For exactly the reasons you bring forward, I own a Flevobike Greenmachine [0] recumbent. It has a fully enclosed chain and a Rohloff 14 speed hub. A marvel of m

For exactly the reasons you bring forward, I own a Flevobike Greenmachine [0] recumbent. It has a fully enclosed chain and a Rohloff 14 speed hub. A marvel of mechanical engineering and almost zero maintenance. The perfect muscle power long distance bike. I love it. The Schaeffler/Heinzmann design is one for ebikes though. How do you simplify a hybrid muscle power/electric drivetrain and make it more durable? Converting muscle power into electricity first makes a lot of sense in that case: - does away with so many moving parts, including the chain - can recycle so much more effort from automotive. - more comfortable when cycling - regenerates energy from braking/going downhill [0] https://flevobike.nl/GreenMachine/greenmachine.html https://flevobike.nl/GreenMachine/greenmachine.html