Hub or Derailleur, Which Is Best?

[Woosh]

Shimano Nexus 8 hub for me....I'm a new convert to hub gears and wouldnt want to ever go back.


Lynda

Me too.
Although our Sundowner only has 7-speed
The thing about derailleurs is not only they look fiddly and are fiddly, the chain has black grease!

 

[quilly21]

I think this probably depends on the type of drive, hub or crank and the terrain.
I have a derailleur Panasonic crank drive and it is great particularly for changing down when hill climbing,
no hesitations and smooth changes, but when it is wet and dirt gets on the chain, the idler or drive jumps madly, new chains gears etc make no difference, constant cleaning and lubrication with thin oil is the only solution. This would not be a problem with a hub drive as no tensioners or idlers.
I have a Panasonic crank motor bike fitted with a 7 speed hub unit and find it very poor at gearing down under load when hill climbing the power doesn't stop when you stop pedaling hence the chain continues to turn there being a slight delay in power cut off, so on a hub motor again this would probably change better.
My preference is for crank motors as I live in a hilly area, but I suspect all types work better on hub motors.
I hoped the 11 speed impulse system would be the perfect combination, but I have to say on testing one the gear change was not as slick as a derailleur and not a huge leap forward on the 8 speed.