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https://lowtechmagazine.com/2023/02/can-we-make-bicycles-sustainable-again.html https://lowtechmagazine.com/2023/02/can-we-make-bicycles-sus...

hinata08 4y ago
That would deserve a post of its own but it's not an accurate perspective IMO, when it mixes all kinds of bikes. -> you can't compare bikes to go to work and sport bike. Sport bikes aim for performance, not being lean. Sport bikes have carbon fibre frames, proprietary components, the new wheel mounts, as mentioned,... And they pretty much last only a few years. *BUT* previous road bikes were not better : the horizontal mounting would worn out after a few years. Your back wheel would become hard to secure, and would swerve left and ram the frame. The brakes on the rim would also wear it out, so that you had to change the whole wheels (which is expensive) from time to time, and not just a disc. Also, old steel frames could rust and become floppy after a few years. And material science wasn't as good a few years ago, so a lot of things could happen to your bike (cracks on the seat post mounting, bent chainset, ...) So all in all, the useful lifespan of sport bikes weren't better. -> then utility bikes : modern utility bikes are still made out of steel or aluminium, standard components, and are still much more sturdy and dependable for the same reason. Mine will soon be 10, has spent 2 weeks at the bottom of a lake just after I had it, has countless scratches, has had countless crashes with cars and urban furniture, I rode under the rain or freezing mist, in the forests, cobbled streets, in the city; the bike stayed outside in freezing winter or hot summer, the blokes tried to steal it,... And it's still there. I just had to change the wheels twice. OP also overplays compatibility issues. You indeed used to have standard components, and you still do ! But instead of having to choose between 5 or 7 gears, you can choose between 5 and 11 gears on utility bikes. And old parts are still available. There are just some parts that became shorter lived, for reasons : Forks now have suspensions, and saddles are now comfortable, thanks to foam. On the other hand, OP underplays the issue with electric bikes. There is indeed a lack of standardization for these. Which means that when your battery gets worn out (typically after 800 cycles, so 3-5 years), odds are that your battery isn't produced anymore, and you can dispose of the bike. please resubmit it to discuss it further !
- SN76477 4y ago
  My argument is simple. Why do we need fancy bikes with AI when we can't even get sustainability right. It's like we are tying to solve problems we created over and over while ignoring the most obvious problems and their solutions.

hinata08 4y ago

That would deserve a post of its own but it's not an accurate perspective IMO, when it mixes all kinds of bikes. -> you can't compare bikes to go to work and sport bike. Sport bikes aim for performance, not being lean. Sport bikes have carbon fibre frames, proprietary components, the new wheel mounts, as mentioned,... And they pretty much last only a few years. *BUT* previous road bikes were not better : the horizontal mounting would worn out after a few years. Your back wheel would become hard to secure, and would swerve left and ram the frame. The brakes on the rim would also wear it out, so that you had to change the whole wheels (which is expensive) from time to time, and not just a disc. Also, old steel frames could rust and become floppy after a few years. And material science wasn't as good a few years ago, so a lot of things could happen to your bike (cracks on the seat post mounting, bent chainset, ...) So all in all, the useful lifespan of sport bikes weren't better. -> then utility bikes : modern utility bikes are still made out of steel or aluminium, standard components, and are still much more sturdy and dependable for the same reason. Mine will soon be 10, has spent 2 weeks at the bottom of a lake just after I had it, has countless scratches, has had countless crashes with cars and urban furniture, I rode under the rain or freezing mist, in the forests, cobbled streets, in the city; the bike stayed outside in freezing winter or hot summer, the blokes tried to steal it,... And it's still there. I just had to change the wheels twice. OP also overplays compatibility issues. You indeed used to have standard components, and you still do ! But instead of having to choose between 5 or 7 gears, you can choose between 5 and 11 gears on utility bikes. And old parts are still available. There are just some parts that became shorter lived, for reasons : Forks now have suspensions, and saddles are now comfortable, thanks to foam. On the other hand, OP underplays the issue with electric bikes. There is indeed a lack of standardization for these. Which means that when your battery gets worn out (typically after 800 cycles, so 3-5 years), odds are that your battery isn't produced anymore, and you can dispose of the bike. please resubmit it to discuss it further !

SN76477 4y ago
My argument is simple. Why do we need fancy bikes with AI when we can't even get sustainability right. It's like we are tying to solve problems we created over and over while ignoring the most obvious problems and their solutions.