kayakindude

Installed the new crank last night. Park tool was easy to use and youtube was a great resource on using it. I really like the look of it on the bike.


The chain will have to replaced/lengthened if I want to use 1st gear, everything plays nice 2nd gear and up. It goes into 1st but really pinches things so I will avoid that until I address the chain.

Took it for a quick spin around the block (it was 30 degrees out and pitch dark so a nice solo ride). 7th now makes a big difference and I had to really engage my legs. It seems a lot faster. Snow later today and it 20 out so it will be a bit before I can ride it to the train station is compare the two times. It was 20:20 for 4.2 miles on the stock crank.

Thanks again for this great thread, it gave me the courage to try changing things up and ultimately enjoy the bike more. Crank was just under $55 with shipping. Not sure why the image displays upside down.

sjanzeir

Welp, the joke's on me! If I had been a little more patient, I probably would've bought this instead:



I was going through my cloud storage this morning, and saw that the manager of the local sporting goods shop where I bought the bike had sent me a bunch of pictures of their new stock in November. So instead of having gone through the trouble of modding the D7, I would've simply bought this D8 Sport with the "faster gearing" already installed at the factory! The quick release hubs and the better saddle would've been bonuses, too!

Oh well...

kayakindude

Wow! That crank on the D8 looks exactly like the one I installed. No regrets on my end. I am into the C7a for about $355 with the mod. That D8 is about twice the price! Finally test rode it to the train station. 4.2 miles right at 18 minutes. The stock crank took me 20:20. I was kind of expecting a better time but it was only 30 degrees out. 7th definitely felt like a workout, no spinning out. Overall a much more comfortable cadence for my body style.

kayakindude

sjanzeir...how is the freewheel holding up? Now that the warm weather has arrived and my cadence has improved I am finding 7th adequate but would like another level for the flats/downhills. It is sitting in my Amazon cart but wanted to see how the quality is under use. Now comfortable at a 4 minute mile but that 11t should get me closer to the 20mph mark in the nice weather.

Also thinking of adding a set of bar ends to extend my reach a bit, as I am 6'3". Thinking the G3 or G4.

kayakindude

Ordered the 11-28. Installed it yesterday. Was pretty easy to swap, took awhile to adjust the derailleur. For users considering this change you just need the park tool to remove the old freewheel. Then its thread off, replace, thread back on.

Paired with the 56t crank I find everything perfect for my cadence. 6th keeps me around 18mph and 7th puts me into the 21mph range. 6th for me is now my primary and 7th is no wind flats or downhill. Fastest I got was 27mph, a tad scary on the folder.

The freewheel is louder than the stock unit, not sure if some break in time will change that.

G4's arrive tomorrow and that should be the last upgrade...already thinking Brompton in a year or two for air travel.

kayakindude

Just an some info and an update on the reliability of the DNP Epoch 11-28. I have beat the hell out of my Vybe and so far the gears are holding up fine. I took part in the 26.2 mile "Sky to Pie" up in Newport VT this past weekend, which is on rural dirt roads and about 90% uphill/downhill. Now I think the 11/28 paired with the 56 is fine for we coastal folk that encounter the occasional large hill, but man....I was dying in the 2nd half of this event as I hit my 18th multi-stage hill. I resolved to not walk the bike and I didn't but I was crawling a lot. Downhill was really scary on the Vybe (I can't even imagine how fast I was going) but it held up, rattling and all on the bumpy but compact dirt descents. It took me 2.5 hours on the nose to complete, but there were several bikes that came in below 2 hours. I was the only folder and with only 7 gears I think that hurt me a bit. I want to try it again next year but I am thinking of grabbing and installing the 11/32. Do some of you who are used to lots of hills think the 32 will make that much of a difference?

L Arnold

If I were to want to make a Vybe "faster" I would do as has been shown, add a bigger and better crank set and sprocket.

If I wanted a bigger range of gears. (Low to high) I would add a Metroplis 2 speed crank. They can be set up either in normal mode to function as 28/46 but can also be setup as 38/60 or 46/73 split chainwheels.

I've done a few of these in different modes. Very nice shifting uo front. Instantaneous really.

tds101 

That Metropolis Speed Crank is a nice idea,... https://www.bicyclebuys.com/fsa-metr...MaAoPfEALw_wcB

fietsbob

Another option Schlumpf high speed drive, is a 2.5 X overdrive..
so 27 / 67.5 or 34, 85. smaller chainring is physical size

I like the reduction gear mountain drive... 1:2.5 , a 50, 20. [54/21.6] ...
bigger one is the actual chainring..




....

kayakindude

Wow, I was just curious about what kind of change going from 28 to 32 in the rear would gain me but you just seriously got my attention on this. I am already thinking Christmas wish list.