• For more information on how to avoid pop-up ads and still support SkiTalk click HERE.

Road Bike Rohloff Speedhub

Henry

Out on the slopes
Skier
Joined
Sep 7, 2019
Posts
1,229
Location
Traveling in the great Northwest
My wife wanted me to put a Rohloff Speedhub on her ICE high performance recumbent trike. The Speedhub is a 14 speed internally geared rear hub. When I asked why she wanted to spend all that money, she started mentioning the skis I'd bought...'nuff said.

Performance wise, she describes it as being like an automatic transmission with paddle shifters...manually select, automatic shifting. It has a 14-click twist grip shifter. She loves it. Every nice day she rides 15 to 25 miles. She kept the middle & big chain rings on the bottom bracket, and with the Rohloff gearing ratios hill climbing is no problem. The Rohloff chain tensioner only allows about a 10 tooth difference in chain ring diameters.

I had the shop build a new wheel around the Speedhub. The shifter has two cables, one to shift up & one to shift down--not a spring return. The cables must be cut exactly as specified using the same cutting technique for cable & housing as any others. It took some experimentation to route the cables to avoid too-tight bends and excessive cable drag. The old rear shifter, complete rear wheel, and rear derailleur are gone (I think the old rim could have been reused.)

Now she wants a Schlumpf High Speed Drive for the bottom bracket. She started to say something about skis.... This is a 2 speed gear assembly that is shifted by pushing the center spindle with a heel. It has a 1:1 drive and a 2.5:1 drive. It is like pairing a 30 tooth chain ring and a (2.5x30) 70 tooth chain ring. I won't install this. The bottom bracket housing needs an interior chamfer milled into it, and the shop has the tool.
 

chris_the_wrench

Spinning wrenches and throwing spokes.
Skier
Joined
Dec 20, 2020
Posts
1,369
Location
Chinook Pass
I like my 1x11, 1x12, and 2x11, not sure Im looking to go back to 28 speeds(well never was there but had 3x9). That being said, if she rides it and gets enjoyment from it HELL YEAH DO IT!!! I built probably 8-10 rohloff wheels but never did a Schlumph conversion, so I have zero real world to offer there.

But seriously is her current settup not low or high enough? Or she just wants some new gear??
 

T-Square

Terry
Admin
Moderator
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
Nov 12, 2015
Posts
7,559
Location
Enfield, NH
@Henry, I’ve got a CatTrike Dumont on order from Utah Trikes with the Rohloff rear hub and a Bafang mid-drive. Just waiting for it to arrive.
 

RobSN

Out on the slopes
Skier
Joined
Nov 12, 2019
Posts
1,070
Location
Prescott Valley, AZ
Thread Starter
TS
H

Henry

Out on the slopes
Skier
Joined
Sep 7, 2019
Posts
1,229
Location
Traveling in the great Northwest
@Henry, I’ve got a CatTrike Dumont on order from Utah Trikes with the Rohloff rear hub and a Bafang mid-drive. Just waiting for it to arrive.
We got the Rohloff wheel from Utah Trikes. I haven't had experience with the Bafang motor, although I know they're very popular. I have put two Tongshen TSDZ2 motors on friends trikes, and that worked very well. I got those from Eco Cycles, https://www.eco-ebike.com.

Why does she want the Schlumpf Drive? It's hard to say. Kind'a for the cool factor. Her front 2-speed shifting works great, and she has all the ratios she needs for her rides. The Schlumpf needs to be shifted when the leg is near-straight, at the point of least push (3 & 9 o'clock on a recumbent), something new to learn. I think the Speed Drive might be the best for her with its 1.65:1 overdrive ratio rather than the High Speed Drive with the 2.5:1 overdrive.
 

Sponsor

Staff online

Top