Flat Pack Chainless Bicycle from IKEA • Hacker News Board

Re: Flat Pack Chainless Bicycle from IKEA

#131

Post by Tiktaalik » Sun, Jan 15, 2017, 6:01 PM UTC

tritosomal wrote: post #77

mtdewcmu wrote: post #12

Can anyone figure out why it's so expensive? Here's a fancier-looking 26" bicycle on walmart.com for $79.97 - $249.00. [1] [1] https://www.walmart.com/ip/26-Roadmaster-Granite-Peak-Men-s-...

I bought a bike from Target over the summer for $100. It has: broken one chain suffered multiple rear brake failures unfastened the handle bars so they dangle from the fork All of these things happened while miles from home, and required tools for repair. When one thing was fixed, another thing broke. The brakes failed repeatedly, and warranted full replacement. The handle bars are especially treacherous, because put…

Anything from Walmart/Target or anything that is not a real bike shop is going to be incredibly low quality.

Best off going on Craigslist and buying something (probably japanese) from the mid to late 1980s that was at one point a good quality bike. Get something with chromoly steel. It will be a lot more reliable and bike mechanics and you will be better able to fix it. It'll have all ISO standard parts.

Re: Flat Pack Chainless Bicycle from IKEA

#132

Post by woah » Sun, Jan 15, 2017, 6:01 PM UTC

owenversteeg wrote: post #88

woodruffw wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Walmart and other big-box store bicycles are infamous in the cycling community for their poor quality and assembly, often to the point of being completely unsafe to ride at any speed (Nader reference intended). They often use the cheapest high-tensile steel they can find, off-brand rims, mix-and-match groupsets, low-quality brakes, and so forth. The bike you linked exemplifies that - mixed Shimano/SRAM components and…

Boy would you love the Netherlands. Here, almost everyone rides a used bike that's had many owners, each of which changed it in some "improper" way. Wheels the wrong size for the bike, duct tape holding the bike together, half of the spokes broken, etc., etc. But you know what? That's what the whole country uses for transportation, every day, and it works fine. It turns out that, in your day-to-day usage of a bike (a…

Isn't the difference that in the Netherlands you ride at 15 mph on a dedicated bike street, while in the US you ride with the cars? This explains a lot about the desire for speed, emphasis on safety and maintenance, etc in the US.

Re: Flat Pack Chainless Bicycle from IKEA

#133

Post by JoeAltmaier » Sun, Jan 15, 2017, 6:02 PM UTC

tritosomal wrote: post #77

mtdewcmu wrote: post #12

Can anyone figure out why it's so expensive? Here's a fancier-looking 26" bicycle on walmart.com for $79.97 - $249.00. [1] [1] https://www.walmart.com/ip/26-Roadmaster-Granite-Peak-Men-s-...

I bought a bike from Target over the summer for $100. It has: broken one chain suffered multiple rear brake failures unfastened the handle bars so they dangle from the fork All of these things happened while miles from home, and required tools for repair. When one thing was fixed, another thing broke. The brakes failed repeatedly, and warranted full replacement. The handle bars are especially treacherous, because put…

Target and WalMart know that the average American rides a bike no more than 10 miles a year. Their bikes can do just about that.

If you plan on more than going around the block, the lesson is buy a real bike, from a bike shop.

Re: Flat Pack Chainless Bicycle from IKEA

#134

Post by aluhut » Sun, Jan 15, 2017, 6:03 PM UTC

johnny99 wrote: post #119

I used to be a bike mechanic, and have gotten to work 90% by bicycle for the past two decades, so I'll take a stab at some of the questions: - Belt drives are great. They're sturdier than chains, cleaner, and something I love, quieter. The angle of the belt doesn't change, the way a chain does, which means you can add a chain guard, as this bike does. Which keeps it yet cleaner. You can ride to work without worrying…

I have question for you.

Before my actual bike, I had a mountain bike for something around 15years. I never changed or did anything to the chain. It was perfect.

Now I bought a new one. After 2 years I went to the shop to have it checked. They had to change the chain. When I told them my story with the old bike they told me: "that's how it is today. Chains are not what they were". I'm still in disbelieve. Can you confirm this?

Re: Flat Pack Chainless Bicycle from IKEA

#135

Post by Illotus » Sun, Jan 15, 2017, 6:07 PM UTC

userbinator wrote: post #40

tyingq wrote: post #14

Zooming in, the belt says "Conti Drive System" on it. More info on that here: http://www.conti-drive-system.com/ They seem to be competing with the "Gates Carbon Drive", here: http://www.gatescarbondrive.com/ I know nothing of bicycles, but I do recall when automakers started replacing timing chains with timing belts. The results weren't always great, especially with interference engines where misaligned timing means…

More interesting is the fact that it's a 2-speed automatic. I've seen previous attempts at adding automatic transmissions to bikes but much of the reviews out there seem to mostly complain about the shift points and inability to control them. E.g. they shift at a fixed speed and there's no way to "kickdown" unlike an automotive automatic, which also takes into account engine speed and throttle position. I suppose the…

It's an old Fichtel & Sachs design, from 70s or earlier. I think it came back to production few years back, now by Sram that bought Sachs while back.

I think there also is an old Shimano design, but that was 3 or 4 speed.

Re: Flat Pack Chainless Bicycle from IKEA

#136

Post by factorialboy » Sun, Jan 15, 2017, 6:08 PM UTC

aluhut wrote: post #134

johnny99 wrote: post #119

I used to be a bike mechanic, and have gotten to work 90% by bicycle for the past two decades, so I'll take a stab at some of the questions: - Belt drives are great. They're sturdier than chains, cleaner, and something I love, quieter. The angle of the belt doesn't change, the way a chain does, which means you can add a chain guard, as this bike does. Which keeps it yet cleaner. You can ride to work without worrying…

I have question for you. Before my actual bike, I had a mountain bike for something around 15years. I never changed or did anything to the chain. It was perfect. Now I bought a new one. After 2 years I went to the shop to have it checked. They had to change the chain. When I told them my story with the old bike they told me: "that's how it is today. Chains are not what they were". I'm still in disbelieve. Can you con…

Here in Amsterdam, you can either buy a cheap Chinese made bike which breaks down often or an expensive but reliable Dutch bike.

Needless to say, both are likely to get stolen within the first six months. ;-)

Re: Flat Pack Chainless Bicycle from IKEA

#137

Post by Illotus » Sun, Jan 15, 2017, 6:09 PM UTC

crispyambulance wrote: post #108

userbinator wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

More interesting is the fact that it's a 2-speed automatic. I've seen previous attempts at adding automatic transmissions to bikes but much of the reviews out there seem to mostly complain about the shift points and inability to control them. E.g. they shift at a fixed speed and there's no way to "kickdown" unlike an automotive automatic, which also takes into account engine speed and throttle position. I suppose the…

I believe it is this one (or an OEM variant): https://www.sram.com/sram/urban/products/automatix I think its gimmicky. If you're going to bother with internal hub gearing, you might as well make it manual-- its even easier than shifting a derailleur and you don't need to be moving. Its not like automatic 2-speed shifting is solving a real problem.

Well it is pretty handy to have the uphill gear and standard gear on a town bike.

Re: Flat Pack Chainless Bicycle from IKEA

#138

Post by woodruffw » Sun, Jan 15, 2017, 6:09 PM UTC

mdasen wrote: post #117

woodruffw wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Walmart and other big-box store bicycles are infamous in the cycling community for their poor quality and assembly, often to the point of being completely unsafe to ride at any speed (Nader reference intended). They often use the cheapest high-tensile steel they can find, off-brand rims, mix-and-match groupsets, low-quality brakes, and so forth. The bike you linked exemplifies that - mixed Shimano/SRAM components and…

It still seems expensive compared to what I can get at a local bike shop. I got a Trek 7.2 from a bike shop for that price and it was assembled and came with some free tune-ups. Similarly, one can get a Fortified Bike 1-speed for $399. Both seem like better bicycles than the Sladda. I agree that big-box stores often sell crappy bikes. But one can get a really nice bike from a bike shop for $400-500. If IKEA were sell…

I know quite a few people who own a Trek 7.2 as a commuting bicycle. It's a great hybrid at MSRP.

You can indeed get a nice bike from a bike shop for $400-500. What you often can't get is a nice city cruiser at that price - the ones I see at my LBSes are often either substantially more expensive ($600+) or cheaper-made without a belt drive or disc brake. I think what's really attractive about this bike is the decreased maintenance requirements (provided it's assembled correctly, which I admit is a big if) and warranty.

Re: Flat Pack Chainless Bicycle from IKEA

#139

Post by bluedino » Sun, Jan 15, 2017, 6:10 PM UTC

bradgessler wrote: post #118

SixSigma wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My bicycle has a stainless steel self lubricating chain but I know where you're coming from. lots of people are put off by the idea of maintenance of their not very often ridden bicycle. They will still be disappointed when they get this one out of the garage next summer to find the tyres are flat and splitting.

Do tires exist that don't have these problems? Perhaps something made of a hard foam that doesn't deteriorate while stored?

They had hard foam tire bikes when I was a kid but they didn't last long. And solid rubber tires are heavy. Decreasing rotating mass on a bicycle is always a good thing.

Re: Flat Pack Chainless Bicycle from IKEA

#140

Post by Illotus » Sun, Jan 15, 2017, 6:11 PM UTC

mtdewcmu wrote: post #12

Can anyone figure out why it's so expensive? Here's a fancier-looking 26" bicycle on walmart.com for $79.97 - $249.00. [1] [1] https://www.walmart.com/ip/26-Roadmaster-Granite-Peak-Men-s-...

It is incredibly cheap for a belt drive. I've no idea if things have changed in the last couple of years, but I think cheapest I found in 2014 was around 1000€ in Europe.