Alright, where are they? Geared Unis? Why aren’t there more? I’ve only actually heard of one, but I haven’t been looking that hard. It was a 26" that could go overdrive into feeling like a 39. (I found this one day on the forums, anybody remember whos it is?). Anyway, today I was out and I saw some of those old three-speed internally geared hub bikes at some garage sales and was wondering… can I make a uni out of those? Seems to me the only problem would be if I couldn’t directly drive it from both sides (because it’s normally chain-driven…). Also, where are the geared giraffes at? Thanks!
I don’t remember who had it, but someone at Moab MUni-fest brought a geared uni (i think it’s the same one you’re talking about). I gave it a go but didn’t get real far. The hub was internally geard but could be ridden fowards or backwards (although there was a small bit of play between the gears). To, try and, answer both of your questions:
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Having a 1:X gear ratio tends to get a bit confusing and (from what I could tell) could result in loss of control thus causing a higher number of UPD’s.
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The loss of control mentioned above would, I think, be the reason for no geared giraffes. Falling a few inches is one thing, but falling several feet is another.
*DISCLAIMER: Everything written in this post is purely speculation from my brief moments on a geared uni.
Hope this helps.
-Zac
harper
blueshift
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Corner of 22nd and Maple