[Steven Brandist]

For a long time I’d lost my Moulton Mojo…

The TSR has sat in the garage since June 2016 with a flat tyre. It was the final straw after being dis-satisfied with its performance – mainly in part due to the gearing. This is the longest time it’s not been used since I bought it in May 2011. A 1998 Trek steel framed mountain bike did the commuting duty while I figured out what to do.

My TSR was originally a TSR27 equipped with SRAM DualDrive, then in a bid to make the bike lighter it was equipped with a simple 9 speed set-up, large chainring and Continental Grand Prix tyres. This make a huge difference, the bike was lighter and much, much faster. But the chainline wasn’t ideal especially when using the largest rear cogs, it was inefficient and it would drop the chain occasionally.

But now after a new gearing system and a week back on the road with the Moulton, my mojo is back – even if I did get wet on two occasions. The bike is fast, comfortable and has a gear ratio for any situation.

The TSR is now equipped with what I think is an ideal system for the majority of riders. A Shimano Capreo rear hub, cassette (28 to 9 teeth) and a tripe chainring (52/42/32). This gives a very wide gear range of 22 to 106 gear inches. I’ve gone for 165mm cranks which feel just right for my fast cadence style of riding.

[Alexander Johnston]

Steven
This is very interesting.
IMHO this is the ideal gearing set-up for a Moulton.
A range of 84 gear inches from 22 to 106 is absolutely brilliant. It provides an excellent highest gear and an excellent lowest gear; the latter get the most mature and not-so-fit Moultoneer up the steepest hills without having to get off and walk. It also provides the opportunity to ride really quickly on a long gradual decline.
It overcomes the narrower range of gearing offered by bikes with smaller wheels for any given combination of chain rings and rear cassette.
The 22 inch lowest gear is significantly lower than that offered by a new TSR and the 106 highest is significantly higher than the highest on a new TSR.
As far as I can establish the 22 inch gear is similar to that provided by only 2 new Moultons models (most have a lowest of about 25/26 inches) and the 106 is the same as that provided by the highest geared Moultons.
By using a triple combined with the capreo you have provided both on the same bike.
A pity that this wide range isn’t standard specification IMHO.
By the way I’ve heard that the Bike Friday “Capreo” is better than the Shimano and can be bought from dealers in the USA.

[Steven Brandist]

Hello Alex

I used the standard Capreo rear hub as I managed to get one at a very cheap price.
It seems fairly free running so far and you can buy spares for it. Apparently the water sealing isn’t brilliant on it, so time will tell.

If I did another build I would use a Bike Friday (BF) hub, they are claimed to be 70 grams lighter (not a big deal) and uses 4 cartridge bearings for longer life (a big deal). The BF unit is available in 24 and 36 hole versions.

Steven

[Alexander Johnston]

The other thing which I like about your gearing set-up is that it is 9sp. which I think is ideal: 4 up and 4 down and 1 in the middle.
IMHO 10 and 11 speed are unnecessary for the vast majority of cyclists.
9sp is a good compromise between number of gears and durability.
Your set-up would be even more attractive if there were a wider choice of 9sp triple group sets.

[Author]

Posts