3 ms·

Every so many years I see a post like this where they claim to have improved the drive chain of bicycles and they really never go anywhere, mainly because they

Every so many years I see a post like this where they claim to have improved the drive chain of bicycles and they really never go anywhere, mainly because they aren't compatible with other kit. I've built and repaired quite a few push bikes over the years I am still using fairly standard shimano kit. The problem with exotic equipment is that even decent shops might not be able to repair it and it normally requires specialised tools. I mucked about with Campag and some other exotic kit and it is always a PITA as you always have to go hunting around for parts of ebay after a few years because threads and tapers on things like bottome brackets aren't compatible.

FridgeSeal 6y ago
As a mountain biker primarily, chasing marginal gains on chain improvements seems strange to me. Chains are a wear item, and small gains in the efficiency are going to be lost pretty quickly after the first few times it’s been ground through mud, sand and grit, which will take all of one ride.
- matthewowen 6y ago
  This is being marketed to track cyclists who have none of those issues. More generally, novel drivetrain products often seem to take off early in the tt/tri world which also don't really have to deal with those issues. It's also worth noting that anything that all else being equal, improved efficiency goes hand in hand with better longevity. As an example, applying a hot chain wax is a winner in terms of watts, but it's also cheaper in the long run.
  - emcq 6y ago
    You can't really make all things be equal and get increased efficiency and longetivity for most cases. The trade-off are explicitly made to have reduced longevity to have better efficiency. Take tires for example. A low rolling resistance lightweight XC tire will have significant advantages over a dual casing 2.6" DH tire. The XC tire will smoke a DH tire but not have better longevity on dirt. The XC tire will be slower on some DH tracks and the DH will be slower on XC. If you ride a DH tire on a road it will ironically wear down more quickly than a typical XC tire, and you can shred an XC tire in one day on technical DH.
    - matthewowen 6y ago
      I was speaking specifically about drivetrains. Tyres generally trade traction off against longevity, plus, yes, specialization is a big consideration.

FridgeSeal 6y ago

As a mountain biker primarily, chasing marginal gains on chain improvements seems strange to me. Chains are a wear item, and small gains in the efficiency are going to be lost pretty quickly after the first few times it’s been ground through mud, sand and grit, which will take all of one ride.

matthewowen 6y ago
This is being marketed to track cyclists who have none of those issues. More generally, novel drivetrain products often seem to take off early in the tt/tri world which also don't really have to deal with those issues. It's also worth noting that anything that all else being equal, improved efficiency goes hand in hand with better longevity. As an example, applying a hot chain wax is a winner in terms of watts, but it's also cheaper in the long run.
- emcq 6y ago
  You can't really make all things be equal and get increased efficiency and longetivity for most cases. The trade-off are explicitly made to have reduced longevity to have better efficiency. Take tires for example. A low rolling resistance lightweight XC tire will have significant advantages over a dual casing 2.6" DH tire. The XC tire will smoke a DH tire but not have better longevity on dirt. The XC tire will be slower on some DH tracks and the DH will be slower on XC. If you ride a DH tire on a road it will ironically wear down more quickly than a typical XC tire, and you can shred an XC tire in one day on technical DH.
  - matthewowen 6y ago
    I was speaking specifically about drivetrains. Tyres generally trade traction off against longevity, plus, yes, specialization is a big consideration.