I finally ordered a set of cogs off of eBay. The guy was selling 7 cogs and my bid of about $12 won the shootin' match. The sizes are 20, 18, 17, 16, 15, 14, and 13. I put the 15 on the Centurion, which has a 50T ring (actually, both bikes have 50s), requiring breaking the chain and removing a link, struggling to get the wheel on enough due to the shorter chain (should have used a half link), fixed the slow leak in the rear tire, and went for a ride.
The 15T is a definite improvement over the 18T I replaced. The 18 required too much spin on the flats and downhills. I still have a 16T on the Bianchi. The 50/15 gives good speed on the flats, and helps keep the downhill spin under control with less braking, particularly compared to the 18T. The 50/16 on the Bianchi allows me to stay in the top gear much of the time, with the occasional shift at the stop. I almost never shifted with the 50/18. The 15T requires more shifting, and I've been using the lowest gear more than previously (which was almost never).
This seems to me to be sensible, because I was riding much like I was still on a single speed fixie with both the 50/18 and the 50/16, usually only using the middle gear at a stop sign, and the low gear rarely. Now I'm still in the top gear a lot, but I'm shifting down for moderate climbs and way down for the steeper stuff or when the headwind is fierce. I think 50/15 might be the best compromise, but I'm not going to stop just yet. I'm going to try the 14, then the 13.
I preferred riding the Bianchi until I switched the cog out on the Centurion. I wasn't sure why, but it seemed to take a bit more work to ride the Centurion. Now they seem about equally enjoyable to ride. I thought the Centurion was heavier or the fit wasn't as good as the Bianchi, but I suspect that the gear inches were the difference.
BTW, I tried to readjust the endplay on the axle to see if some of the lash on the black Alex wheel would improve, but I can't get it to be as good as the silver Open Pro wheel. Maybe the black one is an earlier run, or the tolerances aren't consistent. I know the earlier hubs had lots of lash, and it improved in subsequent batches. The difference in lash makes a difference in performance. I don't trackstand much, but the two wheels are a very different experience when I do. Also, the pedal bump is significant with the black one, and I find it a bit annoying on a fast downhill. NBD.
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Hey there - I just bought one of these and am looking forward to installing it - hopefully next weekend, if it comes in time. I have a question for you: what spoke length works for you with those Alex rims? I've got the same rim and I'll be re-building my rear wheel. I have had some problems in the past using spoke-length calculators, so I figure if you have experience it'd be a big help.
ReplyDeleteCheers, and thanks for documenting your experiences with this hub!
Unfortunately, I didn't build the Alex wheelset. I bought it pre-built, so I don't know what the spoke lengths are. I built the Open Sport wheel using the EDD spoke calculator @ http://lenni.info/edd/ which got it spot on. You will have to supply the rim measurements. There are several calculators with databases you can use to compare the manufacturer's info with wheelbuilder's measurements. Good luck, and please come back with your thoughts/experiences with the hub.
ReplyDeleteSo I got this all set up this weekend, and I really like it after riding the last 2 days. Thanks for the link to that EDD spoke calculator, too - worked perfectly for getting the right lengths. The only problem I had was it slipped into neutral at a stop yesterday because the indicator had come out of adjustment - I think because of cable stretch in the new shifter cable. I'll be keeping an eye on it because it was *not* fun and earned me a gash on the knee, but it shows no signs of trouble as long as things are adjusted right. I have it geared at 46x13 which is perfect for riding around Chicago - I'm usually in 2nd gear, and can shift up when I feel like going fast or have a decent tailwind, and down to be lazy or fight a headwind.
ReplyDeleteI do notice some lash but it's not too serious, and doesn't interfere with the small amount of trackstanding that I do. I'd like to adjust it to minimize that if possible, though; where did you find specs for how to do this? Is it any more complicated then just tightening (or loosening) the axle cones?
An S3X is on its way to me now; delivery expected right after our Labor Day hols. Will be building it into a Velocity Deep V rim and mounting on my BD Mercier Kilo WT. Plan to use the idea of placing the shifter at the right seat stay's upper braze on. Riding 48x16/17 now and looking forward to experimenting with a range of cogs from 14 - 17 to see what works best for me. Enjoyed your posts and the comments. Keep 'em coming.
ReplyDeleteThe false neutral scares the crap out of me. I had a bit of trouble with the Bianchi while mounting. The pulley slipped around the top tube and let the cable go slack. I'd left the shifter in "2" (not a good idea) and the hub found a neutral on its own when I moved the selector into "1". It was lucky I wasn't riding. I really don't want to be pushing the pedals and have it slip.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comments. Please share your experiences as you go!
Vance
You and others mention that some of the early batches of the S3X have more lash and in general are of lower quality. Not too surprising, given that it was a new product, I guess. But do you know of any way to tell from which batch a particular S3X is (other than, say, riding on it)? If I can buy one that's already built into some wheels I like, that would be great. But if said wheels have been sitting in a warehouse for a year I'll probably get an older, lower-quality hub.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the information about the S3X
Thanks.
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen wheelsets offered much.
BikeIsland still sells them, I think. I would think the chances are pretty good that you'd get one of the old hubs there. It's a crapshoot anywhere, probably. However, I've been riding my BI wheelset for some time now w/o problems.
If I got another S3X, I would probably buy the hub and build the wheel now that the price is substantially lower than before.
Vance