I am thinking about fitting a hub gear to my Bowery. I've seen a lot of interest in the Shimano Alfine on STW, but little mention of the Sturmy Archer 5 or 8 speed hubs.
Does anyone have any experience of the SA hubs?
Cheers
Bike Forum
[closed]
Sturmy Archrer Vs Alfine
-
Posted 1 year ago #
-
Do the SAs exist? I got the impression they were just a small possibilty talked about on obscure websites.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Sturmey Archer do still exist they have just bought out a lovely 3 speed fixed gear hub
Posted 1 year ago # -
It was the 3 speed fixed hub that got me looking at their website. That is when I discovered their 5 spd with a 120 OLD. What appeals to me about the 5 spd is that the direct drive gear is in the middle of the 5 on offer. That is, the ratios that may suffer from the mechanical drag of the planetary gears are either side of what I am used to peddling as a single speed and what I'd choose in most situations.
What I am wondering is, do the SA hubs have more drag than the alfine/nexus?
Posted 1 year ago # -
I would expect the Alfine to be superior in all honesty just because most Shimano stuff is well made .The only S A stuff I have is very old and I have not tried an Alfine yet
Posted 1 year ago # -
the 5 speed sturmey hub is very good got one on my pompino not noticed any excessive drag
i would avoid the s a 8 speed as 1st gear is the direct drivePosted 1 year ago # -
Rob,
the idea of 1st being the direct drive put me off the 8spd.
how long have you been using the 5 speed?
thanks
Posted 1 year ago # -
I use a 3 speed S-A for road riding.
It is smooth, silent, light, nicely made, and reliable. It has over 100 years of development.
I also own a few other hubs:
Nexus/Alfine 8 speed
Rohloff
Assorted others, eg Duomatic, S-A 7 speed, S-A 4 speed, the new S-A S3X hub (yet to be fitted), etc.The Shimano hub is very nice but I prefer the lighter rear wheel you get from the S-A 3speed (the 5 speed is the same weight according to the website), and the only reason I'd use the Shimano is if I desperately needed the wider range - perhaps towing a trailer.
The S-A 8 speed should be avoided unless you are running it on a small wheel commuter, or will spend a lot of thime in low gear because bottom gear is the direct.
The nice thing about the S_A is that the middle gear is direct, thus no drag. Set that as your usual cruising ratio and the other ratios fall nicely into suitable reductions or stepups.
Posted 1 year ago # -
LAT
only got about 300 miles on this hub bought mine off ebay £28 nos
my dads got a 3 speed sa hub from 1954 on his old road bike its never been serviced and is still going strongPosted 1 year ago # -
With the three speed, how big are the jumps between the gears?
I love the idea of a direct drive, with an under and overdrive either side - that's pretty much perfect for my uses, but it depends on the ratios. If it's only the equivalent of a couple of cassette-sprockets difference either way then it might not be worth it.
I'd like a middle SS gear, a spinny gear for long/steep climbs, and a big gear for fast flat and downhills (I know, moon on stick alert).
Any ideas?
Posted 1 year ago # -
Thanks for all the info. I just have to decide it I want 5 or 3 speeds
Jack, from the SA website for the 3 speed,
• Overall Range - 177%
• Gear 1 - 75% (-)25%
• Gear 2 - 100% Direct Drive (Gear 1 + 33%)
• Gear 3 - 133% (+)33.3% (Gear 2 + 33%)Posted 1 year ago # -
The ratios are Low .75; Direct 1.0; High 1.33
On my S-A 3 speed road bike I have set the gearing in Direct to 65" which is a pretty useful ratio for allround single speed road use. This means the Low is 48" which is the gearing I use on my single speed mtb, so it's good enough to get me up any hill, and the High is 86" which is approximately the gearing I use on my single speed road bike.
In other words a perfect set of ratios, one for uphill, one for cruising, and one for going faster.
For contrast the standard Bowery gearing is 48/17 to get about 75". Keeping that ratio as direct would give 56", 75", and 99" with a S-A 3 speed
Posted 1 year ago # -
Thanks guys - sounds like my decision is made.
Posted 1 year ago # -
also sram 3 speed is good - simple and robust
Posted 1 year ago # -
also sram 3 speed is good - simple and robust
Posted 1 year ago # -
Anyone tried off road with the 3 speed Nexus inc. disc mount and (I think - not checked) 135 OLN?
Posted 1 year ago #
Topic Closed
This topic has been closed to new replies.
