What would you give in place of more maintenance for convenience?
 

Looking at typical bicycle maintenance, what would you be ok with [too a point] for servicing/replacing more often to have more convenience [could be comfort, use, etc] ?
example: brifter shift cables, recharge of drive train system

personally, I'm ok with the shorter intervals of replacing the shift cables to have brifters

Would replacing tires sooner due to less tread life be justifiable for a significant resistance to punctures be your give? Hrmm...

All of my bikes are set up as fixed gear and singlespeed so I don't really have a lot of maintenance to do other than lubing chain, changing brake pads and replacing worn out tires...I also rotate my tires to get more even wear out of them.

so, that's a no in its entirely for you?

I'd be willing to wax my chain if it gave me an extra 2 mph at FTP. (Actually, I'd be willing to do it for a 1/2 mph gain.)

I have triples on all my bikes to reduce the amount of multiple shifts of the RD. I also used friction barcons on most of my bikes for the same reason. Whacking the right brake lever with it's long throw on a Shimano brifter is awkward and feels like doing an arm curl with a small dumbbell. It tightens up my forearm and I have trouble squeezing the brake lever. Microshift brifters solved that problem. I'd still rather shift the FD 1 or 2 times and the back the same rather than shifting the RD 6-8 times. Then crest the hill and have to do it again going back the other way.

I’m guessing wiper fluid?

Hate flats, but have no not had one in three years after going tubeless, so to keep my fortune running, replacing tires every couple of years. Was shocked earlier this year to find that out that one Conti 5000 TL was $100. Maybe should stretch every three years.

How about blinker fluid? Hate it when my blinkers run dry and stop working. 😆

Flats are a total PITA to fix at the road side, so I'd change tires early to avoid it assuming I haven't gone for a reinforced tire or tubeless.

I'd certainly be willing to have the bike serviced more in the warm and to a schedule) than deal with any breakdowns whilst I'm out, because they never happen anywhere convenient...

Although on the fence with tubeless, the daily pressure addition and topping up the sealant is a PITA but probably worth not getting a flat every 3-4,000 miles with clincher and latex combo.

The initial cleaning and chain waxing is worth the effort, less maintenance in the future and no Fred marks.

eTap requires battery charging about once per 1000km, worth no cables breaking, zero derailleur adjustments, and never missing a shift.

:wtf: :lol:

Of all the little things I do to maintain my bikes its the chains and thier maintenance that make up the most time. They get dirty, I clean them, I lube them. I don't know what could be done for more convenience other then possibly going to belt drives.

WOW! That would be a real project for sure...

Aren't you looking at things backwards? Shouldn't it be less maintenance for the miles ridden? Like anything mechanical, you develop a maintenance schedule and change/adjust things so you reduce the probability of having mechanical problems on the road/trail. Examples are using longer-lasting tires with puncture resistant a tread so you don't have to change them as often, or stainless steel cables for brakes/shifters so corrosion and breaking is reduced. You still have to check them, but actually replacing them is minimized.

I find tubeless tires kind of a pain to set up and maintain, but I have switched to them on most of my bikes because what I hate even more is getting flats during a ride. I do more work on my own terms (I choose the time and location for the work) to prevent surprises while out in the thorny wasteland.

So far I haven't just randomly broken any shifter cables, so they aren't the top of my thoughts of preventative maintenance.

I do like my Gator Hardshells. They get some of the best mileage and durability of different types of tires I've tried.

It's the misconception that shift cables should last X amount of miles no matter the design, when in reality, they last Y miles (less) for certain modern designs. The offset for having the modern style is the integration for sharing the brakes with shifting. I personally, just plan ahead to change the shift cables on an interval that has thus far worked to my convenience.

If you could have bought tires that were more robust, less rolling resistant, more supple & retained the tubes at the price of giving up mileage (say 35% less than normal tread wear life) would you have still went tubeless?

Yes, I would take that compromise.

Sounds like a project for the Six Sigma experts to develop a DMAIC for road, touring, gravel and MTB maintenance schedules.

Nothing. I would actually prefer to give up a bit of speed or add a bit of weight to be able to have less maintenance. I hate even having to air up or oil my chain.