rmfnla

You did; that's what the means; I was agreeing with you...

kickstart

That sounds exactly like a shift cable issue.

kickstart

The standard Nexus 8 simply says Nexus on it, the Premium Nexus 8 has a red stripe, the Allfine is labeled as such and takes a disc brake, the premium and Allfine are mechanically identical.
I have both the standard, and premium Nexus 8. The premium shifts noticeably better under load, and has less drag in the lower gears at higher loads.

Standard,

Premium
Allfine

nfmisso

Yes !!!

My Trek 720 commuter (finished build two weeks ago) has an XLC trekking bar, and MKS Lambda pedals - great combination. I find that I have at least six distinct hand positions on the trekking bar:
1. upright narrow.
2. upright wide.
3. outside back.
4. outside middle
5. outside front corner.
6. front crouched.
It did take a bit of tweaking to get the bars comfortable for me; I dropped the stem 30mm from my first position, then tilted the front of the bars down about 15mm, which resulted in the back section being at the original height, and the front much lower.

I have dual brake levers on the trekking bar, so that I can brake from the front or the back - use two sets of Tektro RL720 cross levers or similar. Use a road style brake cable (pear shaped end), the levers on back side terminate the cable.

I am currently set up with friction lever shifters, planning on changing the rear to trigger.

TransitBiker

I'm not putting a new hub on the breezer. I can't change the crank length due to torque input limits on the n360. I'm thinking of getting a trekking bike with road drivetrain and disc brakes, minimal but still able to hold fenders.

- Andy

GovernorSilver

Based on what's been said on this thread, I don't blame you for not seeing any incentive in replacing your N360 with a new hub. The N380, while looking like a nice big upgrade from my non-premium Nexus 8, would give you only 0.1 improvement in overdrive. Alfine 11 is a stinker.

TransitBiker

My thought is this: if i ever get a trike/something to pull the kids with in a trailer, I'd get the N380.

My watts of input at pedal are going to be far more with a belt & gear hub or cassette vs the N360.

Gear hubs can be a PITA. I need a chain case & probably 2x7 cassette plus grippy pegged low profile light weight pedals hooked to longer cranks and a frame meant to be used on higher speed distance cruises. The Fuji touring looks like what I want.. For everything else I can save up for a beltway elite & have my 3 blades in the Swiss army bike roster.

- Andy

TransitBiker

I just found that ASI has refreshed their 3 flagship brands (SE, Fuji, Breezer). The touring is no longer available. Also, the tripel no longer has a coaster brake, which means I'd have to lay out money for a new 3 speed coaster hub + cost of installation.

This means a few things:

1. tripel is now low priority but still a long term consideration once funds for bike + hub are obtained.
2. No more fuji touring, which means i need to keep an eye out for a similar offering from ASI.
3 this is new Fuji Bikes | LIFESTYLE | NICHIBEI COLLECTION | SAGRES and may be something i get instead of some totally dedicated road thing, though the frame may be too small
4. i need to take a look over everything and see what my options are and the price points.

- Andy

TransitBiker

Well, i FOUND the fuji toruing, it was moved!

Fuji Bikes | LIFESTYLE | CROSS TERRAIN | TOURING

I would like discs, but not sure if the fork would work with such.... i'm just so done with rim brakes. More trouble than they are worth.

- Andy

GovernorSilver

Funny how things change between end of October (the last time I posted on this thread) and end of December. Instead of replacing the IGH on my Breezer, I instead went and bought a new adventure road bike.

Still keeping my Breezer for shopping duty and after-work activity duty (well, any scenario which calls for my bike to be locked outside for more than 10 min.).

Looks like you're going N+1 too, haha (+1 being some sort of road bike, touring or not).

Sullalto

Well you CAN, just not a meaningful amount for a commute. Aero wheels, frame, tight kit/skinsuit, low crr tires. Getting your cabling neatly and minimally done. But finishing in 55 minutes instead of 60 while commuting just isn't that big a deal to me. (especially when it'll take you 5 minutes longer to get out of the door and into then into work attire on arrival).


E-bikes will help even more and are probably cheaper than going the aero route.

But if I'm spending that sort of money on transportation, I might as well just buy a large cc scooter or used ~250cc motorcycle.

gregjones

I've always thought that the Fuji Touring bike is one of the best values in that style of bike. I am now using a 48/36/26 crankset with an 8sp 13-34 cassette. The same that the Fuji uses except the top end. I like it a lot. I have 9sp bar ends that I'm running friction with the 8sp in anticipation of just getting the 11-34 9sp cassette. I like the set-up enough that I've quit looking at other gearing options.

The Fui front fork will not work with disc brakes. You're on your own there....I don't particularly want them.

GovernorSilver

In my case, buying the road bike was more about buying a fun riding experience than "buying speed". I do a decent enough job of scheduling my commute rides so that I get to work at a reasonable time - so getting there "faster" was irrelevant to me.

I still enjoy riding my utility bike too, but the handling and all that is different.

spivonious

@TransitBiker - I was in the same boat as you this Summer. I ended up getting a Bianchi Volpe Disc. Increased my average speed from 12mph to 16mph and it's much more fun to ride than my Trek Allant. Drop bars make a huge difference on windy days, and the disc brakes are fantastic in the wet.

TransitBiker

Yeah, it's likely the one i'll end up with, i even like the color!

Yeah, i think what some are missing is the 8 lbs less bike weight and 15% increase in drivetrain efficiency. I mean, the N360 + crank/chainring layout TOPS OUT at 22 mph with practical pedaling speeds on flat. I can get to 25, but the tires have more to do with it at that point. On my old road bike i could probably get to 30 mph without trouble if my muscles had been developed as they are now.

- Andy

AlTheKiller

in what way are rim brakes more trouble than they are worth for you? Just curious. I like disks and think they are great in many respects, but I know their performance advantage is usually much overstated. I think that Fuji looks pretty great for what you are asking for. I definitely dig ditching the gear hub type city bike, beyond that it's a pretty big world full of stuff. And us cyclists that overthink everything and spend our nights talking about minor upgrades online will usually never be fully content, always looking for something that next step better or different.

Surly's Disc Trucker might be worth looking at. Not sure price comparisons and such, but they're fine bikes.
Disc Trucker | Bikes | Surly Bikes

I dig them as a company, and their frames will usually fit fatter tires than many big brand bikes that are comparable, which is always a plus for me.

baldilocks

Could you post a photo?

nfmisso

Sorry for the late response. I used an Origin 8 reverse aero lever as the primary lever - which was a mistake due to the mechanical advantage difference between it and the RL720. Using two set of RL720s would have been better.

baldilocks

No worries. That looks like an awesome set up. Thanks for the photos.

AdvXtrm

Thanks for sharing the great pics. I'm getting more seriously into biking for the first time right now, so I'm pretty new it. I think that setup you have is pretty much what I want. I have no experience working on bicycles, but I have a lot of mechanical experience otherwise. I've got a few books on bicycle maintenance that look pretty good and should help me through it. I just bought my first bike for touring, and of course this will be my first build/customization of a bike. The bars on my bike feel strange and I don't think they're going to work out for me, but I think those trekking bars with the dual brake-lever setup will be perfect.