First ride out on the RST....

[Andybg]

I think you may be right re the errant gear change and it may be exasperated by the cables being a bit tight. Slackening them off a bit may give you less precise gear changes but a less touchy controler.

It was one of my slight niggles with the RST I had - I had the track bars with ergon gp5 barends that are excellent but I did not like the rohloff handgrip posiion where a third of your hand was resting on it at all times. I am planning on fitting the same setup to my RT for winter to give me a slightly wider control and better braking position but now have the rohloff hand grip on an accessory bar where it is safely out the way of errant changes

Andy

[Fred A-M]

Welcome to the RST owners club Andy and interesting to see the life journey of this particular RST -  as an RST owner, I spoke to Steve on the phone for about half an hour prior to him buying his (presumably the same), hence the interest!  I reckon that the gear jump is probably down to cable tension.  Mine used to slip very occasionally, but recently swapped out the cables and housing and now is completely problem free.  Given that Steve bought maybe bought his maybe 6 months after my own RST purchase (about 8 years ago), I'd suggest that the cable fatigue cycle is probably petty similar for both, assuming that Steve hadn't swapped them out at any stage.   

[gaz46]

Hi Fred
Yes- it's made a move down South.
I'm unsure of whether the cables have been changed since purchase. If it happens again and I know it's not my errant hand I'll change them over. There looks to be a handy video on the Thorn website about how to change the cables.
Gareth

[Fred A-M]

Sorry Gareth/Andy for the confusion - will teach me to read more closely! 

[Danneaux]

[Catching up, so late to the table...]

Hi Gareth, and welcome to the Thorn Cycling Forum!

All congratulations on your new-to-you RST -- what a terrific photo of a lovely bike!

As for the spontaneous gear-changing, I'd continue to ride the bike a bit and see if it happens again. If it does, then -- yes! -- Andy's suggestion of a cable adjustment or Fred's suggestion to replace cables and housing would be spot-on to address the problem.

Maybe, though, it was a one-time anomaly and won't repeat (fingers crossed for luck).

In any case, a wonderful ride and so glad you have it; may you enjoy years of happy miles riding together. If you run into any problems, give a shout; lots of helpful advice here.

Best,

Dan.

[gaz46]

Danneaux- many thanks for the warm welcome. If the sunshine continues here in the UK I'll post some more pictures.
Fred- no problem!

[gaz46]

A couple of pics from a jaunt out to Hackney Marshes which features an interesting Corten steel building (an award winning sports facility serving about 80-odd pitches).
I recently invested in an Etrex 20, which has been in the main a great asset and use CycleStreets.com to generatet my route to a destination. 80% of the time the route is quiet and off the main roads. However it has can generate some odd routes, taking you down one way streets, ignoring new developments, and taking you down quite long pedestrian sections.

[gaz46]

Apologies for the poor quality pic - I've attached a different better res one of the RST against the Corten steel walls (thanks for the tips Dan!).
Gareth

[Danneaux]

Oh, well done, Gareth!

It is hard to take good, uncluttered photos that flatter both bike and background, but you've done a fine job of it here. Very creative and innovative, and the bike! Oh, it looks lovely indeed!

Alert, cleanly assembled, a gorgeous build and the red bags to set it all off -- couldn't look any nicer!

Very much looking forward to more.

All the best,

Dan.

[Danneaux]

Hi Gareth!

I as reading the Rohloff website this evening when I came across a passage that might explain the spontaneous shift you mentioned in your initial post. From: http://www.rohloff.de/en/service/faq/faq_detail/archive/2005/03/november/article/Changing_gears/index.html

Changing gear with the Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 with pressure on the pedals is not necessary when being used appropriately. However due to the robust construction of the Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 changing gear under pressure is possible and is not harmful to the hub. It is however possible that when changing gears under high pressure the hub could accidentally fall into a neutral gear, this is due to the coupling elements not seating correctly into the next elements and therefore rebounding back.

I'm not sure if this describes your situation, but if it has not recurred, perhaps something similar occurred and is indeed an isolated instance

I hope you've had no problems; all should be working fine except in that odd rare instance when there can be the slight hiccup as described above.

All the best,

Dan. (...who sometimes reads product manuals for fun)

[gaz46]

Hi Dan

Thanks for the insight. 
What does a 'neutral' gear refer to? Is it when no cogs are engaged and the drivetrain has no effect on the rear wheel motion?
I have noticed, like a Sturmey Archer hub, any positive pressure on the pedals whilst shifting on the flat or uphill results in a less smooth gear change (compared to easing off the pressure slightly). Going downhill is fine and no 'pressure release' seems required.

Gareth

[il padrone]

I have managed to get a 'neutral' gear shift on a couple of occasions when I have been a bit sloppy with the shift. It sounds 'orrible with a nasty gnashing of gears and no drive. A quick flick back into the old gear then a correct change fixes it quickly. It is nothing like what you seem to be describing as an impromptu 'automatic' gear shift due to riding over a bump. This has never happened with mine.

[Matt2matt2002]

Me too. I had this happen during a 71 mile ride up here in Aberdeenshire. Not sure if location makes a difference?
 

I have managed to get a 'neutral' gear shift on a couple of occasions when I have been a bit sloppy with the shift. It sounds 'orrible with a nasty gnashing of gears and no drive. A quick flick back into the old gear then a correct change fixes it quickly. It is nothing like what you seem to be describing as an impromptu 'automatic' gear shift due to riding over a bump. This has never happened with mine.

[Paulson]

Gareth,

I haven't posted on here for years, but welcome and the bike looks great.  What prompted me to post was that it is the same size/frame colour as mine, shown below.



Mine now has silver mudguards as well which I think look much better. 

I run a 48 tooth front chainring [!] which is great for the relative flatness of Suffolk; the bike, when purchased new, had a smaller frame and a 38 tooth ring because the owner lived on the fringes of the Lake District.  That soon went, as did the smaller frame.

I've never had automatic gear shifts, though I have crunched the change many times due to not releasing the pressure on the pedals enough.  Personally I find that the shifter is so lovely and smooth that I can simply judge my shifts by feeling now!

[gaz46]

Thanks for sharing Paul....it's nice to see a parallel build. Great looking set-up you have there.
What sort of front dynamo have you got? Presently I couldn't justify the expense, as the RST really only gets daytime airings. I have a SON on my other bike as I use it daily and in the dark, paired with a B & M Lumoteq (which I have had a few problems with - namely a sheared metal bracket and a sheared plastic bracket on the unit itself).
Gareth