patrick.net

Bike parts are for some reason ridiculously overpriced. But it could be due to a lot of people being "into it", as in they're the same type of people who probably buy $6 loaves of gourmet bread and drive $60,000 cars.

I needed a new set of tires a few years back for mine. Seeing as how I seemed to always get punctures in the old ones I decided to go with some Kevlar tires. Anyway, there were a zillion different kinds. I wound up buying some generic n-name brand for $20 each. Some of these tires were as much as a car tire or more. Ridiculous. 3-4 years later the tires I bought are just fine.

edvard2 says

Bike parts are for some reason ridiculously overpriced. But it could be due to a lot of people being "into it", as in they're the same type of people who probably buy $6 loaves of gourmet bread and drive $60,000 cars.

I needed a new set of tires a few years back for mine. Seeing as how I seemed to always get punctures in the old ones I decided to go with some Kevlar tires. Anyway, there were a zillion different kinds. I wound up buying some generic n-name brand for $20 each. Some of these tires were as much as a car tire or more. Ridiculous. 3-4 years later the tires I bought are just fine.

Yeah - I may need to replace my crankset - fortunately it's only $27 on amazon.

My boss rides a $5k + Bianchi and is telling me I need a $500 crank..

Some people are just infatuated with having the latest and greatest super carbon titanium crap - that really doesn't make a difference.

Bike parts can go from cheap to super expensive. Don't "love" bikes... Love riding.

Nice to see you aren't afraid to let your "road bike" flag fly....sideways.

Pretty!

Gentle Readers,
I will try again. Here is my daily rider. I ride it to work 10 miles to and back most days.
I bought it at a garage sale for $25 about 8 years ago. It has needed a lot of repairs over the years. It was made in 1980, so it has had some wear and tear.
Regards,
Roidy
P.S. Did ya' hear that the gang at OWS is gearing up for another round of yelling at the banks and our US Gov't? This ought to be interesting. This is an election year for Obama. I find him less scary than the Republican Far Right, but O' is no less a puppet for these hugely rich criminals. We have an oligarchy. It is not our friend.

Roidy - sweet ride ! Love the classic road bike.

joshuatrio says

Roidy - sweet ride ! Love the classic road bike.

Gentle Reader,
Thank you. It is a lot of fun. Parts are dirt cheap, too. I had to have a new fork - $50 installed. I did spurge and get a new set of sealed head set bearings. I never have to grease them or adjust them or anything.
BTW, it's really fast and durable.

Regards,
Roidy, P.S. Fuck you! Lil Timmy Geithner! You tax cheat you! Bitches.

What do y'all think about rear hubs with internal gearing?

Seller locally is getting rid of a half-built long tail bike that includes a Nuvinci hub.

A promotional video I found:

http://youtu.be/56SDjxH1NuM

I'd add a nexus or alfine 8 speed to a bike with horizontal or semihorizontal dropouts. They're kind of pricey new though and I have no real need. They have a reputation to last. The older nuvinci hubs are a lot less common. They were super heavy, like half the weight of a light bike. But they had a rep for being tough. There may be lighter ones now. This is all second hand info. No personal experience.

Are these Nuvinci internal hubs sealed and maintenance free?

If so, one could couple it with a belt (instead of a chain) and have an upkeep free drive train. Would be real quiet, too.

HeadSet says

Are these Nuvinci internal hubs sealed and maintenance free?

If so, one could couple it with a belt (instead of a chain) and have an upkeep free drive train. Would be real quiet, too.

Supposed to be. Hmmm, drive belt is interesting idea.

I've been thinking about a Mundo Yuba, I think someone posted about it in another thread.

Started toying with the idea of buying the base bike, then trying to add electric assist for longer/easier cruising later. Perhaps the Nuvinci Harmony system.

A yuba or the kona or surly version would be nice if you carried heavy loads all of the time. I think xtracycles are probably enough if you have an old mtb.

The belt drives require a break in the chain stay (special bike). Otherwise, there is no way to get the belt on. It doesn't break and reassemble like a chain, which is how you get a chain on a bike. A chain on a single speed or internal gear hub is nearly silent. It is never out of adjustment and is in a perfect line, so it takes a lot longer to wear and is much quieter than a normal geared bike.