fixed is (admittedly I was commuting up gert steep hills and killing myself spinning like a nutter on flats) and it's also the much cheaper option is get her something like a mango bike and adjust the gearing, as she gets fitter fit bigger rings.

eeeee

saccades wrote: »

Throw a stick at me if I sound patronising.

Does she want SS because of the clean lines or because of the lack of gears?

It might be that she doesn't like the idea of 90 zillion gears at the back and 60 bazillion at the front with the twiddly bits going different ways (if she is anything like my missus) to each other.

I suspect it's more the look of the thing, not the mechanics. She's 14, I doubt it's about or how many gears it has or hasn't. SS and fixies are mainstream cool now and have been for a while.

I've seen a few of those Foffa bikes around town, they look good, which is the main box you want to tic. Maybe you can stick hub gears on one? I'm not mechanically knowledgeable so I don't know if you can do that but having been a 14 year old girl the look of the thing is big! On Track on Cook street near Christchurch do them, they has a sale recently, not sure if it's still on or not. My two cents anyway!

http://ontrackdublin.com/

saccades

You can fit hub gears to anything, however it may not work well depending on a few things.

You are looking for either horizontal drop outs or an eccentric bottom bracket so that you can adjust the chain tension by moving the rear wheel/rotating the crank respectively. Then you need to be able to apply sufficient locking force so that whichever you adjusted doesn't move/creak (less of a worry on a 14 yo girl with i'd imagine lower torque output).

If you get a bike without the above, you are then either hoping for a "magic gear" where the rings and chainlength all match up perfectly to give you the right chain length, or use a half link or use a singulator (it's like a derailurer) to take up the slack (or stick another ring within the chain). All less and less attractive options.

It's why you rarely see hub gears on full suss bikes, unless the chain is pivoted on the BB the chain growth from the suspension working makes the whole thing useless, certainly for mtb which is about the only application for a full suss.

I would imagine that any bike manufacturer will be able to cope with someone 5'8" (I struggled getting a grown up bike for my 5' and a tiny bit missus).