Review and test Shimano Nexus Inter-7 7-speed planetary bushing

Some people ask me why I needed another bike on a planetary hub. I just had a spare place for a bike and I bought a planetary hub on ebay at an attractive price. Many have three cars per family, so let me have three bikes per family.

I already have one good bike with a planetary hub and I decided to buy another bike on a Shimano Nexus Inter 7 planetary hub .

I have always been interested in the good old 3-speed Sturmey-Archer bushing, which many have rolled up to the complete disappearance of the teeth on an asterisk. They were reliable, could switch when stopped, and when pedaling, and at free wheeling, required minor adjustments. A simple setup was needed to ugliness - unplug the cable,allow the mechanism to “relax” at the top gear and remove the cable sagging. That's all: all three programs are tuned or “indexed”, as they say now.

Their wide distribution was limited by the pitiful amount of available gear ratios. Although later versions had four and even five speeds, but this didn’t affect anything.

It is a little surprising that the drivers with unprotected rear and front stars jumping from star to star actually became the standard gearshift mechanism for most cyclists. In the end, 8 stars at the back and 3 at the front can give 24 combinations compared to three on the Sturmey-Archer hub. Right?

Not quite right. On many systems, you lose two gears out of 24 anyway,since the chain cannot stretch diagonally from the largest leading star to the largest rear star and from the smallest leading star r to the smallest rear star. Of the remaining 22 gear ratios, not all are equally useful (many of them are almost the same). On a 24-speed bike, some of the remaining gear ratios are very similar to each other, so the benefits of using them are minimal. Of the 24 gear ratios, only about half are really useful. In addition, the transmission on the classical system can be switched only during pedaling and it is not possible to run freely or during a stop.

If the red light of a traffic light lights up on the ascent, then to switch to a lower gear you still have to go ahead - if only I did not have to start from high gear.Also, accidentally pressing the switch while pedaling backwards can reset the chain.

Shimano Nexus 7.

The rear Shimano Nexus Inter 7 planetary bushing can best show itself on a bike designed for regular trips to work. They not only have all the advantages of ease of operation of the good old Sturmey-Archer, but also “enough” gear ratios - seven gears. If you wish, you can buy reliable planetary bushings with 8 and 11 gears.

A 7-speed Shimano Nexus planetary bush is installed on the bike I bought. The bike has a hand roller brake, not a foot brake, like on many European bikes. I don't like bicycles with a foot brake,since on such a bike during the start it is difficult to achieve the optimal position of the pedals. This is especially important when driving in car traffic. The rear brake on my bike is controlled by a lever. Braking force is well modulated. In order to protect against overheating, the brake is equipped with a heat diffusing plate.

Let's go back to the gears. Switching gears on the sleeve is a pleasure. Transmissions can be switched while standing at a traffic light, pedaling or coasting, although you cannot pedal strongly - the hub will not switch until you reduce the pressure on the pedals. Gears are switched using the right-hand jog dial. Switching takes place in the form of seven clicks with small delays. In contrast to the planetary sleeves, with whom I had dealt with before,here the cable in the non-tensioned position includes the lowest gear, not the top. You just need to get used to it, but otherwise there is nothing to learn, rather you need to unlearn.

You can buy a Shimano Nexus Inter 7 hub separately and assemble the wheel based on it. It will cost you about $ 159, which is approximately the price of the cheapest new bike! Roller brake can be bought for $ 32. A completely new rear wheel with a rim, knitting needles, hub, tire, camera and brakes will cost $ 238.

You can use the Shimano Nexus Inter 7 planetary hub.

racer quickly scream up all the gears. Although of course your acceleration to 60 km / h is unlikely to hit Jeremy Clarkson. Motorists will look at you enviouslyas they catch up with you 50 meters further than expected. Much more often you will surprise cyclists and many will be interested in the question, where is the gearshift mechanism located on your bike and what is this rear brake.

The hub practically does not require maintenance. The sleeve is well sealed. Lubrication has a long service life. Probably the maximum that will be needed is the adjustment of the shift cable after the wheel had to be removed to seal the rear wheel puncture. Adjusting the cable is a snap: you only need to select the fourth gear and build two red marks on the shifting device (see the photo below). A little tweaking of the labels is possible with the help of a regulating device installed on the end of the rotary switch.

Adjusting the Shimano Nexus 7 planetary bushing.

If the gears are adjusted, then there are no dead neutral points on the bushing when idle pedals have to be turned instead of the planned gear. This is especially annoying for men and hurts their chances of having children.

The sleeve is elegant, with a well-polished stainless steel sheath, although a bit cumbersome. Keeping the sleeve clean is easy. Immediately rushes into the eyes of a solid good-quality chain, especially if before that you had a bike with a classic gearshift system. Since the chain does not experience any lateral curvature on the planetary bushings and runs parallel to the one leading to the rear sprocket, for this reason there is no need for a flexible thin chain.

At free play, the sleeve produces a weak ticking noise.Old Sturmey-Archer also made similar sounds. At the moment, I drove more than one hundred kilometers to work and back, and I want to say that the bike with this planetary hub became my “favorite bike” for getting around the city. My 24-speed bike is only better when driving long distances with good maintenance, but for everyday trips I only use the 7-speed Trek. Given the large number of gears, the Shimano Nexus should show itself well on off-road, as she and the rear brakes are well protected from dirt and water (except for puddles 15 ”deep, when the water comes to the brake or sleeve). But so far from“ off-road ” "I only had to take the curbs.

The only thing I still have to do isSo it is to get rid of slicks with the inscription "FAT BOY" in big red and white letters. You must select a tire with at least a small tread and a less offensive inscription.