Hub Gear build

Having had a small obsession with hub gears for a while now i quite fancied giving one a go.

So i bought a new Carrera Subway 8 with a lovely Alfine 8 hub, however i have no real plans to use the Subway as i wanna go play in the mud with it so i guess its a project of sorts?

Full bike as i got it home last night; (sorry for the crap photo)

Note the none standard kona project 2 forks!

Then i pulled it all apart late last night and this morning im left with a frame and a pile of parts;

Should be picking up a new(ish) slightly more fitting frame today sometime.

Its gonna be quite a mash of parts as im hoping to build it with stuff i have lying around.

Gave this a thought? http://www.lfgss.com/thread76557.html

Should be picking up a new(ish) slightly more fitting frame today sometime.

^^Thanks for the idea but im planning more of a xc/trail frame.

And luckily for me a friend was parting out his mtb. Its steel(which i like alot) and with sliding dropouts its ideal for my little project so i jumped at the chance.

Fast forward a few hours and i parted with some cash, helped him pull the bike apart and the frame was mine!

After a couple more hours i got bored so i threw the bike together with various bits i had lying around.

Its far from complete as most the finishing kit will be changed. The seatpost is to short and the bars aren't wide enough the stem is also a touch too long. However the worst bit is the chainring is a 42t which is around 8 teeth too many.

I also have a couple of other sligthly more drastic ideas. I thinking of removing the brake lugs from the forks to give a cleaner look. I will then either bare metal the the frame, forks and let it rust slightly followed by some clear coat or matte black the entire lot?

any thoughts ideas comments would be cool

Thanks

Cut the plastic chain guard off the alfine. They collect mud can cause the chain to bind.

On-One Carbon fork?

http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/FOOOCAR/on_one_carbon_fork

Awesome, looks way better than the carrera

I'd leave the v brake mounts on the forks. Just in case.

I have been thinking about Alfine for my polo/everything/commuter. Just a bit expensive.
Is Nexus rubbish?

julia has a nexus on her polo bike, they are decent. However the engagement isn't as immediate as on the alfine. I personally would stump up the extra dollar and go alfine, its well worth it. (it should last a very long time)

The Nexus 7 speed has no direct gear, and low useful gears like 3rd have so much mechanical drag that lots of efficiency is lost. I prefer the old Sturmey 3 speed to the Nexus.
I am very eager to try the Alfine 11 speed when I have spare money and room for more bikes.

isnt direct 4th on a nexus?

Apparently not. 4th is much less "mechanical" than the others though, so it must be more direct.
On the Nexus 8 speed I've read that 5th is a direct drive, and on the Sturmey 8 speed it's 1st.