There was a comment made by a friend at the Castle Combe Bike show yesterday regarding hub gears which went something like, '..
I really want Sturmey Archer gears to work but they just don't .. I changed to an Alfine and it worked first time...' I felt a bit like that after doing the
Bob Jackson conversion using a five speed Sturmey Hub gear. I just could not get it to work consistently and the ticking noise, that accompanies certain gears, becomes annoying after a while.
Going to an Alfine defeated the object of the exercise as this would increase weight, so I decided to go the other way - single speed - and so built myself a new wheel - KingKong flip flop with Rigida Chrina to match. With a thought to my knees I used a 21T free wheel to begin and went out for the first time about a couple of weeks ago. The experience has been a revelation. I quickly noticed the increased acceleration and started to understand how track bikes might work. The hills were not as hard as I though they might be, OK its harder work than the usual low gear but the rate of assent is so much better. I have only been defeated on one hill (out of Long Dean) and friend tell me that the use of SPDs would solve that one too.
I'm looking forward to breaking-in the saddle over the summer. Maybe even a night ride.
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| Bob Jackson Single Speed |
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| FSA Gimondi with TA Specialites chain ring - looks better than that originally supplied |
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| King Kong Flip Flop - 21T - will reduce this number over time |
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| Brooks Champion Special |
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