I wouldn’t do that, I used to service the nexus/alfine hubs in the workshop and usually an oil bath is enough if all is functioning correctly, to strip the hubs for a full service then special shimano tools are used and I’d advise against doing it yourself, the correct oil for shimano alfine hubs is around £90 litre.
The problem with the beer belly is that the gain in aerodynamics is offset by a loss in climbing efficiency. Ask me how I know. On the flats, and especially downhill, my mates sat on my wheel. When the uphill appeared, they said "thanks for the pull, Rick" and left me in the dust."Humans aren’t very efficient movers—until you put us on a bicycle, when we become some of the most energy-efficient land travelers in the animal kingdom." Below is a graphic that compares locomotion in the animal kingdom.
"Flying animals, can move forward cheaply by gliding through the air, carried more by currents than by their own power. Swimming animals can similarly glide through water while letting their natural buoyancy minimize the need to fight gravity.
Bikes allow us terrestrial folk to be more like fish. Wheels, a simple machine, let us coast without putting in power by pedaling, and the rigid frame supports the sitting rider against gravity. 'They turn humans into this hyperefficient terrestrial locomotor because they make being on land more like swimming.'" (Scientific American)
Once again driving home the point that 'more aero' means more efficient. Emulate salmon for speed....
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The good news, is that the 'most aero' body shape might not be what is expected:
I don't see how a person could ride that thing?
The green bike in the picture below has Gates belt drive, Alfine 7-speed hub, hydraulic disks, spiffy color coordinated fenders (mudguards). Scott Sub 10. Super low maintenance.Following your same concerns, I got my son a Marin Presidio 3. Belt drive, 8 internal gears, puncture resistant and reflective tires.
Presidio 3
The Marin Presidio 3 is the commuter bike of your dreams, because why shouldn’t your daily driver also be a sports car? We’ve built a fast, fun and exciting commuter with a lightweight Series 2 aluminum frame and straight-blade fork. We’ve also added heaps of reliability and “woah, that’s cool!”...www.marinbikes.com
www.audiosciencereview.com
Have there been any major improvements in 'rim-brakes' (calipers, et al) to warrant their continued 2-wheeling use?
but a bit of extra weight has never been the archenemy of a bicycle for the purposes of exercise and/or mobility.
A friend recently rebuilt a Nexus hub and mentioned a specification of oil he said was the same as Shimano supply. If I remember I'll ask him about it, as well as the Shimano tools necessary.
Hmmmz. Making me think here. Is it special sticky stuff etc? I always am interested in chain lube operations as I am a ex serious hardcore mountain enduro dirt rider and then a street rider and chains are always such a major part of all that. I always carried a aerosol can of that super sticky thick blue colored chain lube for my dirt bikes and then the street bike formulation for the street rides too. I would lube everyday and if I was out for a ~1200 km street ride like was common I would lube 2x a day. Nothing annoys me more than my chain making rattling, metal on metal noises and then snapping and going through the engine casing(s). I had a chain do that on my first dirt bike and that bike was trash after. In full disclosure that bike model the Honda 90 with the extra big huge low gearing sprocket at the rear and the small sprocket too at the rear was always prone to that issue so not all my fault but. So when I rode seriously in my 40s my 23" mountain bike was made into a hybrid with Continental Town and Country tires, very wide for more leverage when stomping on it downhill race bars, swapped out the rear cartridge for a close ratio Campagnolo assembly that was really cool to ride with but others with lesser thighs could not go up hills with that, Shimano high abrasion wet use brake pads that eliminated trumpeting and where super with the unique noise they made when alerting pedestrians of my presence and the bike shop told me they would modify my wheels, tubes tires etc so I did not need to maintain air pressure and could basically forget about all that air pressure stuff and whatever they did it worked super good and not once did I add air etc. So anyway... rambling here because I have extra time and I like your comments too. I finalized my chain lube choice on that hybrid bicycle and used Pedro's chain wax because I was riding in an arid desert region of Canada and the sand and grit was everywhere. The chain wax was a HUGE major improvements and the sand and grit just flaked off and left the chain spotless and shiny ready for another application of chain wax. No more dirty pant legs or worry about spots of black lube on the carpet at home etc.I have a bottle of this in the garage that I use on my motorcycle chain:
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Given that I use about 2 teaspoons every 600 miles, I can spare enough to give my hub gears a bath.
You use the rear hub with multiple chainrings up front or a single?
I think he did the full strip, clean and rebuild. I don't know if there was a problem, or he just wanted to try it. They list 3 tools for that, available but not inexpensive.
No, it's just gear oil. A £10, 1 litre bottle will likely be enough for hundreds of applications and tens of thousands of miles. I decided to use that, after seeing this, the fact that the best option was also pretty much the cheapest, added to the appeal:
Essentially, modern motorcycle chains use "X" or "O" rings and the grease that lubricates the rollers should be sealed behind them for the life of the chain. The lube that you apply to the outside, is only really to stop the chain rusting.
Bicycle chains are quite different, there are no seals, so when you clean them you ideally want to get rid of all the old contaminated lubricant, then use a lubricant that can penetrate and get into the rollers.
You typically use hub gears, with a single chain ring, as there's normally no mechanism to shift or tension the chain, that would allow it to use multiple different sized sprockets; although I think some Bromptons have an odd set-up with a three speed hub, with two rear sprockets and a derailleur/tensioner, to give a total of 6 speeds.
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However, with a belt drive, the front chainring must be directly in-line with the rear sprocket, the belt cannot flex laterally, the way a chain can.
I briefly rode a bike with the Shimano hub, but really don't remember the gear ratios standing out but a parking lot ride only tells you so much. Have friends with Rohloffs and they speak highly of them, but never tried a ride.
