Sturmey Archer S2 Duomatic Kick Shift Hub, 32h Black

Previously I have build a single speed with Sram automatix rear hub with the coaster brake for simple commuting. The problem was climbing hills, if you're going over twelve miles an hour then your sitting on the high gear. I would have to coast or brake in order to get to the low gear. It doesn't take much to get back into the high gear.I need something simple but without shifting cable or lever. So I found Strumey Archer S2 hub, just the kick shift without coaster brake. I really didn't like the coaster brake. The hub works beautifully, easy to shift with a simple back pedal. It takes some practice to get use to the shift point but now I can power up hills without braking or waiting for the lower gear to kick in. Thinking of getting another one and switching out the Sram Automatix hub.

I like this overall as a way of getting an extra gear without ruining the nice, clean look of a single speed frame. But just about every video you find demonstrating this hub shows a bunch of failed shifts before getting it. Even with a lot of practice, that's pretty typical.I built a wheelset with one of these. I commuted with it every weekday for about a year and still ride it around town on weekends. It took me months to be able to shift somewhat reliably. I tried every combination of quick kicks (like the name suggests,) slow backpedaling, pausing before backpedaling, backpedaling immediately, counting a certain number of clicks to shift up and a different number to shift down. For months, I had a system that worked maybe 75% of the time. Then I found that you can get from low to high with a quick 1 click backpedal. Downshifting requires a short pause followed by backpedaling just a little less than 2 clicks. I'm pretty happy with that system but even that gets a little unreliable when my chain starts to get a little slack in it.I love the idea but the end result isn't that great to live with compared to a conventional shifter. I'd give it a 3.5 out of 5 if I could.

I love this hub. It solves my issues of not wanting cables running throughout my bike, and the shifting motion is a simple one to execute. It takes a little getting use to at first as you have to get a feel for the two different gear settings, but after just one ride it’s obvious. The second gear clicks louder when free spinning as a sign of it needing to be shifted. It is such a clean look overall. It’s naturally a bit heavier than the usual rear hub, but the added gear more than makes up for it.

This product is great for those who have a single speed but in some instances need to climb steeper hills. It is so hassle-free, you just shortly back-pedal and voilá... the shift is made. It's ideal for bikes like mine that have super narrow handle bars (39 cm.) which are great to run between cars in trafic jams and when the hill starts you just shift. My recommendation is to calculate the top gear(138%) to be your cruising speed on the flats, so you have the low gear (100%) for climbing. If you use Sheldon Brown Gear Calculator, with a 46 teeth crankset and the 20 teeth cog that comes stock in the S2 Kick-shift hub, you get a 5.7 gear, which is ideal for flat urban cycling. If you get a 21 cog then it climbs to 6.0 gear, both are great.

Just be aware that this hub comes with a 22t cog, and it may or may not suit your needs. You can change your chainwheel (spendy) or get different cogs. Easy to find at your LBS or inexpensively online. Learn to change cogs (YouTube) and it saves more. That rear cog is what can make the difference between giving you a lower gear for hills or a higher gear for cruising. Also, just get on and ride--it will teach you how to make gear changes easily. Give it a week or two of daily riding and you'll get it. It takes a little getting used to. If you buy the coaster brake version, it takes even more practice, IMO.

Perfect for a city / rail trail bike!

I've put about 100 miles on my hub so far. I've installed it on a 2011 Trek Soho S, which is sort of a singlespeed setup using an upright frame and 700C tires. I commute by bike, and there are a few hills around Raleigh NC, so I decided to install this hub so that I could have the higher gear for flats. So far so good, I really love this hub!Pros:-The two gears are nicely spaced apart. I currently have mine using a 44/17 setup and it is perfect for where I live.- In direct drive, the hub is whisper quiet and smooth- Seems to be well built.- Does what it is supposed to and works flawlessly (so far)Cons:- Hub is quite heavy, but thats kind of to be expected with this design- I think the hub is a little noisy in the high gear. My old hub setup on my bike was whisper quiet, and I kind of miss that- The kickback shifting takes some time to get used to. After a week of riding, I finally got the hang of it just fine.---------------------------------------------------------------UPDATE 10/24/2014 - Updating with some new observations!I'm still loving this hub! The gear spacing is perfect for where I live.-I have noticed that the shifting seems more "crisp" and "predictable" if you run the chain fairly tight. It helped me to learn the shifting action.-The hub has seemed to get quieter now (around 500 miles now) in the overdrive setting. It doesn't seem to be as loud as it used to.- While working on my bike on the stand, I noticed that the overdrive gear definitely has a little bit of drag as compared to direct drive. It's definitely noticeable when on the stand, but I can't notice it while pedaling.