Why don't modern bikes need less maintenance?

[MacB]

Even with snubber bearings fitted the feedback on the longevity of Gates drives used on hub geared mtb's stateside is mixed, especially if bits of the scenery get pulled into the drive or you ride on terrain where gritty paste builds up on the read 'cog'. It's a solution in search of a problem in our application; probably works fine on road with a light plastic chaincase and a Rohloff but honestly otherwise what's the point. I've had a drive belt slip on a brand new strida which is why I didn't buy one and went Brompton instead (I still take my old Strida Mk 3.5 out to the shops just for the hell of it though, it's flat and I pedal gently)

that's the word, snubber, I'm not as up as you on the longevity and real world reports but they do seem to be living up to my fears/concerns re adopting such a system.

Have a hub gear, with the right dropouts, and you can switch to SS, fixed or derailleurs at the drop of a hat. I don't think I could sacrifice that for a belt drive.

 

[Pale Rider]

Gates quote the life of the belt as 'more than twice that of a chain'.

That's not much given the cost of the components and the need for an adapted frame.

Tension and alignment appear more critical than it ought to be, and if it breaks you are proper stuck unless you carry a spare belt.

A belt drive is attractive on paper, combined with sealed bearings elsewhere you have a clean, dry bike.

But I reckon it needs more development.

http://www.carbondrivesystems.com/support.php?lang=us

 

[youngoldbloke]

Out of interest, how long each year does the OP think he spends filling up the car at the petrol station? I would call that maintaining the vehicle.

- and how long does the vehicle spend at the garage being serviced, MOT'd?

 

[mcshroom]

- and how long does the vehicle spend at the garage being serviced, MOT'd?

Or being cleaned?

 

[nickyboy]

Out of interest, how long each year does the OP think he spends filling up the car at the petrol station? I would call that maintaining the vehicle.

Not nearly as long as I spend filling myself up with fuel for cycling. But then again I count that as pleasure rather than maintenance.

Joking aside, car maintenance (excluding cosmetic cleaning done at a car wash) probably 2 hours per year - just a bit of oil top up, windscreen top up, tyre pressure check. Bike maintenance a lot more than 2 hours. And I drive a car more hours than I ride a bike

Edit: I hadn't allowed for professional servicing so my 2 hours is probably more like 10 hours. Still less than I spend maintaining the bike

 

[youngoldbloke]

So your car is never serviced? MOT? Have you never had to hang around an exhaust centre, wait for tyres to be fitted?

 

[mcshroom]

Not nearly as long as I spend filling myself up with fuel for cycling.

That would still be the case if you were driving the car. You still require food to do so

 

[nickyboy]

That would still be the case if you were driving the car. You still require food to do so

Agreed, but you haven't seen how much food I eat when I'm cycling I probably spend longer refuelling than I do on the bike

 

[recumbentpanda]

The Rudge Roadster illustrated a few posts up-thread was designed for the road. Since then the bike industry has been dominated by sports fashion. It's as if you couldn't buy ordinary general purpose cars, but could only buy sports cars, or even race cars crudely adapted to be road legal. That's the equivalent of many bike designs on the road today. A real modern road bike? Jump on and go, integrated lighting etc etc? imagine something between a commuter hybrid and a Boris Bike. There are a few out there, but they aren't the usual type.

 

[youngoldbloke]

The Rudge Roadster illustrated a few posts up-thread was designed for the road. Since then the bike industry has been dominated by sports fashion. It's as if you couldn't buy ordinary general purpose cars, but could only buy sports cars, or even race cars crudely adapted to be road legal. That's the equivalent of many bike designs on the road today. A real modern road bike? Jump on and go, integrated lighting etc etc? imagine something between a commuter hybrid and a Boris Bike. There are a few out there, but they aren't the usual type.

- but..... it's only relatively recently that road bikes, fixed bikes etc have become fashionable. The decline in road bikes was hastened by the promotion of 'off road', 'mountain bikes' and the like. Tractors, not sports cars! The new popularity of bikes that are really suitable for road use is leading to increased interest in Audax and long distance touring bikes, and commuting and utility bikes and is IMO a very positive development

 

[Jimmy Doug]

- but..... it's only relatively recently that road bikes, fixed bikes etc have become fashionable. The decline in road bikes was hastened by the promotion of 'off road', 'mountain bikes' and the like. Tractors, not sports cars! The new popularity of bikes that are really suitable for road use is leading to increased interest in Audax and long distance touring bikes, and commuting and utility bikes and is IMO a very positive development

Agreed. I commute on my touring bike. It's very practical and requires relatively little maintenance.

 

[User16625]

Some industries such as space exploration and commercial air travel have gone backwards in some ways. No more concord, no more space shuttle. On the other hand computers have come on a bundle. It wasnt that long ago I logged on to the internet while listening to the computer equivalent of tinnitus, got frequently disconnected and a crap bandwidth. Now I have a computer on my lap in a room separate to the modem while watching TV on it. Bicycling doesnt seem to have gone either way as far as im aware. I guess the industries have their own priorities. I dont think there really is much that can be done to a bicycle. Its parts are exposed to the elements and will therefore need more in maintenance regardless.

 

[Licramite]

Technology is commercially driven, - if it don't make money - it dies. - it might be technologically brilliant but if it doesn't turn a buck it goes nowhere
Bikes are the same, theres a massive amount that can be done to bikes, but like all ideas it has to wait until the market is developed enough , the Ka took over 10years from concept to market place. - and the bike industry has very little money behind it compared to the car industry.

bikes don't have to be a continuation of the 100year old safety bike design - its just cheaper that way.

bikes in many ways have gone back wards (well in this county) with the commercial world pushing the mountain bike on people who will never use them off road, and because they go like wheelbarrows on road giving up cycling. -( but its the old 4x4 craze pushed on new cyclists )

 

[nickyboy]

Technology is commercially driven, - if it don't make money - it dies. - it might be technologically brilliant but if it doesn't turn a buck it goes nowhere
Bikes are the same, theres a massive amount that can be done to bikes, but like all ideas it has to wait until the market is developed enough , the Ka took over 10years from concept to market place. - and the bike industry has very little money behind it compared to the car industry.

bikes don't have to be a continuation of the 100year old safety bike design - its just cheaper that way.

bikes in many ways have gone back wards (well in this county) with the commercial world pushing the mountain bike on people who will never use them off road, and because they go like wheelbarrows on road giving up cycling. -( but its the old 4x4 craze pushed on new cyclists )

I think you're right. The market, at the moment, seems to accept a certain amount of cleaning/maintenance/fettling as part of the joy of cycling.

However, there is a demographic shift in cycling underway in UK at the moment. Wealthier, middle class men are the growing market sector. To over-generalise, these people aren't as willing or able to do the maintenance stuff as the traditional working class (for want of a better categorisation) cyclist

Who knows, maybe in 10 years time the "maintenance-free lightweight road bike" may be the norm in response to this

 

[Licramite]

to be fair to the useless generation. - I only got into proper bike repair/maintenance after building up a fair collection of tools (some for the bottom bracket tools are already obsolete as I move to a sealed unit.)and finally got a decent bike stand to hold the bike when working on it. - if you ain,t got the specialist tools its damn near impossible.
i would welcome a maintenance free lightweight road bike. -
It's not only at home but often on the road you suddenly have to do some maintenance, (gears suddenly stop changing etc.) which means carrying tools.