I finally got a Rohloff....

[vik]

...not on my Thorn Sherpa, but it's still a cool bike and I am looking forward to seeing if I end up as a rabidly loyal Rohloff fanatic or not!...



www.viks-bigdummy.com

[Cake]

Very cool and practical machine Vik!

If you were tempted to try a Rohloff in the first place i think you will be more likely than not to become a convert - especially as it going to be used for touring.

Enjoy!

Gary.

[geocycle]

Well, there is a short learning curve to get used to the differences with a derailleur system.  Once you are through that, there are a lot of pros and some minor cons that quickly disappear as listed elsewhere on the forum. If you are a high mileage user who doesn't want closely spaced gear ratios (your picture suggests you'll not be racing!) or lots to tinker with, I doubt you'll regret your decision.
Have fun.

[vik]

I had the opportunity to get my Rohloff out to the mtns for a heavily overloaded tour last weekend:

http://viksbigdummy.blogspot.com/2008/05/bow-valley-bike-tour.html

Everything worked well.  I did on one occasion suffer some slippage in the drive train...every so often the cranks would move forward 1/4 revolution with no resistance and then work normally again.  I shifted down then back to the gear I was in [4th I think] and the problem went away.

[PH]

  I did on one occasion suffer some slippage in the drive train...every so often the cranks would move forward 1/4 revolution with no resistance and then work normally again.  I shifted down then back to the gear I was in [4th I think] and the problem went away.

I haven't experienced this, but I understand it can happen if the shifter cables are too tight, there should be a bit of slack felt at the shifter, enough to gently rock it before it engages the hub.  Could this be what's causing your problem?

Interesting looking bike, I don't think I've seen anything like it, should do away with the silly notion of lightweight touring

[vik]

Thanks for the suggestion PH....I do in fact have lots of slack in the shift cables - enough so that I was planning on dialing a bit out for more precise shifting.  The problem has not reoccurred so I'm ready to just chalk it up to an isolated incident and forget about it.

As for the lightweight touring vs. carrying the kitchen sink...I prefer the former, but it is nice to know I have a bike in my fleet that can handle anything I throw at it....

My friend rode my Thorn Sherpa on the same tour and loved it.  It was very lightly loaded and when we switched bikes briefly I was able to shoot up the climbs like a mountain goat.  I'm looking to future tours on my Sherpa...