sturmey 3 speed fixed s3x hub

[webber]

anyone got one of these what are they like any issues thinking of building up a bike with one of these and a hub front wheel any advice welcome

[Brucey]

they are most closely related to the previous model five-speed, internally speaking. There's more backlash than you might expect, even in the direct drive gear.

Front hub is very good, once bedded in.

cheers

[Ugly]

For nearly as long as I have been a club cyclist I have always had at least one machine on fixed, I tried a S3F hub soon after they came out and found it horrible. Too much backlash just like riding with a very loose chain and the ratios didn't suit me at all, I know the ratios are a personal thing but I found the jumps too large.

[robgul]

I've had one for a while - once it was set up I found it to be brilliant - I too was concerned about "backlash" (and the obvious question "How do you change gear if it's fixed?") but it's not a problem.

The technique seems to be a) to "pause the pressure on the pedals" when changing to get a smooth transition, and b) anticipate the need to change a little earlier than on a conventional bike to enable the "pause"

The only downside is that I don't ride the bike enough so am pondering selling either the whole bike (it's a classic Claud Butler from about 1982) or selling the rear wheel, cables, changers (bar end and down-tube - I have bar end fitted) I've probably ridden about 700 miles on the 3 speed fixed.

Rob