Difference Between Cassette vs. Freewheel
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- Опубликовано: 8 дек 2019
- electricbikereview.com/forum/... This is a question that has plagued me for years... what's the difference between a cassette and a freewheel? In fact, I commonly refer to any cluster of sprockets mounted to the rear wheel of a bicycle as a "cassette" in my review videos.
The original bicycles had no chain and the crank arms were connected to the front wheel! But, the second iteration used a chain to spin the rear wheel, so the front wheel could be turned for steering. That rear wheel used a single sprocket, much like a children's bicycle of today (with coaster brake, where you backpedal to brake). Then, as more gears were introduced over time, to make starting and climbing easier, a part called a freewheel was crated that could "free wheel" as the cyclist stopped pedaling. This allowed people to take a break and even pedal backwards! Instead of designing this mechanism as part of the wheel, it was introduced as an inner core on the cluster of gears, but this limited how small the smallest sprocket could be. The free-wheeling core required space for bearings inside. A second limitation to this original freewheel design was that the axle going through the hub of the bike wheel was not supported as far out as the cassette was mounted... and the problem only got worse as hub spacing designs got wider! You see, the bearings mating the axle and wheel hub (where the spokes connect) were close to the center of the axle, and this meant that the axle could break more easily than if they were spread out towards the ends of the axle.
Eventually, manufacturers designed a way for the free-wheeling core to mate with a longer wheel hub with bearings that were spaced out futher. This is called the freehub body. This core interfaces with a cassette of sprockets, that slide down a track of splines. There are several standards for these freehub body parts that allow for 11 and even 10 tooth sprockets (SRAM XD Drive and Shimano Micro Spline are the new smaller freehub body products). These smaller sprockets function as your "high gear" when riding a bicycle, allowing you to pedal comfortably at high speeds and in fact to simply reach high speeds. At the end of the day, freehub body and cassettes are the best option for gear range options (up to 12 sprockets!) and wheel axle strength, but they do cost more than the old school freewheels... which is why we still see them from time to time on cheap electric bicycles.
In summary: a freehub is a part that threads onto the hub of a rear wheel of a bicycle. It holds a cluster of sprockets, or cassette as it’s commonly referred to. The freehub contains the drive mechanism that allows coasting and backpedaling on the drivetrain. The cassette slides onto the freehub body and is held in place by splines and then compacted securely in place by a lockring. Special tools are required to remove or attach the cassette to the freehub... which you can see on the ground during our conversation, but which we really don't talk about. Big thanks to Sean Lee at Rocky Cycles in Surrey British Columbia for sharing his parts and teaching me, so I could share back with you! 
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Some of this is not correct: You can get a11tooth sprocket in a freewheel they are made by DNP they also do up to 11 speeds but the max size sprocket is 34 tooth which is a downer. DNP Freewwheels are used on many hub motors some say this is because they are stronger but I doubt it.
Also some of the hub motors that use freewheels have a thicker shaft section where the freewheel fits and this can be a hindrance when using a freewheel removal tool..they make a special (hollow) freewheel tool for hub motors.
Not all hub motors use freewheels, the big manufacturers make freehub/cassette style also but many of the hub motor ebikes that EBR has done reviews on will have had DNP freewheels fitted and not cassettes. If you are looking at making drivetrain changes and you have a hub motor on your bike you will need to check what type you have first.
This is great feedback, Dave. I feel bad about my misinformation here, but I'll pin your comment to the top to help correct. I noticed that Rad Power Bikes and many other hub motor ebikes use DNP higher quality sprockets, do you think theirs is a freewheel with the wider range like you're talking about? It looks like that is the case given the specs I recorded electricbikereview.com/rad-power-bikes/radrover/
@@ElectricBikeReview Yes..NCM ( I love my Moscow+), Magnum, Rad, and m2s all use a version of the bafang hub motor. It seems that the DNP freewheel is the gear cluster of choice for these bikes...Maybe you could do a Hub motor video...there is also a 2 speed hub motor but these only tend to be used on cargo/delivery bikes at the moment.
Keep up the good work.
As a owner and rider of my bicycle from years ago, which has only one speed, I had no idea that there are two different gearing systems until this video. Thanks for describing the two.
You left out the reasoning behind the 12 speed cassette. This allows you to have a single chainring upfront and simply shift 1-12 without having to change between chainrings up front.
I hadn't thought on that line of logic, most ebikes I see are 1x drivetrain and that's a huge benefit (save weight and complexity, additional shifters, wires, derailleur) so yeah, having a 1x but still getting a wide range of gears with a 12 speed is awesome and my favorite way to go.
@@ElectricBikeReview And the reasoning goes further than just saving complexity and just simplifying. I hopped on a Ibis Hakka experiencing their SHRAM Rival 1 and felt how streamlining the 1x was with that groupset. Before I always thought having a 2x is what I wanted because if I have a San Francisco hill approaching, I can just click about once on the left and right side and be good to go to attack the steep hill vs. a click click click click...yet what I found was that with the Rival 1 with its x1 setup, you could slide down 4 gears with one click and be ready to bust a move (ie. starting an acceleration or stomping up a hill) and from there you have a streamlined experiencing for coming back online with simple one-side clicks to pick it back up again.
I do mostly sprints and fast agressive riding while my rides are relatively much shorter (ie. 6-7 miles in 20-25min) and this fits my style quite well. However, those doing long sweeping climbs or long climbs in general and less stop and go where you'd be looking to bust quick moves (while still possible in the 1x or 2x setup), the 2x setup offers value where you could get more delicate nitpicking capability of the gears to help sustain yourself. I'm not worried about the smaller gear changes and nitpicking as much as I'm generally sprinting the whole time, want to be able to bust a move and get back online right away and the 1x experience that has the simplified and streamlined shifting to bring you back online for agressive fast rides (always focused on accelerating) is the way to go.
Totally a rider and style preference lens to throw on this decision beyond gear range options and reliability.
Like these videos. Actually want more in depth versions. So many options anymore.
True, I was struggling with how in-depth to go. Will considering doing a more organized, thorough version of this with better camera, lighting etc. this just happened at the moment because I was learning ;)
What kind of internal hub would you recommend, if any, for a 29” BMX build? I want to use MTB parts wherever I can without changing the classic BMX look.
Great job guys ❤️
Court, I've always thought of a "freewheel" as a mechanical clutch with pals. and most cassettes have a freewheel so you can coast without your feet spinning. If the bike has a fixed gear, the rear sprocket can be fixed or it can just be a freewheeling gear. Many combinations to choose from. Glad to see you having fun in Canada. :)
Thanks Rob! I sort of condensed it to "if the sprockets are permanently attached to the freewheel mechanism, it's a freewheel" do you think that works?
For the past 20 years or so I've been riding and working on single speed and fixed gear bikes but this year I bought a geared bike and an electric geared bike and so I'm learning all of this stuff. Most of this I already knew because you just pick it up over the years but you don't necessarily understand all the subtleties until you study it. I just ordered a new larger chainring for my giant explore e+ 3 because I never use the larger cogs on the rear because of the nature of the roads I ride on. And a little slower Cadence will be nice
what about the back derailer does it have be a special one to get chain all way up and how do i know what size chain to get
Great explanation.
I have a 29inch wheel like the one on the left. Not the free wheel. I have a 7speed Shimano cassette but the wheel is 8speed! Can I fit the 7speed cassette onto the 8speed wheel?
Yikes, I still don't get it. Why would anyone prefer one over the other? Or is one just a technological innovation over the other, and there is no reason to go backwards to old technology? What was the problem with the old tech that the new tech solves? Would somebody please explain what I am missing? Really appreciate it! Thanks!
nothing, it just shave weight , and its damn expensive to have 12 cassette rear , lol
With the freewheel, more weight is placed on the side so it has more torque to bend the rod it’s mounted on, so it’s just one of those things where you can either take the risk or not. Me personally I’ve never bent the rod on any freehub bike but my new bike came with a freehub so I’m going to use that instead
Could you possibly do a review on one of the newer sondors models, i’ve been seeing a lot of them around lately but i don’t know much about them.
Thanks for the request, yes, this is something I'd like to do and it's great to receive feedback to up it on the priority list ;)
@@ElectricBikeReview Please move it up the list. The Sondors Rockstar bikes have shipped and a few folks are posting videos. It would be nice to see a breakdown on the gears (is it a cassette or freewheel) and what, if any, upgrades are possible (e.g. will the new SRAM GX AXS wireless fit?). Thank you.
Thank you very helpful
I think I might need a more In depth video next time, I'm still not quite getting the concept =\ pros and cons of each, best use cases, can they be used as front and or back wheels, how easy are they to work on or maintain?
Yeah, this video fell short of what I'd like to express and my vocabulary could have been tighter. In many ways, it sucked, and I thought about refining further... but it serves a small purpose of differentiating between a "freewheel" and a freehub body + cassette. Freewheels came first and are simpler, usually don't have as small of sprocket options (usually starts at 14 but not always) and traditionally don't offer as much strength as a freehub + cassette can. I'll work to improve this in the future :/
@@ElectricBikeReview I think the video was a great start and I'm sure some people got all the info they needed. I'm just use to the detail oriented court that gives me all the juicy details I've come to enjoy! Thanks for the content and the reply
Is there such a thing as pedals that freewheel as the electric motor is driving the cassette gears. so that on a hill I can select a lower gear but not have to pedal
What you just explained is a mid-drive electric motor. Sadly they are very expensive, costing nearly $1k
It is a veary good vedo thanks
There's 11T Freewheel yes?
Most people cannot differentiate between "wheel" and "tire" :) .... While it is good info, I feel a bit like: you either already knew it or you won't learn it anyway.....
OTOH I would have called that with a freewheel(ing) cassette. Freewheel makes me think of a fixie/BMX. Frankly, I don't remember seeing one of these at all. Since I remember me messing with bikes, I remember the "cassette removal tool"....
Good call, this video left me feeling mixed because it could have been tighter and clearer, I like the language you used there and might do an updated improved video at some point.
Also he forgot about 157 which used to be downhill, but now now it is also "Super Boost".
While I have never looked for that, my new bike (Pivot Shuttle) happens to have one.
Wheels are stronger and more rigid due to wider flanges, and shorter chain-stays/wider cranks/different chain lines.
Oh man! You got the Pivot Shuttle?! How are you liking it Denes?
@@ElectricBikeReview rhe Shuttle is nice. Pricey. Nice components and motor. This far the suspension is sufficient... Will have to take it to the more aggressive parks with drops and jumps. Using the suggested sag I haven't yet bottomed the small rear 140mm out. I am coming from a 180/180mm Haibike so that 140mm is my only concern. Oh will have to swap the 760mm bars to a 800.. But that's all.
you came to my town! :)
Oh, cool! I hope to come back and review more at Rocky Cycle, they're a great shop. Have you ever been there?
I haven’t, but I should. 🙂
What's throwing me off is that with the introduction of ebikes I thought we'd move more away from having so many gears / sprockets needed since we're getting help now. Instead this video is showing how they are putting more gears? Is that really needed on an ebike (mountain variety)? Asking for a friend - we know nothing about bikes.
I'd like to ask .... What's the least amount of teeth you can find of the smallest cog in a cassette
It's amazing that all these types of "explanation" videos just how many people hosting them do not understand actually how to explain to their audience about a topic. The guy in the video is randomly pointing to stuff as he speaks and somehow expecting the audience to understand because he shakes his fist at one object more ... I assume for emphasis. Learn better methods to explain your topic. This video ONLY works for a viewer with sufficient knwoledge about bicycles. Hopefully the expectation was that the viewer has indepth knwoedlge about bicycles and this video was not meant for the casual viewer to learn anything.