Originally Posted by
PimpMan
After riding on 700c retro bike with one speed i went on six-speed mini folding bike 10" or 12" wheels and this thing feels so slow compared to big bike and it does not feel easier to pedal at all or faster to accelerate.
I do think 10", 12"are not going to be fast. (Is there even such wheel sizes? )
I have x2 14" bikes and a 16" one.
They never get to the speed that I will consider to use them for speedy riding vs 20" bikes and certainly not 700c ones.
The geometry and gearing type is also not suited for speedy riding (upright and either IGH or 3sp RD )
The theory that work done = distance travelled (ie. gear inches) seems to be missing something for these bikes as they do feel not that easy to crank despite the shorter distance travelled per revolution (ie. less gear inches)
I'd think the reason to be :
1. Geometry
2. Frictional losses in gear system (which remains the same as other bikes if not worse due to the non-standard systems (IGH; 3sp RD) )
3. Rolling resistance of small wheels on imperfect surfaces
4. Low end parts for such bikes
5. The above losses multiplied many more times for the same speed as more rotations needs to be done to get to same speed
Interestingly, I've never had the same issue/feeling with my 18" Tyrell IVE which uses a standard 10sp RD system, good parts and less compromised geometry.