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Smiffy:
Hi guys,

I am new to this group but have just bought myself a used Raven with lots of goodies on it including a full set of Ortilieb pannier bags !

Attached is a picture of it in the front room because I have yet to insure it so can’t leave it in the shed.

It was expensive, but in mint condition with no signs of use.

Plan to get myself fit ( for a 59 yr old ) and take it to France for a bit of gentle cycle camping.

It came with a 19 tooth rear sprocket , does that sound right ? Feels very low geared.

Danneaux:
Welcome to the Thorn Cycling Forum, Smiffy!

Looks like you scored yourself a winner in your fully equipped new Raven -- what a beauty!

The 19t cog will pay off in extended chain and sprocket life, but may result in gearing too low for your needs. The easy solution would be to fit a larger chainring. Keep in mind if you later wish to fit a Hebie Chainglider, they are only available in certain chainring sizes.

All best wishes for many happy miles.

Dan.

Smiffy:
Thank you Dan.
Is it usual that they are specced with such low gearing ?
I guess it was chosen to suit a fully loaded tour.
I will keep it as it is until I know what I am doing.

mickeg:
New Rohloff hubs are usually fitted with a 16T sprocket, Thorn/SJS usually use a 17T.

Since you bought this used, I assume that the rear sprocket is threaded onto the hub.  Recently Rohloff started shipping hubs with a splinned carrier and the sprocket is splinned and held on with a spring clip.  But yours is probably the older threaded on sprocket.

I agree with Dan that you can change the chainring.  If you buy a larger chainring, you will need a longer chain.

Then at a later date when you need a new sprocket, you can keep using a 19T but you would likely have to invest in the splined carrier at that time too.

I use a 44T chainring and 16T sprocket for around town riding on my Nomad, but on a bike tour where I might have to haul a heavy load up steep hills I instead use a 36T chainring with a 16T sprocket.

Regarding gearing, there is an extremely long thread with an extraordinary number of opinions expressed at:
http://thorncyclesforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=4412.0

martinf:
That chainring looks as if it is 40T. If so, you do have very low gearing with 40x19 giving about 15" to 79", if you use 50 mm width tyres.

Personally, I would be quite happy with that gearing for a loaded touring bike. My own Raven Tour is geared a bit higher with 38x16 (17" to 89") because when I bought it in 2012 Rohloff did not recommend such low gears (they changed their recommendation later). I very rarely use the 89" highest gear.

If the gear range doesn't suit you, instead of changing the chainring you also have the option of changing the sprocket. The screw-on type can be hard to remove.

I use a Chainglider in order to reduce chain maintenance. That is currently only available in the Rohloff compatible version for 15T to 17T rear sprockets and 38T, 42T or 44T chainrings, so not an option unless you change both chainring and sprocket.

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