Originally Posted by
guym458
which gearshift system is better and more reliable for casual weekend riding around the park, The one on the Tern X30 or the one on the Tern C8? I don’t want to buy the dahon I mentioned in the previous post.
I have some info on this posted on another thread, gimme a minute... here it is...
(from another thread): Verge X30 (I was hoping to see a road triple, but not), is a SRAM 3x10 Dual Drive with 3-speed Internal Gear Hub (IGH) in series with full cassette and rear derailleur; In middle gear on the IGH, direct drive, no loss in efficiency. In low or high on the IGH, reduction and overdrive respectively, with resulting gear friction losses in efficiency, most critical in the high range because that is the speed range. The hub is also heavy. I'd expect it to be blown away by an X11 in top gear, UNLESS, the X30 has a lot taller top gear (I think it does) and the rider is capable of using it fully. But it will still be slower than a non-IGH race bike, if only for no other reason than the IGH. This is a fundamental problem on small wheelers, you need a pie-plate chainring or tiny cogs for race-high gears without an IGH or Schlumpf drive.
Additionally, IGH hubs, if ridden in rain, need annual maintenance with teardown and regrease ($100) which most bike shops are not qualified to do, and if neglected, the internals go bad quick with rust. I can post online reference info on this, just ask. This is not the case with an IGH like a Rohloff (hub alone costs 3X as much as my whole bike) because they have great seals and everything is lubed by liquid gear lube bath, and the lube is easily changed.
For the same reasons, I would avoid Bike Fridays with DualDrive system, a double or triple chainring system is better, in my opinion. Tons of BFs with DualDrive cheap on craigslist, the ones without go for more.