Laying rohloff bike on side

[ourclarioncall]

Would it be bad for your rohloff bike to lay it down on the ground ? Would it damage or distort anything over time or anything to do with the rohloff?

Context would be wild camping where your bike would be either outside on its side or taken inside a tent

[Danneaux]

I park mine on a Click-Stand, locked and alarmed outside my tent. If I am expedition touring away from people, I often use the bike as a bureau/armoire/wardrobe, leaving any bags I don't need overnight in the tent still attached to the bike. I find the bike's bearings and such are best protected against rain entry if the bike remains upright. Don't forget to cover the saddle in any case so it won't get wet from dew or rain; helps deter animals chewing in it too. I have to watch out for porcupines, as they dearly love the taste of sweat/salt and Proofide on leather Brooks saddles. The alarm helps deter them also.

Best,

Dan.

[martinf]

Unlike my Sturmey-Archer bikes, which leak oil if parked laid down on one side, I don't mind laying down my Rohloff bikes for a short period if there isn't a tree, fence or something else to lean against, for example for a lunch stop.

For longer periods, such as a night camping, I want the bike upright. I don't carry a Click-Stand, and doubt whether it would be sufficient to keep the bike standing in a Brittany storm.

So far I have always found something to lean the bike against (post, fence, tree) and to which I can attach my chain lock. The bike is also immobilised with a ring lock through the rear wheel. I now have a U lock with a long, fairly stout cable loop, which will replace my chain lock for future tours. The U lock works on small diameter posts and many types of fence, the cable loop is long enough to lock the bike to reasonably substantial tree.

If I am on a commercial campsite with washing and/or restaurant facilities I take my small rucksack with valuables with me and lock the pannier bags to the bike using the optional wire loop anti-theft devices on the Ortleib bags. The rear panniers can be locked with the ring lock and I have a small cable lock for the front panniers.

I tie a plastic bag over the saddle for the night and remove all bags, water and fuel bottles, and the cycle computer and take them at least inside the tent flysheet. If dry I generally take some of the bags inside the inner tent.

None of this will stop a determined thief, but it deters the opportunists.

[PH]

I prefer to have mine leant and locked against something solid but if that isn't convenient they'll occasionally be laid on their side overnight and sometimes dribble a little oil, on a rim brake bike I'd lay it drive side up, but on a disc braked bike the priority is to keep any oil away from the brake so lay it with that uppermost.  We're talking about a couple of ml, enough to dirty the dropouts rather than make a puddle, if I notice it I'll just wipe it off, it's no big deal.

[steve216c]

Rohloff Hubs can lose oil. I believe this is typically out of the quick release skewers region. But this can also happen when standing too. I panicked myself when I started seeing oil drips on the shed floor where my bike is stored the right way up. When I changed my oil I was pleased to discover it was hardly any oil lost even though the patches on the floor suggested otherwise.

I’d not be overly concerned leaving bike as you suggested. If your Rohloff does drop a bit of oil, the side position might draw any oil that had collected in the QR skewer Axel out a bit faster, but it doesn’t mean you will lose more oil necessarily.

If I were camping with bike I would want bike fixed or locked to something awkward for a thief to remove temptation. Whether horizontal or vertical would be secondary as long as hard to take quickly or quietly.

[Tiberius]

I regularly lay mine on it's side overnight - camping trips or transporting it in the car - and I've never had a problem. To the best of my knowledge my Rohloff has never leaked a drop of oil.