Flossyrockstar
Über Member
- Location
- Biggin Hill
As above really, I do about 16 miles a day and a 1000 ft of climbing, are they any good?
I don't get it. What has the tensioner got to do with gearing?They're OK but if the climbs are steep, you might want to use a site like www.gear-calculator.com to compare the gearing and choose what chainring and rear sprocket you want. You may find you sacrifice a little at the top end to keep your preferred climbing gear, although some say you can get away with a slightly higher gear if you're not using a tensioner wheel.
Part of the commute home is off road and the gear gets clogged up regularly, also spending 60 squid every 7 or 8 months on a cassette and chain is a bit expensive, would i get more miles out of the Alfine?Any particular reason for a switch?
I think a bit more regular cleaning of your drivetrain may be in order, a new cassette every 7 or 8 months is ridiculous.Part of the commute home is off road and the gear gets clogged up regularly, also spending 60 squid every 7 or 8 months on a cassette and chain is a bit expensive, would i get more miles out of the Alfine?
Biggest climb is 9.6% in the morning which is fine on the current setup (xt deore with 11-32 cassette) Im not exactly speedy gonzales on the fast bits anyway so the top end wouldn't really bother me.They're OK but if the climbs are steep, you might want to use a site like www.gear-calculator.com to compare the gearing and choose what chainring and rear sprocket you want. You may find you sacrifice a little at the top end to keep your preferred climbing gear, although some say you can get away with a slightly higher gear if you're not using a tensioner wheel.
It gets stripped down (including removing the cassette and chain rings) almost every week.I think a bit more regular cleaning of your drivetrain may be in order, a new cassette every 7 or 8 months is ridiculous.
Don't allow it to get clogged up in the first place.
My Alfine 8 is 10 years old and has covered almost 40,000 miles. It is a great system and the 11 seems to be better.I do a steady slope every day and it works fine.
You need to pay attention to the tensioning method,
sliding vertical dropouts
horizontal dropouts
eccentric BB
Spring loaded tensioner.
The spring tensioner is the worst, only use to retrofit an existing bike.
Sliding dropouts are probably the best.
Eccentrics vary in their reliability, some sieze up, the set crews can dimple and make fine tuning hard. External clamps and internal self-release wedges are OK.
Sheldon Brown has a gear chart to compare to your setup in gear inches.
Maintenance is reduced compared to derailleurs. The system runs cleaner, I do an annual oil bath change and usually an annual sprocket and chain change. I tried using thicker chains but cant see any advantage. I fitted Sturmey Archer thicker sprockets (you need to remove some metal thickness with coarse emery cloth) but again no real advantage.
Another moving part to work against.I don't get it. What has the tensioner got to do with gearing?
A moving part yes, but one that is incredibly efficient. A derailler drive train is about 97% efficient, whereas an internal gear system only about 90%.Another moving part to work against.
Those are artificial test figures and I humbly suggest that 97% seems extremely unlikely in this case, given the reported cassette consumption.A moving part yes, but one that is incredibly efficient. A derailler drive train is about 97% efficient, whereas an internal gear system only about 90%.