I think what happens is people like the bike, then gradually realize one or two lower gears might be nice. For most of us adding a derailer and tensioner is a simpler path than having the rear wheel rebuilt (folks who build their own wheels can disregard).
On Sunday, June 18, 2023 at 1:57:29 PM UTC-7 Patrick Moore wrote: > There have been threads recently about 2- and 3-speeding Quickbeams and > SimpleOnes using multiple chainrings, front derailleur, and rear chain > takeup device. I'm curious why people don't use Sturmey Archer AWs? The AW > has (per late '90s study by the Human Powered Vehicle Association) as > little drag as a clean, well set up derailleur system, and an IGH preserves > the simplicity and clean aesthetic of a ss or fixed gear, barring a small > cable and shift mechanism. > > Pray, why the choice of multiple rings, fd, and rear tensioner? Is it the > big jumps in the AW gearing? > > Long ago (1990 IIRC) I set up a beater Schwinn 3 speed as a poor man's > mountain bike (my companion's Diamond Back was recent with only 6 rear > cogs) with a 36 to ring to give, with the 18 t AW cog, 69", 52", and 39" > gears, and it did good service on 1 well-remembered ride on very hilly jeep > tracks -- and an aside: the Ashtabula crank was a miracle of cheap and > durable manufacturing compared to the cottered system. > > But 69"-52"-39" is a very useful gear spread. > > -- > > ----------------------------------------------------------------------- > Patrick Moore > Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/8c043e8e-a7df-4d2a-8e4e-d94d2939d1cdn%40googlegroups.com.
