Silent freewheels

I like the lovely mechanical clicking noise that indicates a rest
period 🙂

in message <[email hidden]>, Robert Norton

(') said:

My Dawes Galaxy came with a silent freewheel which i regard as a great
luxury. Most bikes don't have them. Why??

Fundamentally because Campag famously clack like a football rattle, and
everyone else imitates Campag. I quite like my Campag clack (mind you,
it isn't allowed to clack that often). The SRAM on my Cannondale is
relatively quiet.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; single speed mountain bikes: for people who cycle on flat mountains.

"Clive George" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Interestingly a lot of the posher hubs have very noisy freewheels (Hope,
DT/Hugi, Chris King, apparently Phil Wood), and Campag are noiser than
shimano.

My mtb Hope is noisy but rarely heard.
If I'm not peddaling it's because I'm going downhill and other noises drown
out the hub, these may include wind noise, ratting from the bike, rattling
from my body, screams from my mouth or some [censored] laughing at the look of
panic on my face.

--
Pete
http:[email hidden]/P

On 06/09/2005 22:35:33 'Robert Norton said:

My Dawes Galaxy came with a silent freewheel which i regard as a great
luxury. Most bikes don't have them. Why?? Rob N

Because centrifugal clutches,(yes I know centrifugal force does not
exist, I'm a physicist), are expensive and heavy.

--

Buck

I would rather be out on my Catrike

http://www.catrike.co.uk

"Buck" <ian@*remove*trikesandstuff.co.uk> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On 06/09/2005 22:35:33 'Robert Norton said:

My Dawes Galaxy came with a silent freewheel which i regard as a great
luxury. Most bikes don't have them. Why?? Rob N

Because centrifugal clutches,(yes I know centrifugal force does not
exist, I'm a physicist), are expensive and heavy.

Only I think a "silent" freewheel is a form of Spragg clutch, relying on
friction not centrifugal force.

Pete

Peter B said:

Only I think a "silent" freewheel is a form of Spragg clutch, relying on
friction not centrifugal force.

I'm sure I remember Shimano experimenting with a clutched system for
MTBs in the 90s. It sounded quite good.

Given that it takes energy to make noise, and exponentially more energy
to make a linearly louder noise, just think how much drag your loud
Campag clicks are adding. ;-)

Jon

Jon Senior jon_AT_restlesslemon_DOT_co_DOT_uk said:

Peter B said:

Only I think a "silent" freewheel is a form of Spragg clutch, relying on
friction not centrifugal force.

Quoted message said:

I'm sure I remember Shimano experimenting with a clutched system for
MTBs in the 90s. It sounded quite good.

Quoted message said:

Given that it takes energy to make noise, and exponentially more energy
to make a linearly louder noise, just think how much drag your loud
Campag clicks are adding. ;-)

You can make an ordinary freewheel silent by lubricating it with heavy
gear oil. Just dribble it into the crack and spin until silence
ensues. It was a long time ago but I think it was 80W that I found
completely silenced mine. Stayed silent for a very long time. It made
knowledgeable folk think I'd spent a lot of money :-)
--
Chris Malcolm [email hidden] +44 (0)131 651 3445 DoD #205
IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK
[http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/]

Chris Malcolm said:

It made
knowledgeable folk think I'd spent a lot of money :-)

Knowledgeable folk know that an expensive hub sounds like a bag of bees
;-) Chris King step forward please.

--
Tony

"Don't argue the matter, the difficulties will argue for themselves"
-W.S. Churchill