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I don't mean "enthusiast crapfest" as in "nobody considers bike for serious transport", but as in "build quality and engineering of modern bikes is stuck in 192

I don't mean "enthusiast crapfest" as in "nobody considers bike for serious transport", but as in "build quality and engineering of modern bikes is stuck in 1920". Brakes, transmission, drivetrain - one of these is guaranteed to fail in a way that makes the bike unsuitable for driving within a year. You basically can't use a modern bike in winter if you want to still be using it come spring. That's what I mean with "enthusiast crapfest" - bikes were replaced by public transportation and cars and reduced to a hobby segment, where all manufacturers produce is overpriced gadgets for people that like building bikes but would never dare drive their beloved posessions. They are basically not usable as dependable transport.

dalke 14y ago
Overall I agree with you. My current bike has been quite good, but that's because I bought one (a Koga) designed for long-distance cycling trips. My previous bike (a Trek) was indeed a bit of a lemon. OTOH, my wife's, a Hase, is expensive, but apparently uses some crappy, non-standard parts and it's been at the bike shop for a few weeks waiting for replacement parts. I think an issue is that most people neither need nor want a bike that they use in winter, so most of the bikes aren't designed for that. A $200 bike from Walmart is probably good enough for a few summers of use. Another is that bikes, because they are human-powered, don't have much flexibility. Someone interested in "relaxing" 100 mile ride isn't going to want the heavy frame and pannier holders that my bike has, and neither is a mountain biker. The field of commuter bikes is much smaller than those two, so I think there's been less optimization for that style. I don't know much about the biking world, but looking around now it seems that Kona makes a dependable commuter bicycle. There are likely others. A third problem is that it's hard to figure out which are the good bikes, and it's really hard for me to care about most bike reviews. With car reviews I feel that most care about things that I don't, like "high speed handling", and I think most reviewers are chummy with the manufacturers in order to get access to the vehicles for testing. This is why I have a much higher respect for Consumer Reports policy of only reviewing cars they or their members bought. Bike review have much of the same feeling, compounded by the much greater diversity of bicycle manufacturers. I had not heard of a Koga before I borrowed one from a friend, and had not heard of a Kona until today. The is the paradox of choice and the sense of complete ignorance mean that people will tend to buy something "cheap", in the hopes that it's good enough. Which it is, for a while.

dalke 14y ago

Overall I agree with you. My current bike has been quite good, but that's because I bought one (a Koga) designed for long-distance cycling trips. My previous bike (a Trek) was indeed a bit of a lemon. OTOH, my wife's, a Hase, is expensive, but apparently uses some crappy, non-standard parts and it's been at the bike shop for a few weeks waiting for replacement parts. I think an issue is that most people neither need nor want a bike that they use in winter, so most of the bikes aren't designed for that. A $200 bike from Walmart is probably good enough for a few summers of use. Another is that bikes, because they are human-powered, don't have much flexibility. Someone interested in "relaxing" 100 mile ride isn't going to want the heavy frame and pannier holders that my bike has, and neither is a mountain biker. The field of commuter bikes is much smaller than those two, so I think there's been less optimization for that style. I don't know much about the biking world, but looking around now it seems that Kona makes a dependable commuter bicycle. There are likely others. A third problem is that it's hard to figure out which are the good bikes, and it's really hard for me to care about most bike reviews. With car reviews I feel that most care about things that I don't, like "high speed handling", and I think most reviewers are chummy with the manufacturers in order to get access to the vehicles for testing. This is why I have a much higher respect for Consumer Reports policy of only reviewing cars they or their members bought. Bike review have much of the same feeling, compounded by the much greater diversity of bicycle manufacturers. I had not heard of a Koga before I borrowed one from a friend, and had not heard of a Kona until today. The is the paradox of choice and the sense of complete ignorance mean that people will tend to buy something "cheap", in the hopes that it's good enough. Which it is, for a while.