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Three ss hybrids I've been riding this year

1193 Views 10 Replies 5 Participants Last post by lef-t, Dec 20, 2005

lef-t

Discussion Starter · Dec 19, 2005

Any questions? I'm a little bored today, I'm not looking for a flame war.

I would be happy to explain my happy findings......They are all adventure bikes you can abuse and count on.

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Obi

· #2 · Dec 19, 2005

Reply #1...

lef-t said:
Any questions? I'm a little bored today, I'm not looking for a flame war.

I would be happy to explain my happy findings......They are all adventure bikes you can abuse and count on.

Right on. Now, goto google and type in: "Tom Mitchell 4 speed". It'll link you to the Dirt Rag online/magazine article. Happy Riding!

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lef-t

Discussion Starter · #3 · Dec 19, 2005

obi.one.speed.only said:
Right on. Now, goto google and type in: "Tom Mitchell 4 speed". It'll link you to the Dirt Rag online/magazine article. Happy Riding!

thanks for the google, I learned he used 4 cassettes an 11-12-15-19

that's not a very wide range for 4 gears. I use much wider ratios and more common parts.

His point about any derrailleur or friction shifter are one of the good reasons to do it.

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Obi

· #4 · Dec 19, 2005

Thought you'd enjoy that.

You're welcome. It's all a matter of willingness to try different things. I have an early 70's Peugeot I converted to a 2x7 set up.

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max-a-mill

· #5 · Dec 19, 2005

i'd worry about the chain falling "shifting" off of this one when you least want it too.

other than that i love your adventurous nature!

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lef-t

Discussion Starter · #6 · Dec 19, 2005

Not to worry, it can't fall off

max-a-mill said:
i'd worry about the chain falling "shifting" off of this one when you least want it too.

other than that i love your adventurous nature!

The chain line is perfect and with that many teeth it can't fall off. I've been riding it this way for 6 months.

You only run outside gear with outside. Middle with middle, and inside with inside.

It all works with one length of chain too. So no brake adjustments needed.

You got a tall 36x14 a nice midrange 32x18 and a weenie 22x28 ( all add up to 50 )

Just about the perfect gear for any situation, no cables, no shifters and no derrailleurs

You can easily have perfect chain line on all three gears, and it cost less than just about any other multi geared setup out there. I use two dx cogs with full steel teeth, no slip ever.

I usually only shift it once or twice per ride. It's great for getting to the trail head, riding up a long wall climb and riding back down with out all the fuss of a gearie or the leg strength of a single speeder.

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Turt99

· #7 · Dec 19, 2005

That really sounds like a bike that can do it all, tailor made for that specific ride maybe but I bet it was really fun creating that monster. You never know I might just need to borrow your idea if I get bored one day.

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max-a-mill

· #8 · Dec 19, 2005

lef-t said:
with that many teeth it can't fall off.

cool, i never thought about that... i guess a bigger ramped ring IS safer than a smaller one!

thanks for explaining the threespeed concept there too. that sounds like a good bike to have!

so your general rule of thumb is just same tooth #'s front and back? (i.e. - 34x20 and a 22x32 could work???)

finally, do you loosen the dropout to change gears or do you just manually "shift" the gears into the right place?

i am really intrigued by a two speed... but only if i could do it with one chain and no tensioners.

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Nat

· #9 · Dec 19, 2005

max-a-mill said:
i am really intrigued by a two speed... but only if i could do it with one chain and no tensioners.

Here's a pic (courtesy of someone else) of one way to do it. Two rings up front, two cogs in back, same total number of teeth on the inside line as the outside line. With an EBB and quick-release, you'd drop the rear wheel, move the chain, then pop the rear wheel back in place. No tools, tensioners, or derailleurs involved. As of now this is the setup I would use if I wanted something in between a SS and a full-on gearie.

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lef-t

Discussion Starter · #10 · Dec 20, 2005

shifting gears

max-a-mill said:
cool, i never thought about that... i guess a bigger ramped ring IS safer than a smaller one!

thanks for explaining the threespeed concept there too. that sounds like a good bike to have!

so your general rule of thumb is just same tooth #'s front and back? (i.e. - 34x20 and a 22x32 could work???)

finally, do you loosen the dropout to change gears or do you just manually "shift" the gears into the right place?

i am really intrigued by a two speed... but only if i could do it with one chain and no tensioners.

I carry a big ol' 15mm wrench to shift gear. It only takes 20 seconds or so. I replaced the hollow axle with a solid one and track nuts.

You could have a two speed if you wanted. The weenie gear is sooooo nice sometimes.

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lef-t

Discussion Starter · #11 · Dec 20, 2005

Nice idea but it might have issues

Nat said:
Here's a pic (courtesy of someone else) of one way to do it. Two rings up front, two cogs in back, same total number of teeth on the inside line as the outside line. With an EBB and quick-release, you'd drop the rear wheel, move the chain, then pop the rear wheel back in place. No tools, tensioners, or derailleurs involved. As of now this is the setup I would use if I wanted something in between a SS and a full-on gearie.

I've noticed the chain slackens a lot on some gear combos. With the EBB it's too time consuming to adjust out the slight diffences in gear wear. Maybe it would work if everything was fresh and new and you didn't wear out on gear ratio more than the other.

I haven't bastardized my 1FG with my three speed idea because I don't think it will work very well. I have a EBB that takes four tools to break it free.....The slight diffeneces in chain ring wear are a huge fly in the ouitment. In theroy it seems like a good idea but in practice it would have chain slack issues.

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Three ss hybrids I've been riding this year

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