Thoughts on Freewheel vs Cassette

[bigalgeorge]

Hi all. Since the modern trend seems to be tending to cassette rather that freewheel, I was considering asking for a change of my imports from FW to CS. CS availability of 11T is common, which is more suited to 20" rear wheel size.
However the tech guy from Suntek (a large China supplier of bike parts) said quote On E-BIKE, we use more Freewheel than Cassette, it is better on repairing and it is stabler. unquote. Translation, they have less problems with FW. I have yet to try my chainwheel 52t and FW 13-15-17-19-21-24-34 but it should be pretty close to whats needed. If low is too high, then I have to revert to FW.

Anyway, interested in anyones thoughts on reliability of the different formats. As for his comments I dont understand what he means is better for repairing though; surely a FW is harder to remove and dont you just chuck them away and replace?
Cheers, Al.

 

[harryS]

Your bikeguy probably ships a lot of bikes with Shimano freewheels, and likes not having to buy the higher cost cassettes. On an ebike, I don't believe we're pounding the pedals as hard as someone on a road bike. I'll accept the conventional wisdom that a cassette is stronger, but I think a Shimano freewheel is quite adequate for most hub motor bikes. If we're looking at mid drives, then a cassette seems to be the more reliable option.

You might want 11T on a 20" bike. I did. DNP is the only manufacturer making an 11T freewheel and has been on the hot seat for quality, if you believe the reviews you see on Amazon. I've got two 11T DNP freewheels and even when they were brand new, they looked kind of poorly machined with uneven teeth. Still, no problems with them so far.

 

[bigalgeorge]

Your bikeguy probably ships a lot of bikes with Shimano freewheels, and likes not having to buy the higher cost cassettes.

You might want 11T on a 20" bike. I did. DNP is the only manufacturer making an 11T freewheel and has been on the hot seat for quality, if you believe the reviews you see on Amazon. I've got two 11T DNP freewheels and even when they were brand new, they looked kind of poorly machined with uneven teeth. Still, no problems with them so far.

Re price - its up to me. If I find I need the 11t I will go for a Suntek cluster 7-speed CS 11-34, and get bike maker to change the motor to one with CS interface. They are all about the same price and Suntek stuff is good quality; they've been around for years.
I still can't figure why the Suntek guy said FW easier to repair. I thought the idea of CS was easier removal than FW.

 

[Longhaulcruiser]

Some years ago I bought my first bike with a cassette/freehub and I loved how easy it was to work on. Getting those old freewheels off is such a bear. I never planned to go back to a bike with a freewheel. Then I bought a fat bike. I was surprised (shouldn't have been, it was sort of cheap) that it had a freewheel. After reading on the fat bike forum how people were having their freehubs blow up, and it end up costing several hundred dollars to fix, I was glad my fat bike came with a freewheel. Now I am looking at buying my first electric bike. The one I am interested in (Jetson Adventure) has a freewheel. I'm kind of on the fence about this. But I might get it anyway.

 

[bigalgeorge]

Got bikes; seller shipped with 46t chainwheel and 14t rear freewheel highest. On a 20" its the worst combination at any speed near 20km. I put a 52t chainwheel on and its still too lower geared ideal would be 11t freewheel as described earlier.

 

[Ken M]

I want to try a fixie configuration with a powerful hub motor kit (maybe a MAC geared or a DD Crystalyte 3540) and my thought was that a screw on freewheel configuration probably easier to go fixie.

Any thoughts on this???

 

[harryS]

I don't think you really mean fixie. A fixie gear is locked to the rear wheel and the pedals turn constantly with the wheel. A motorized fixie will probably break your shins.

I think you mean a single cog freewheel.

.

 

[AHicks]

I want to try a fixie configuration with a powerful hub motor kit (maybe a MAC geared or a DD Crystalyte 3540) and my thought was that a screw on freewheel configuration probably easier to go fixie.

Any thoughts on this???

None that might encourage that plan!

 

[Ken M]

None that might encourage that plan!

I have just found that when I ride my 750W nominal / 900W peak power Polaris hub motor ebike I spend virtually all my commute riding in 6th to 8th gear and in reality could just leave the bike in 6th or 7th entirely up to 24mph cruising. A 44T or 48T front with a 14T or 16T rear fixie configuration with a more powerful MAC or Crystalyte hub motor in reality should eliminate any real need for a derailleur / shifting. Humans are pretty efficient at getting a bike from 0 to say 20kph and where a hub motor begins to be very efficient. Keep in mind there are a lot of city riders that have ridden fixies for years without electric assist and they get around very effectively.

I think the whole industry is so driven by tradition that it really hasn't grasped what benefits electric assist really has. It should allow a much simpler bike configuration but my guess is the bean counters at OEM bike companies don't want buyers thinking they can get by without shifting mechanism, front forks, etc.

 

[AHicks]

Myself, I doubt I would ever want to loose the ability to coast, without peddling, for a host of reasons.....

 

[Bruce Arnold]

A front-wheel motor with a fixie could be done. I'm not sure why anyone would, but then I don't get fixies anyway.

 

[rich c]

I want to try a fixie configuration with a powerful hub motor kit (maybe a MAC geared or a DD Crystalyte 3540) and my thought was that a screw on freewheel configuration probably easier to go fixie.

Any thoughts on this???

You’d need one hell of a big chain ring to keep up with a powerful motor on a fixie. Highly unusual to pedal 28mph on a fixie!!!!!!!!!

 

[harryS]

My way of looking at it is that for a mid drive or a regular bike, gearing allows a smaller motor to lope along at higher speeds and accelerate better. On a hub motor, gearing allows a cyclist to maintain the proper cadence to contribute to the ride. I've always been around shifting gears in my bikes and cars.

Or we can go back to mid 60's with a 427 Chevy and a two speed powerglide. Lo and HI. You could get up to 60+ mph in Lo. That's what a big Mac motor would be like with one speed. Brute force.

 

[rich c]

When Sondors came out with their original $499 fat ebike, it was a single speed freewheel. One of the most common failure issues was stripped aluminum cranks and pedals falling off. There is a throttle, but horsing that heavy bike is hard on components

 

[Ken M]

You’d need one hell of a big chain ring to keep up with a powerful motor on a fixie. Highly unusual to pedal 28mph on a fixie!!!!!!!!![/QUOTE

In the cadence calculator with a 48T front and 14T rear the cadence is 100rpm at 28mph. That is not exotic at all. I accept that if you had a rear cassette with an 11T small chain ring the cadence is dropped to 80rpm at 28mph but on an electric fixie you can size the front and read chain rings for your preferred cruising speed. There are a lot of ebikes that like too just keep things in slow motion and never go over 20mph but that is a speed most traditional bikes would exceed in some situations like going downhill or with nice tail wind.

Some like it slow and some like it fast. Some like it complicated (derailleurs & cassettes) and some like it simple (fixie).

 

[Ken M]

When Sondors came out with their original $499 fat ebike, it was a single speed freewheel. One of the most common failure issues was stripped aluminum cranks and pedals falling off. There is a throttle, but horsing that heavy bike is hard on components

Fixie chain rings are chains are typically more heavy duty that any chain used on a bike with a cassette. I know some like to claim otherwise but they are are simply wrong.

 

[rich c]

Fixie chain rings are chains are typically more heavy duty that any chain used on a bike with a cassette. I know some like to claim otherwise but they are are simply wrong.

Have you ever ridden a fixie with a motor? You seemed to be unfazed when a fixie was explained to you. You do understand there is no coasting on a fixie.

 

[Ken M]

Have you ever ridden a fixie with a motor? You seemed to be unfazed when a fixie was explained to you. You do understand there is no coasting on a fixie.

There are freewheeing fixie rear chain rings.

 

[E-Wheels]

There are freewheeing fixie rear chain rings.

If they freewheel then it is not a fixie
Fixie means fixed, so you can’t ever freewheel and always have to be pedalling, even down hill or in this scenario with the motor power engaged

 

[Ken M]

The have "fixie" rear chain rings on ebay that have a bearing and pawls. I've seen people put just one chain ring on a cassette. I undertand the traditional vernacular but it's not all inclusive.