I fixed the shifting problem temporarily, using a jury-rigged clamp and an adapter used for cable brakes going through hydraulic hose braze-ons. It works, but I've ordered some parts from Harris Cyclery to improve the shifting. More on that later.
I went out for about two hours, and rode mostly in high gear. I didn't really need the lower gears today due to the fact that the outbound, mostly uphill direction was eased by a stiff tailwind, and the way back is mostly downhill. I shifted a few times for grins, and learned to use caution when downshifting for a stopsign. You really want to be going slow when you shift down. The pedal speed increases instantly, and you'd better be ready.
Another thing kept bothering me. I'm very reluctant to stand on the pedals and push hard. I am worried that the thing will disengage and send me into a somersault, bike and all. This worry kept me cautiously in the saddle. I usually don't stand anyway, because I climb faster seated, so no big thing. But sometimes you need to stand up. Time will tell on this. The shifting mechanism doesn't seem too touchy adjustment-wise, and it holds the gears so far.
The lash in the hub didn't seem to be anything much this time out either. Sometimes, when your speed increases and you don't quite keep up with the pedals, the cranks bump sort of annoyingly. It increases in the lower gears, btw, becoming kind of considerable in the lowest gear. However, I don't really foresee riding much in that gear unless I change the cog to something a lot smaller. Trackstands are hindered by the lash, which makes it difficult to rock the cranks smoothly. Hey! This is not a perfect world.
I'm still hella jazzed about the way it works, and that it hasn't really changed the ride that much.
Cool. Thanks for the write-up on the S3X. The lash was my biggest concern. I was going to buy one by selling off a sachs automatic, but it turned out I'd broken the driving ring, so no dice.
ReplyDeleteLet us know how it goes from here.
Philip