The Sound of Silence - Just Ride Quietly

[Marty Gierke, Stewartstown PA]

Might be a first for this topic. I was out on my All Rounder this weekend, a local rail trail that has sections of pavement here and there. My current set up is one speed, using a Paul Melvin matched up to an eight speed cogset on an XT cassette hub out back - one of the middle cogs, (not sure which) and a single TA zephyr ring up front - a 36 I think. Anyway, one of the best things about biking for me, and a goal of mine in general, is to ride as quietly as possible. Similar to sculling on flat water, which I have done my share of, the feeling of self propulsion in total silence intrigues and pleases me. 

On gravel, the Rivendell makes very little sound while pedaling or not, just a light crackle/hiss from the tires. (700c Big Ben's in this case) But on pavement, damn if all sound doesn't evaporate entirely! I love that! Granted, at 64  - and having played drums for many years in my youth - my hearing is diminished somewhat to begin with. Regardless, my mission to ride silently appears to be achieved. Having said that, there may be room to improve. I suppose a fixed gear hub would eliminate any chance of pawl noise, and smooth tires may take it down a notch too. I have a White ENO flipflop hub laced to a rim that would work, so that may be my next experiment. 

Any other ideas for silent running are welcome. 

Marty

[Joe Bernard]

Belt drive. I had one on a singlespeed coaster-brake Dahon folder. Under power (no pawls ratcheting) that thing on its skinny slick tires was utterly SILENT.

[Craig Montgomery]

Ride at night in the middle of nowhere. 

Craig in Tucson

[Steve Palincsar]

Don't have a White Industries MI5 rear hub, and if you do NEVER coast.

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Steve Palincsar
Alexandria, Virginia 
USA

[Joe Bernard]

Buzzy bees! 🐝

[Tom Palmer]

Hi Marty,
I share your appreciation for silent propulsion. My current silent meditative steed is an early 70’s FUJI Finest fixed gear with Conti Speed Ride tires. Unfortunately just today they sprayed many of my roads with tar and stones to extend the life. It will be very difficult to be silent until the stones settle into the tar and the loose stones are forced off the road. I also second night riding in the country. Very calming and exhilarating.
I am intrigued by belt drive also, but fixed is already silent.

Tom Palmer
Twin Lake, MI USA

[Deacon Patrick]

All my bikes are as silent as I can make them. My QB with Steilacoms is fixed and as close to silent as a supple knobby tire can get, quieter on dirt/gravel and trail than the slick Rene Herse tires. My GBW 2.8" tires are noticeably louder below 50˚F as the rubber hardens, otherwise surprisingly quiet-ish for huge knobbies. In general, I've learned that a quiet bike is a happy bike.

With abandon,

Patrick

[Garth]

FWIW the Sachs freewheels that I've ridden for 20+ are so quiet I can only hear the clicks when I have them in hand for a cleaning. I don't know about any currently sold ones as to noise levels but I've never had a loud freewheel.  I listen to some audio clips of current freehubs and I couldn't live with that.  Maybe it's a pissing contest between manufacturers to see who can make theirs the loudest and most annoying, as if that's putting their brand sound "out there" with some faux force. Maybe they should come with a megaphone .... "look at me look at me ain't I grand ". Hah hah .... no deal ! 

[Mark Roland]

I understand the attraction, but count me out too when it comes to noisy hubs. Bonus is, I save lots of money, too, as they are mostly the boutique brands. Most of my hubs, freewheel and cassette, are "no name" or Shimano, nice and quiet.

[Kainalu V. -Brooklyn NY]

The folks at the local bike boutique told me that that sound is "the sweet sweet sound of engagement". I wanted one for avoiding bell soundings, but my $50 bell has settled my fears.
DIIiiiiinnnnnggggggggg...
-Kai

[Joe Bernard]

It's definitely a thing, Chris King's Instagram is called ChrisKingBuzz. Personally I like it, my WI cassette hub and the Dos freewheel on my Frank Jones are buzzy and I think it's cool. But I'm clearly a rad hipster 😎🤣

[William deRosset]

Dear Marty,

Interestingly enough, none of my fixed wheels were quieter than bikes with freewheels (while pedaling). I value my fixed wheel machine for its overall quiet simplicity, ease of maintenance, lovely lines--but the light crackle of the 1/8" chain over the crankset cannot be denied when on smooth pavement.  Two of my geared machines are actually quieter (when pedaling). Once coasting, of course, no freewheel machine need apply for the silent-running race. Shimano freewheels and cassette hub bodies win the quiet award there, and I think there is a roller-clutch (onyx?) that is very close to completely silent. 

proper fat tubulars sing on pavement. The quietest tires I have used are the Stampede Pass tires.

There is a tire noise hierarchy on pavement, anyway:

Sing,

Hiss,

Hum,

Growl,

Buzz,

Rumble, and

Clatter.

Unless you're driving studs, no tire should clatter.

I try to avoid tires that Growl, Buzz, Rumble, or Clatter for paved road-going use. Life is too short. 

Best Regards,

Will

William M. deRosset

Fort Collins, CO

On Tuesday, June 9, 2020 at 1:12:58 PM UTC-6, Marty Gierke, Stewartstown PA wrote:

[Craig Montgomery]

After reading some of the comments here, I have to disagree with the basic premise of this thread (Silence is Golden) in one instance. Velocipedically speaking, there is nothing more mantra-like and soothing than the tick tick tick of a Sturmey Archer 3 Speed hub as you roll along on one of the great mechanical inventions of the 20th Century. Amen. 

Craig in Tucson

[Tom Palmer]

Thanks a lot Craig. Now I have to find a 3 speed SA hub. I was in blissful silence and now dissatisfied.
Just kidding of course, but I really am on the lookout.
Love the group.

Tom Palmer

[Mark Roland]

This is true. There are some background industrial noises that have a calming effect. Along with the tick of the Sturmey mech, I include airplane motors droning away high above, and very distant lawn mowers and chainsaws on a late summer early fall day.
Sprinklers can have a nice mechanically induced ticking sound. Not in this category at any distance would be snow blowers, leaf blowers, weed wackers.

[Steve Palincsar]

While getting a haircut, the hum of the clippers always puts me to sleep.   Not what I want while riding a bicycle or driving a car.

On 6/11/20 9:52 AM, Mark Roland wrote:

This is true. There are some background industrial noises that have a calming effect. Along with the tick of the Sturmey mech, I include airplane motors droning away high above, and very distant lawn mowers and chainsaws on a late summer early fall day.
Sprinklers can have a nice mechanically induced ticking sound. Not in this category at any distance would be snow blowers, leaf blowers, weed wackers.

[Yankeebird]

The loud hubs are definitely a pissing contest about who spent the most amount of money while getting ready for their triathlon. Never going to see any wildlife with one of those things wizzing away in the background.

I love the click-click of the SA 3 speed for the reasons posted above, and in that vein I put a Shimano Alfine 8 on my Surly CCheck... wowzer. It's so clean looking, and so quietly quiet, and effortless shifting, I love it! Really quiet gliding with that thing. I *almost* dropped one on my Chev and then backed off at the last minute, and now the Chev isn't the most silent bike in the world but at least it's not the ratchet-noise-of-doom.

Silence is golden. Don't get me started on wind chimes and leaf blowers. (arrgh! get off my lawn!)

[Patrick Moore]

It has been a long time since I used a Shimano 3 speed hub, but I don't recall them ticking in overdrive as the SA hub gears do. Does memory fail me?

I'm looking forward to the comfortable overdrive tick of the AM hub, which I'll probably gear for a 3rd (X 1.115) of 70 gi from a direct 63", tho' may put direct at 66" for a 74" 3rd -- we'll see how well the new "standard" diameter .8 .5 .8 531 frame "planes."

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Patrick Moore

Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum

[EverRed]

I ride a single speed mountain bike with an Onyx hub which is silent.  It doesn't use pawls and has infinite points of engagement.  I only here the sound of my tires.

John

[Craig Montgomery]

All Hail Dr. Bronner. I feel so pepperminty refreshed. HE would ride a Sturmey 3 Speed. 

Craig "Dr. Bronner fan since '71" in Tucson

On Thu, Jun 11, 2020 at 3:12 AM Garth <gart...@gmail.com> wrote:

To me what "Silence is Golden" speaks to the inherent Harmony, Indivisibility, Singularity, Oneness and ALLness that is Life Itself .

LIFE has no enemy, no second .... no other.

It has nothing to do with "purifying" , adding/subtracting/altering etc..... because there is no "other-than-Life" in the first place.  Life is Indestructible, Inseparable, Indivisible .... non-non-able. The Only One.

Beholding the Symphony called Life/Living .... without a beginning or ending ..... BEING Infinitum .... and "all of it" is You, Me, I.

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[Jim Bronson]

Am I being chased by a pack of bees, or is that just Chris King calling on line 2?

But seriously...

For me the things that matter most about a rear hub are more like amount of pedal rotation before positive engagement of hub pawls.  The noise made by a hub doesn't bother me.  But I respect others' views.

-Jim

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[Marty Gierke, Stewartstown PA]

Who remembers Alenax? One of these popped up locally on CL. For $50 it's tempting just for the novelty, but when I read this it made me reconsider:

 It sounds like a swarm of angry cicadas when you ride it down the road. 

For those who may still be tempted, here's a piece by Jobst Brandt that pans the whole idea mercilessly:

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/alenax.html