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Mountain bikers run on "finicky" derailleurs over rocks and through wet mud and sand all day. They are unbelievably reliable. With the modern 1x10 or even 1x12
by Too 2y ago
Mountain bikers run on "finicky" derailleurs over rocks and through wet mud and sand all day. They are unbelievably reliable. With the modern 1x10 or even 1x12 systems, you get enough range to remove the front shifter, reducing maintenance even more, remove almost all sources of jumping chain and allows fitting chain guard with better coverage.
SRAM has a famous video where they lay the bike sideways and jump on the derailleur while shifting, without it bending. Admittedly that model is out of price range for most riders.
Ideally you should give the chain a quick rinse and brush of to prevent grime from accumulating. Sure, the internal gears are a bit easier in that regard, because you don't need to get into the cassette. Otherwise from a reliability standpoint they should take equal beating. The cleaning frequency depends a lot on the oil you use also, wet lube will accumulate more grime than dry.
- Doctor_Fegg 2y ago> SRAM has a famous video I presume you don’t mean the Bauke Mollema one? https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Tsk3zAZyLaQ https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Tsk3zAZyLaQ
- microtonal 2y agoStill cleaning regularly is a lot of work (been there) and most people here never clean it, resulting in unreliable shifting and non-smooth cycling. Most people are better served by an internal hub and belt drive. Almost no maintenance (just bring it to a bike shop yearly to get it tuned up again).
- londons_explore 2y agoInternal hubs are common in places where biking is common - ie. Amsterdam. Derailleur's just seem to be far cheaper, I suspect because most of their parts can be made from stamped steel, whereas most parts of an internal gearbox must be CNC machined and face hardened.
- dsego 2y ago> Internal hubs are common in places where biking is common - ie. Amsterdam. And by sheer coincidence, the popularity of bicycles and internal hubs coincides with having extremely flat terrain.
- londons_explore 2y agoInternal hubs now can have just as much range of ratios as derailleur's. They also have the benefit they can change gear while stationary (very handy for traffic lights etc) Historical (ie. 1960's) internal hubs only had 3 gears, so what you say might have led to market dominance.
- dsego 2y agoOnly the expensive ones have the range and you can buy a complete entry level bike for the price of a decent one. They are still heavy and have more than noticeable drag.
- c0nsumer 2y agoDeraillers are a bit more efficient (almost no loss) and overall simpler to work on. They also (generally) offer a wider range of geear ratios. Internal hubs work great, but have a bit more loss, tend to weigh more, and when they start going sideways tend to go really wrong. But for the commuter-y / daily use like what you mention they tend to last and be more weather resistant. Because of all of this they haven't found a place in much hobby/fitness mountain or road biking, but are really great for less hilly utilitarian needs.
- londons_explore 2y agoDerailleurs have, on average, 2% lower loss than hub gears, when new. However, many suggest that because hub gears usually have an enclosed chain, whereas derailleurs rarely have an enclosed chain, that 2% is usually eclipsed by chain losses as the chain gets dirty/rusty/worn far faster on derailleurs.
- kersplody 2y agoWet mud and sand is far easier to clean than the thick black tar that accumulates on road bike chains. Tire and tarmac dust is nasty.