Originally Posted by
dwmckee
This makes things worse unfortunately when scarce parts are stowed away in numerous cupboards everywhere unused when they are in great demand and unavailable to folks that need them somewhere else. A more efficient solution is to pay attention to parts that are near but not at the end of their service live and order them a month or so before you plan to replace them. That saves your wallet a bit and makes a more efficient supply chain for all. We just have to get out of the recent mindset that everything is available on a moment's notice, we have to plan a bit ahead for our needs. While this goes on we can not expect to wear tires to failure and have a new set of exactly what you want from FedEx the next day.
I don't disagree at all. The problem (or context, really) is that we've been conditioned to JIT logistics for everything, and that works when all of the single points of failure (combined to create a very brittle stem constructed using multiple points of failure) are all simultaneously failing.
Forgive my reductionist rant that follows... For years the maximal efficiency was sold as panacea to everyone- consumers because you can get what you want/need in a very short time, bankers and investors because profits are being maximized since we aren't tying it up in stock, and container shippers because they were getting rich off of renting these things in quantities that would shock someone unfamiliar with their ubiquity. What we all failed to realize or acknowledge was that this efficiency came at a price, it depended on a system that was so streamlined it was brittle. We could see this when a hurricane in the Atlantic, or monsoon in the western Pacific, would disrupt supply chains locally/regionally, what we are seeing now is unprecedented because the disruption is like a hurricane everywhere, all at once!
I am not suggesting (above or now) that we should horde parts, I should have been clearer to explain what I meant by my comment above. I would say depending on how much someone rides they should be
planning ahead accordingly for parts purchases. I, for instance, clock between 1500-2000km a month, I wear stuff out regularly, I would have a few more things on my bench than say a person who rides that much over 3-4 months. This is all to say that I think your advice to plan replacement ahead is spot on. I initially bought a few chains and cassettes and some brake pads to have on hand. I am keeping a stick of at least always having one on hand of the things I am wearing through regularly, but I am also being a bit more attentive to what I have so that on a whim I am not ordering things I already have and don't need. I think we all could do that...it's not about the guy in Oregon caring not about the gal in Memphis, it is about thinking ahead, and being a good "neighbor," IMHO.