tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post5932584280003656480..comments2024-03-01T08:27:03.087+00:00Comments on The Smut Pedaller: Sturmey Archer XL-FDD & X-RD3 reviewSmut Pedallerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05939627997312788346noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-7163431885342373272022-02-08T09:13:13.202+00:002022-02-08T09:13:13.202+00:00Thank you for this article! I loved the long term ...Thank you for this article! I loved the long term results.TheWolffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15543788597268199366noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-14589053252068458862021-09-11T01:00:00.758+01:002021-09-11T01:00:00.758+01:00In 2019 after putting in a warranty claim on my Ra...In 2019 after putting in a warranty claim on my Raleigh Motus Grand Tour bosch al+ ebike that developed a consistent and very noticeable creaking bracket sound from the motor, a sound I was familiar with on my previous tranzx ebike after so many miles. I was very unimpressed and despite the very undulating pennine terrain ive even lost interest in disc brakes it seems as im clinging to this 531 nigel dean touring frame that originally had 70mm drums and a 7 speed freewheel. I converted from the original 70mm freewheel mounted hub to the 10 speed cassette mounted X-RDC model on the rear and am literally in the process of fitting the XL-FDD to the front. Hopefully will be a bit safer in terms of stopping power on the steeper hills. Ive heard of these brakes snapping/cracking someones fork from the flex. <br /><br />I looked at the internal gear models but I wasn't particularly impressed apart from tales of how the old ones just need a bit of oil now and then and are very robust. The opposite seems to be the case with what I've read of the reviews for the modern versions of the internal gear drum hubs. I have noticed mixed reviews of the X-RDC but it's served me perfectly fine, would have definitely preferred a 90mm drum bbably the levers letting me down as you've said. I've definitely noticed stronger leverage with these than the original and older levers. I've managed with a 3x 9 speed sora setup I hope the upgrade will have me content with braking on the hills if not ill have to pay for new rear triangles plus a rohloff disc hub. Which I'd see as giving up a bit but I have faith.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17133485439822989084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-24078807982821375932020-10-17T19:27:26.336+01:002020-10-17T19:27:26.336+01:002pic dram brak chayea 2pic dram brak chayea Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02448873722185117124noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-16201595307218184162020-09-06T18:07:02.610+01:002020-09-06T18:07:02.610+01:00Menial cherub , you are at the beginning of your i...Menial cherub , you are at the beginning of your illuminating project .Good luck. You can either buy a hub and get it built up, or get a wheel ready made with the hub of your choice. That is often cheaper than a ‘build ready made’ can be machine built by robots . The hand built way you can choose hub , rim, and spokes. But to stick with lighting think what do I want from my lighting system. Then design it , assemble, bring together components compatible with each other. I use 6 v 3 w larger types it will do both front and back SoperNova led’s are great Halogen bulbs use more than led but less than filament. Google has loads of info easy to get everything is on e bay . Save for longer and get a good setup then you got virtually maintenance free, free lighting, till death us do part .Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05410222040994120594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-41642078159888503182020-09-06T17:31:58.516+01:002020-09-06T17:31:58.516+01:00Hi, I run 70mm drums front and back , I had V brak...Hi, I run 70mm drums front and back , I had V brakes on my Claude Butler first in 2003/4 was booled over by their strength, but were typical rubber block in the wet and I was always tinkering with them . Maintenance high. Then 2018 I had Mt5 front 203mm disc and Mt4 rear 180 mm disc very powerful 180mm front with double pads was however disappointing in the wet . Up graded to 203 mm and replaced the two double pads with four single ones. Now very good, wet too but my word it squeals like a hundred banshees in he rain. Now 2020 I run the 70mm drums. Initially I thought they were weak and woolly , so I bought the Xl- front and the Xl-rd5 bare hubs for upgrade. Meanwhile I am running a tongsheng conversion with their electric cutout leavers, then one day on lockdown I decided to replace with Sturmey Archer leavers with the parking brake button . Yahoo transformation what a brake . Now do I even need to think about any upgrade. Reading above I intend to get uncompressible outers first. Every bit counts. The Sturmey leavers take longer than standard nipples on cable . Get rid of fancy fashionable short one finger leaver and use ones designed for use with the drum and remember there is more to a drum brakes system than the drum itself. I conclude the drum brakes are the equal of any thing out there maintenance very low if not free. When I first read that Xl- equals bent forks I laughed tee-hee but not now. They really are very very good .Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05410222040994120594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-59673219085761616682020-03-26T23:04:16.229+00:002020-03-26T23:04:16.229+00:00Hiya,
I enjoyed reading your post and wanted to th...Hiya,<br />I enjoyed reading your post and wanted to thank you for all the helpful information in your review! <br /><br />I myself am on the look out for a set of Sturmey Archer lights for my Raleigh Sprite 27 to replace my Norco tire dynamo lights. If you know of somewhere I might find them, I’d be really grateful to you if you would let me know, they seem to be out of stock...<br /><br />So I’m curious, it comes with the hub(s)? so does that mean the wheel needs to be re-laced and the original hub replaced? <br /><br />I’m new to this lighting system and not sure how it all works. <br /><br />Best,<br />Trevor Menial Cherubhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00471643586817638267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-80719845393843056212019-12-26T22:25:26.373+00:002019-12-26T22:25:26.373+00:00had V brakes on my Claud butler and was booled ove...had V brakes on my Claud butler and was booled over by their power blasting all others i had had, into dust. i greased the pivots for longevity and stopped one side sticking over the other and one block lightly dragging when released and not centralising the blocks don't last very long and the difference between wet and dry performance is massive they are not maintenance free but i loved them cos they were better than anything else and were the latest thing, NEW! i would look at Sturmey Archer hubs and smile "oh how quaint by gum we've come a long way since then", little did i know at the time how superb these quaint old things really are. now travel forward 20 years. I say there are only two braking systems for pedal cycles and indeed ebikes too that are worth "its salts"; disc and drum and though the drum don't have the aggressive snarl of an MT5 the X-FDD ain't no pussy cat no wonder the larger XL-FDD is a fork bender that (takes some force) and is normally reserved for use on tandems and trikes. my X-FDD drum is fantastic No fiddling Low maintenance High modulation loads of feel on the leaver Inspire confidence during use Iv'e never locked my MT5 nor my X-FDD both stop on a sixpence. the 2.4w alternator is abit too puny feeding the front light alone streachest the limit. with work and more investment a handy USB charging point can be installed<br />i run the X-RD5(w) rear, again brake wise is flawless and yes like my MT4 i can lock it up adjusted properly the 70mm drum is, really is one hell of a brake. once installed on a bike and you gotit ride ride aND RIDE. Cheap as chips compared to most they even suit ebikes a heavy duty rim laced to a X-RD3 hub costs £200 as of 12/2019 be lucky to find just a hub for that from anyone elseAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06992890159932856879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-73820386985324557852016-06-07T14:26:22.822+01:002016-06-07T14:26:22.822+01:00Thanks for the exhaustive review - I've been r...Thanks for the exhaustive review - I've been riding with an XFD and an X-RD3 now for almost two years. They are very reliable and I was even thinking of upgrading to a 10mm drum on the front wheel. But reading that it bent your fork makes me wanna keep the smaller 70mm one. <br />As for the crunching sound while pedalling forward: I had this noise as well. Turned out to be the thread of my left pedal that was emitting the noise. Greased it and now the crunching is gone.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01667643230094098141noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-44298035759758933252012-03-22T20:44:07.325+00:002012-03-22T20:44:07.325+00:00I'm going for the V brake! Thanks for your opi...I'm going for the V brake! Thanks for your opinion!Crazy Wheelierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14898402368209830220noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-84357435984398845122012-03-17T13:42:50.957+00:002012-03-17T13:42:50.957+00:00Hey there,
Mine generally won't lock the rear ...Hey there,<br />Mine generally won't lock the rear wheel either in the dry by itself, however if I brake both front and back the deceleration shifts my weight to the front and the back will just skid as I'm about to stop. When do you feel you need to skid the rear wheel? I've found it's never been a problem for me riding on the road, the only time I like to lock the back is when I want to do some awesome skidz :)<br /><br />1) As long as you've referred to the exploded diagrams it should be correct, I imagine it'd be difficult to assemble the drum part of it incorrectly unless you have actually disassembled the backing plate itself, although that is reasonably simple.<br /><br />2) The boris bikes use the Nexus band brake which is also used on a lot of utility bikes. I've found them generally to be woeful and inconsistent from bike to bike.<br /><br />3) I would just leave it, but if you really want more power either go for the V's or upgrade to the XL-RD3 which has the larger 90mm drum.Smut Pedallerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05939627997312788346noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-54593061548151776032012-03-13T20:30:39.559+00:002012-03-13T20:30:39.559+00:00Hi All,
I have a problem with my X-RD3 drum brake....Hi All,<br />I have a problem with my X-RD3 drum brake. It won't lock the wheel. This is a little bit annoying because I don't feel safe (locking the wheel is too important in critical situations), but also I love whellieing particularly at high speeds. Not-locking rear brake is just taking a big chunk of fun away my daily rides. I have thought about putting back V-brakes, but given that I cannot get rid of the X-DR3 drum brake I thought I might try to fix it. <br />It is hard to say what the problem is, when I bought the hub second hand I disassembled it completely, after it was fine – beside the brake issue – and I have been using it for 12 months now. I just cannot do without wheelieing any more. <br /><br />1) Could the problem be that I have not assembled the brake properly? Has anyone ever had issues with assembling drum brakes and losing out on performance? <br /><br />2) I use London Boris's bikes sometimes, which fit drum brakes, and I have found locking rear wheels on about 15% of cases. Quite poor, but how comes that those 15% lock? What’s the trick?<br /><br />3) Do you think that I might need to change the brake unit? Is it worth it to buy a new one -£39- if then I am going get the same issue? (I can get a V brake with good pads for £15).<br /><br />Any suggestion, shared issue, etc is appreciated! Thank you!Crazy Wheelierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14898402368209830220noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-72305227638675080672012-02-17T10:22:05.723+00:002012-02-17T10:22:05.723+00:00Hey there, I wrote about the problem in a previous...Hey there, I wrote about the problem in a previous post here http://smutpedaller.blogspot.com/2012/01/new-year-and-new-problem.html and the rattling is caused by the planet pinion pins spinning when the clutch is engaged with them in high gear, the ramps on the face of the clutch cause it to bounce up and down. When freewheeling, the clutch and driver are stationary whilst the ball ring is fixed to the hub which is rotating with the wheel. <br /><br />Normally the gear ring which has the main pawls should stay stationary and you should hear the main pawls, however because the clearance between the gear ring and the ball ring is very close, if there is too much grease it will get pulled along with the rotating hub and thus spin the planet cage, which spins the pinion pins under the stationary clutch causing the rattling.<br /><br />I popped open my hub last weekend and removed most of the grease from the hub and only left a thinnish layer on the internals, this has finally fixed the rattle issue and now it just freewheels beautifully.Smut Pedallerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05939627997312788346noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318315606520498015.post-23712687330027413712012-02-06T17:33:28.293+00:002012-02-06T17:33:28.293+00:00I think I've had the same rattling as you with...I think I've had the same rattling as you with the XRD3. Eventually I had to take the hub apart for another reason and when I reassembled it, the rattle had stopped. It seemed to be caused by the piece which engages with the planet cage in third gear, which was altered in shape slightly in the NIG versions of the hub, when coasting it would push the indicator Rod in and out rapidly causing a rattle. When I tweaked the hub I didn't do anything to this piece directly, I believe that it might have been down to the bearing come adjustment being slightly wrong originally. Since then the hub has been fine for me. Hope this vague comment helps you sort it out.Dr C.https://www.blogger.com/profile/10234078254243840589noreply@blogger.com