SimpleOne gearing

[jandrews_nyc]

I know there have already been some posts on this topic, but I just wanted to check in about something...

If one wanted to set up a SimpleOne with the 40/32 "quickbeam" crankset and with a White Ind DOS freewheel, is it true that it would have to be either the 16/18 or the 17/19 freewheel and NOT the 16/19 because of the 8 tooth difference the frame is designed around?

[newenglandbike]

No not at all-  I use the 16/19 on my QB and it's very handy.     Typical gears you'll use are 40/16, 40/19, or 32/19 (Or in my case 32/22 since there is a 22t f/w on the flipside), so you'd set up your chain length for that.    You wouldn't want to shift from 40/19 to 32/16 even if the dropouts were long enough, since those two ratios (57" and 55") are virtually the same.  You can always adjust your effective chain length to within 1/8" with a half-link but it's not necessary.

[Larry Powers]

How often do you shift your QB?  You have 3 speeds with your setup, what percentage of the time do you ride in each?  I am guessing that one gets 80 or 90 percent of the use.
 
I really like the idea of my QB having two gears.  I changed gearing once on a ride just to see how quickly I could do it.  Other then that I have never needed to change the gearing for the 40x17 combination I normally use.  The one situation I can see where having a lower gear would be helpful is for a head wind on a long ride.  Maybe a 4 or 6 tooth different would be the right set up for me.  I would not shift for steep rollers because you would need to do it at the top and bottom of each climb.  I would rather walk a bit then do that.  If I lived out west then a lower gear for the long grades might also be helpful. 
 
Just curious how others are using the gears on their QB. 

Larry Powers
 
Get a bicycle.  You will not regret it if you live. - Mark Twain

 

---

Date: Thu, 7 Jul 2011 10:21:31 -0700
From: matthi...@gmail.com
To: rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com
Subject: [RBW] Re: SimpleOne gearing

No not at all-  I use the 16/19 on my QB and it's very handy.     Typical gears you'll use are 40/16, 40/19, or 32/19 (Or in my case 32/22 since there is a 22t f/w on the flipside), so you'd set up your chain length for that.    You wouldn't want to shift from 40/19 to 32/16 even if the dropouts were long enough, since those two ratios (57" and 55") are virtually the same.  You can always adjust your effective chain length to within 1/8" with a half-link but it's not necessary.

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[James Warren]

I love the ride of the QB, but I like gears and never wanted to get off the bike to shift. So I bought my QB with schemes of somehow making it a shifter. Right now, it's a 3 speed shifted at the crank (24-36-46) with a front derailleur and only one cog in the back. (I use a friction bar-end shifter on the handlebar to operate the front derailleur.) A derailleur in the rear is used solely for the purpose of maintaining chain tension when the front radically shifts.

However, I still want a lower gear. Since this frame seems to have survived a car accident, I'm moving forward with plans to install Alfine 11 into it and using a single 36T chainring up front and removing all derailleurs. The effective gear ratios appear excellent on paper: 0.825 as the lowest and 3.36 as the highest.

I have to spread the rear from 120 mm to 135 mm, but I'm going for it. Waiting for parts to arrive.

-Jim W.

[newenglandbike]

It's hard to say what percentage for each gear, but they each get used.    I go down to 32/22 in the woods, because we have rooty/rocky trails that go up and down, and you don't want to go super fast in there anyway, even on long descents, since you can't see very far and branches and things block the trails sometimes.    When I ride to work which is probably a longer than average commute it's usually in 40/16.     When riding downtown or riding with my S/O, I will put it in 40/19 for a more relaxed ride that is also handy for lights.    Sometimes I'll leave it in 40/19 for the morning ride to work which happens at an obscenely early time (but I do love the morning, before the cars...)

[newenglandbike]

P.S.  S/O as in significant other, not Simple One.    :D

[jamison brosseau]

I'm not sure u would be happy with any of those gears in NYC.
Too much spinning. I think in a flattish place like this the mid to
low 70s is a TGIF place to be.

[Mike S]

I live in the rather flat Piedmont region of NC (Greensboro) and I've
had a Quickbeam for 2+ years now. The gearing I've got it is the 40/32
double in front with a 15T Phil fixed sprocket and a 16/18 Dos Eno on
the flop.

I have used the fixed gear approx 99% of my riding, as I only recall
using the 16T freewheel once when I was totally bushed after getting
lost for 30 miles and needing to coast home. I also tried the 16T once
cruising town just to see how it felt, and I was really just bored to
tears with it. When you really fall in love with fixed riding, being
limited to one speed freewheeling just doesn't have much appeal.

I could see making use of the lower gears on the groomed woods trail
at the school I go to, as plenty of mtn. bikers kick it back there and
it would probably be nice at 32/16. The great thing about a sturdily
set up QB/S1 is that it's totally a multi-application bike. For road
riding however, I think it is worth trying out different gearings with
fixed-only if your in a relatively flat area.

"In a world dominated by the digital
The metronome I listen to beats inside of my chest
It speeds up with the level of stress
It's built to last, but analog at best"
- RJD2

More lyrics: http://www.lyricsmania.com/final_frontier_lyrics_rjd2.html
All about Rjd2: http://www.musictory.com/music/Rjd2


On Jul 7, 4:15 pm, jamison brosseau <jamison.bross...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[charlie]

I use the 16-19 with a 39x36 but it would work with a 40x32 also. I
find I ride 90% of the time in the 39x16 (66") but plan on a 22 tooth
freewheel for the flip side for off road and steeper climbs. I use my
36x19 primarily for hills & headwinds or just when I am puttering
around. I don't find that I need the super lows of my geared bike
because I save energy for climbs by spinning on the flats and coasting
on downhills. If I were doing a serious amount of climbing I would
just set the bike up with lower over all gearing or use a geared bike
but...... odd as it may sound I haven't found the need to do so. My
Simple One gets me up all the steep hills in my area in the 51" plus I
climb them faster. I'm slower on the flats and down hill but not by
much however my overall times are nearly the same.

[Philip Williamson]

Nope. The bigger the spread, the LESS axle movement in the different
gears. If the the rear cogs are 8 teeth apart, then the axle stays in
the same position in high and low gear, and you could (theoretically)
have vertical dropouts and a two-speed.

I'd go with the 16/19, because I'm an extremist.

The bigger the tire (or the more you care about fender line), the less
you want to move the axle. Even with the nice long QB/S1 dropouts,
I've been using gear ratios that don't move the axle much. The bike
feels a little different when you move the wheel around, you have to
fuss with the fender line, and if you have a little OCD, then it's
really satisfying when the numbers line up elegantly...

I like the 40/32 chainrings paired with a 17/21 Surly "Dingle" fixed
cog on my Quickbeam, and I just built up a coasting bike with 32/36
rings and 14/18 cogs: http://www.biketinker.com/2011/projects/maxs-new-bike/


Philip

Philip Williamson
www.biketinker.com

On Jul 7, 9:26 am, jandrews_nyc <jasonaschwa...@gmail.com> wrote:

[jandrews_nyc]

Hi Jameson, 

Thanks for the tip, 

I am planning on using this bike for getting out of the city however, the hills in NJ over the George Washington bridge for example.

I'd like to be able to having some lowish gears if I need them.

I think we've talked about a ride sometime, 

We should try to organize a day trip here in the city or just north of it sometime.

jason

[SteveF]

I have A 17/19 Dos Enos on one side and 16t fixed cog on the other (on my 650b Quickbeam) and 38/40 chainrings (double cranks so no guard)  I use the 38/19 early in the season, or for recovery rides, on dirt roads/trails, in headwinds, or when I get tired.  I use the 40/17 when I’m feelin’ frisky or want to work harder/go faster.  I guess I shift at least once on most rides over 20 miles.  I haven’t used the 16t yet this year—I tend to alternate—I get into fixed riding and do it a lot or avoid it altogether…and I’m currently in avoid mode…

 

Steve

[jandrews_nyc]

Thanks for all the advice everybody.
I decided to go with a single W.I. 16t freewheel to use with the 40t/32t crankset up front.
I'll start with 2 speeds giving me 68 and 54 gear inches. Hopefully this simplicity will keep me happy. Who knows, Maybe later I'll get a Dos freewheel, or a bigger bailout freewheel on the other side, or a fixed cog on the other side, or a Surly dingle, or an IG hub, or kickback duomatic, or ....