It's like déjà vu all over again

[Dionigi]

This is a quick overview of the Riese & Muller Nevo GX Rohloff. Most of the Rohloff transmission quirks have been beautify detailed by David Berry with his Rohloff drive Homage so I will only add a few of my observations. I find the Rohloff to be considerable more efficient than the NuVinci on a similar Nevo particularly in the Eco and Tour modes. Although the NuVinici is a much more pleasant transmission for stop and go urban riding. As David mentioned roads with a 10+% grade the Rohloff E-14 has issues shifting under load making it a problem trying to maintain your cadence.

With the initial E-14 setup my starting gear was 5, quickly I found 8 to be a better start gear. The high intrinsic torque of the CX motor, in conjunction with the E-MTB power mode, makes for a smooth and quick start on flat road surfaces. The weak link of the E-14 is the electronic shifter switches, they seem to be over dampened with no real positive sense of engagement. If you wear gloves thegear changes just feel mushy.

Last winter I used the Nevo GH NuVinci, so for a direct comparison the 2018 GH looks less bulky than the 2019 GX dual battery, The GX dual battery is brilliant in the way it alternates battery drain between the two batteries and eliminates range anxiety but the way R & M implemented the second piggy-backed battery is very unattractive. A case of function outweighing form.

The front rack on the GX is equivalent to a Range Rover owner adding a cattle-catcher grill for their suburban adventures. I did fasten a GoPro mount and a Saint Christoper bobble-head to give some life to this platform.

Modifications include; changing the pedals to Kona Wah Wah 2 pedals, replacing the saddle with the Ergon ST Core, adding the Ortlieb front bag, changing the Racktime basket to the new MIK system, a B&M mirror, replacing the taillight with a Light and Motion Tuck pulse light and adding a Sherlock GPS tracker and Hexlox for security. The Rock Razor tires were replaced with Super Moto-X.

One side note, my wife and I purchased Sena R1 helmets which works great for intercom communications between riders and voice commands of the navigation directions.

The bikes were purchased from Propel in Brooklyn and as with past purchases the sales and delivery was flawless. The Propel team answered my endless list of questions and implemented all the requested add ons.

 

[Zaphod]

Dionigi, how did you settle on the Ergon ST Core? Do you have prior experience with this saddle? How do you get the proper size S/M vs M/L without trying it out?

 

[Dionigi]

Dionigi, how did you settle on the Ergon ST Core? Do you have prior experience with this saddle? How do you get the proper size S/M vs M/L without trying it out?

I have the M/L saddle and have it on the GH version before purchasing it for the second bike. I used a calculator to determine the seat bone width. The calculator used was on the Selle Antomica website.

 

[Chris Nolte]

Beautiful photos and thanks for sharing your experience @Dionigi! Have you been able to shift without breaking cadence? I’m finding that if you shift right at the top of your pedal stroke you can do without breaking your cadence. This is a deadspot in your stroke so it’s like you’re stopping, but the timing needs to be precise.

 

[Dionigi]

Beautiful photos and thanks for sharing your experience @Dionigi! Have you been able to shift without breaking cadence? I’m finding that if you shift right at the top of your pedal stroke you can do without breaking your cadence. This is a deadspot in your stroke so it’s like you’re stopping, but the timing needs to be precise.

So far, from my experience, the E-14 shifts precisely on flat and moderate grade roads. On steep grades it’s a matter of learning the right time to shift or anticipating the proper gear. I’m sure after a few more steep climbs i’ll get the hang of it. Otherwise the E-14 inconjuction with the dual battery is a dream combination.

 

[Chris Nolte]

Great to hear! I’m working on my strategy on hills as well, but I don’t have too many to practice on here in Long Beach.