The Feel of a Smaller Wheel

This spring I've been test riding a 26" wheel Sogreni city bike, and some readers have asked what I think of the 26" wheels - specifically, do I find the handling sluggish and do I think the frame could fit a 700C wheelset. The answer is that I do not find it sluggish at all, and believe that the 26" wheels were a good choice for this frame - allowing for aggressive front end geometry with no toe overlap. The bike is pretty fast and maneuverable, and I do not notice the wheel size at all.

Back when I was riding a Pashley Princess and describing the handling as slower than several similar bikes I'd tried, many expressed the opinion that this was due to differences in wheel size. The Princess is fitted with 26" wheels, whereas the other bikes I compared it to were fitted with 28" wheels. Despite a few contradicting voices (most notably that of Jan Heine), it is commonly believed that larger wheels are faster, and that it is always better to use 28" or 700C rather than 26" or 650B, unless the builder/manufacturer is trying to achieve something specific with sizing or clearances. 

While I cannot contribute scientific evidence to the wheel size debate, personally I am comparatively indifferent at this stage. I've ridden fast bikes with 28" wheels, 700C wheels, 650B wheels, 26" wheels. I've ridden slow bikes with 28" wheels, 700C wheels, 650B wheels, 26" wheels. Recently I tried a very cool 26" wheel roadbike, made by Richard Sachs for a local cyclist. I would need to put it through a real road test to really comment about it, but around the neighborhood I could not discern any difference in handling, any hesitation in accelerating, compared to a 700C roadbike. And the proportions work so nicely for a cyclist of shorter stature, maybe even for someone my height. I am surprised that shorter women getting custom frames don't go for 26" more often.

Folding bikes and mini-bikes suffer even more from the small wheel bias. Just the other night a friend was telling me that he finds the idea of a folding bike convenient, but cannot imagine the small wheels being adequate. Having ridden Bromptons on a number of occasions now, I disagree as does the Co-Habitant. While I am sure that some folding bikes are slow, it probably has more to do with how the bike itself is designed than with the small wheel size. To me, the 16" wheels on a Brompton feel no slower than full size wheels. I have also spoken to cyclists who ride Moultons and Bike Fridays with dropbars as their main roadbikes, finding them more than adequate for club rides and pacelines. 

I am not saying there are no discernible differences between wheel sizes, all else remaining equal. But in the scheme of things, there are so many other factors affecting speed and handling, that I feel the importance of wheel size is disproportionally stressed. It seems to me that getting the tubing, geometry and positioning just right for a cyclist of a given size should be the primary goal, and the wheel size should be a function of that - not the other way around. I am open-minded about smaller wheels and would like to try more bikes with them. 

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Riding a Coaster Brake-Only Bike

I like coaster brakes on city bikes and I am very comfortable using them. My preferred transportation bike set-up is to have a coaster brake in the rear and a hand-operated hub or rim brake in the front. Typically I use just the coaster brake most of the time, employing the hand-operated front brake to keep the bike still when coming to a complete stop or to supplement the coaster when braking at high speeds. The role my front brake plays in these scenarios is small, but crucial - which I realise more than ever when riding the coaster brake-only Sogreni I picked up last week. 

Slowing down on the coaster brake-only bike is exactly the same as on my own bikes - I'd be using the coaster brake alone for this anyhow. But coming to a complete stop and keeping the bike still when stopped is trickier without a front brake. The main thing I've had to learn is not to ease up on the coaster brake when stopping as I normally do, but to continue pushing back on the pedal with the right foot firmly even as I put the left toe down at a stop. If I ease up the pressure on the right pedal, the bike will keep rolling forward. Coming to a complete stop on a downhill is trickier still, because the bike really, really wants to roll forward and my right foot has to push back with all the force I can muster. Squeezing a front lever is much easier in this context.

Stop-and-go traffic presents its own challenge, because a coaster brake can only be engaged effectively from certain crank positions. There is also the transition from having the right crank in the optimal braking position (previous 2 pictures) to having it in the starting position. To transition to the starting position from the braking position, I quickly hook my right foot under the pedal and move it forward as I push off to get started. But once the pedal is in the starting position, what if I then have to immediately stop again? Inching forward in traffic is tricky, because it is difficult to keep the pedals in a position where I can both stop and get the bike started again with equal immediacy.

Finally, there is the question of speed. When going over 13mph or so, I find that I cannot brake as well as I'd like with just the coaster brake alone. The coaster brake is enough to slow down, but for an emergency stop at that speed I need a front brake to supplement.

Riding a coaster brake-only bike is certainly possible, but in a city like Boston I feel that it is safer to also have a front hand-operated brake. The motivation behind bikes without front brakes today seems to be the "clean handlebars" look, which has always baffled me. I fail to see what is so gorgeous about not having a brake lever on my handlebars, when that brake performs an obvious and necessary function. 

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First Look: Sogreni Young Shatterhand

After a serendipitous chain of events last week, I picked up a Sogreni bicycle on the cheap from a local bike shop that wanted to get rid of it. At some point they used to import Sogreni, but no longer do, and this particular bicycle is a left-over demo model that was also used as a shop loaner. It is a men's "Young Shatterhand" model and happens to be my size. The bike is about 4 years old and was ridden hard over that time. I got it solely for the purpose of test riding and reviewing a Sogreni, but first it needs some refurbishment.

Sogreni is a small Danish bicycle manufacturer founded by Søren Sögreni in the 1980s. They currently offer a collection of 6 diamond and step-through frame models that are distinguished by a look I would describe as "minimalist steampunk." Lugged frames in shades of gray and silver, innovative copper accessories, and a sparse aesthetic with subtle visual quirks give Sogreni bikes somewhat of an otherworldly appearance. While the specimen I have is missing some of the components and accessories it originally came with, its essential Sogreniness has remained intact. The colour is a perfect match for an industrial chain link fence. I do not know for sure where the frames are made (according to word of mouth, Eastern Europe), so I've asked the manufacturer and will post their response when I receive it.

When I took possession of the bicycle, it had no seat post or saddle, the wheels were untrue, and the rear hub was not entirely functional. I have since installed a seatpost and a light brown Selle Anatomica saddle. The Co-Habitant trued the wheels and adjusted the hub enough to make the bicycle ridable.

We've also replaced the super-tall original stem with a more standard one, as I could not manage the handlebars being that high. Other than that, everything shown is as-is.

I am particularly glad that the leather grips, while scuffed, have survived and remained with the bicycle.

The fully lugged frame has a 52cm seat tube, a subtly sloping 54cm top tube, and 26" wheels with fat knobby tires.

The geometry is roadish, with steep angles and a moderate wheelbase. Sogreni describes it as a road frame with upright handlebars and mountain bike wheels. There is no toe overlap on the 52cm size bike.

One quirk that is immediately noticeable when looking at this bicycle, is the gap between the tire and the fender. This seems to be an intentional design element, because even the models with larger wheels have this gap.

My first thought upon seeing this was "Great, looks like there is room here for Shwalbe Fat Franks!" But on closer inspection I don't think the fork is wide enough.

The flat fenders, while visually interesting, also present a challenge for mounting a front brake caliper, which the bicycle currently lacks. After some research we've figured out that a 1990s style BMX brake will probably work and I'll be getting one soon to try it.

Until then, the bicycle is coaster-brake only, and I will write about the experience of that in Boston traffic in a separate post. The rear hub (a single speed Shimano) has problems and is visibly beat up. We are not sure what happened to it or of the extent of the damage yet, but the gist of it is that the hub displays "fixed" characteristics and the cranks rotate forward even while coasting. This comes and goes spontaneously and to different degrees. The coaster brake function seems to work fine, but I am cautious riding it nonetheless.

Well, that is all I have about this bicycle so far. I would like to get a front brake on it and take it on a couple of longer, faster rides before commenting on the ride quality. For now we will keep working on the hub and see how that goes. A Sogreni in the US is a pretty lucky find and I look forward to getting to know it.

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