Pro Bike Mechanic's 10 Most Hated Products

The following companies (that you'll see in my content) support me either financially or with free stuff, so huge thanks to these guys for helping the channel thrive:
Attacus Cycling,
SCOTT,
MET Helmets,
Shimano,
fidlock,
Hutchinson Tyres
Sungod
Tailfin
GT85
Garmin
Parcours Wheels

#cycling #bikes #bicycle

[hananas]

Yup agree with most of this, except the no cables bit. I'd rather turn a barrel adjuster once every now and then than charge batteries which degrade over time and are expensive and proprietary to replace.

[beauhart]

Been a pro mechanic for nearly 20 years myself. If you can’t set up a front derailleur that works for more than six weeks you need to find another job. The front derailleur on my personal gravel bike worked great for four years with no adjustment and it was the worn out chainring that ruined the shifting. Thousands of miles and no issues.

[akrotiri]

" Don't fall for the marketing "

" Ditch the front derailleur "

[donnashorten]

I have a lefty fork bike, when you puncture you don’t have to take the wheel off at the front as it’s fully open with having an open fork, thus full access.😊

[aftengdur]

Team front mech. Seems to be more versatile when you constantly switch between smooth tarmac roads, gravel roads and woods in one ride.

[RichCabezaCalamari]

Just converted my new Specialized Crux from 1x to a 2x. SRAM Force Etap, 46/33 front ring, 10/36 12sp cassette, love it! Using the bike as an endurance road bike, the new gearing is low enough for our 14% stingers, and I can now keep up with the fast roadies downhill. And, smaller tooth jumps between cogs.

Night and day difference, not going back to the mullet.

[crawdaddy]

Muc-off lube: I use it without any issues of getting it off, however there’s a trick, if it’s one of the ceramic series lubes, just use soap and water. Degreaser doesn’t do a thing but dawn dish soap and warm water and it comes right off.

[steve]

Aside from any debate regarding front mechs, this is for the most part great advice from someone who clearly has a lot of first-hand experience. Much appreciated. Many thanks.

[DoNuT_]

I don't get the hate for front mechs. They are easy to adjust, they don't break and I don't want a 50-tooth cassette so that I can get up a steep hill. The only problem I ever had with my front mech actually was a slipping barrel adjuster - all it needs are a few twists and it is good enough. You shift 100 times more on the rear derailleur and these are a pain to adjust: with wearing cables, chains and other factors, you effectively have a window 45 kilometers per year where it really shifts flawlessly,

[alexguiver]

I love front mechs, allows you to ride a 26" wheel MTB everywhere. 3 x 8 running 22/32/44 and 11/32 gives everything from 40mph downhill on road tyres during winter fitness rides to sub-walking pace climbs on the trails. I can usually make them last a year or two and they come with a sticker on the cage which you just line up with the teeth on the largest chainring during installation. Subscribed though as I agree with everything else in this vid

[mrxua]

I not only have a front mech on all my bikes, but actually a tripple. One-by has it's use but it has it's limitations as well

[dperreno]

What a fun video! I really enjoyed it!

I'm going to disagree about the gear cables for just one reason - COST. Wireless setups are great - I have SRAM AXS on my new Trek - but it was EXPENSIVE! Even the newest "entry level" wireless setups are still 2x-3x the cost of a traditional entry level cable groupset. If the cost continues to fall in the next 5-10 years and the cost difference goes away or becomes negligible, then sure, it's the way to go.

Yeah, I'm also keeping my front mech for now because my 62 year old butt needs those super low gears on my road bike.

[daredemontriple]

I live in Bristol and I weigh 116kg - having a 52/36 instead of a single 46 or something has meant that I can really put the power on when I want to go fast and enjoy having a bike as nice as I do, but I can also actually slug it up the massive hills without dying half way up. I'm not exactly unfit but I am no pro - so I like having those really low ratios on hand when I need them, while still having the capability to sprint at full tilt every now and then even if only for 20 seconds :D

Obviously it is another thing that can go wrong - but you have to ask questions about the way you take care of (or don't as the case may be) your bike if mech cables corroding is that serious of an issue. It's not exactly hard to make sure your bike is put away dry and kept dry while it is put away - at least I've never had any corrosion issues

[RelakS__]

I have a 3x9 bike. The other day I calctulated a bit and it turned out that this setup is about equivalent to a 1x14 because of the many similar/identical gear ratios.
I think that a 2x12 is still have a place on the bikes. If you chose a cassette with less jumps between cogs, with a crankset where the small chainring is like 60% of the big chainring, you could have a "road" and a "terrain" set of speeds.

[RUSSDsPhotography]

I will stick with 2X up front, for now. I like the wider range available if I go to the hills. Good info throughout the video, I appreciate y'alls efforts.

[andyhodge]

I've been using Conti gatorskin tyres for over 5 years in all weather conditions and I have never ever had a problem with grip, and I ride twisty hilly roads in South Devon . Also on the rare occasion when I do get a puncture, again absolutely no problem getting tyre on or off, I'm a big fan of these tyres .

[valmorell]

At 74 years of age, and having built and maintained my many many bikes thru my whole lifetime I totally concur with every word in this video.

[RB-xvsi]

Unwarranted criticism of Speedplays. If you use 4-hole bolt pattern shoes, you don’t need the heavy cleat adapters and the system ends up being one of the lightest. Also, they’re easily user serviceable and last forever. Haven’t had any issues with cleats. The problem is most users don’t follow Speedplay’s instructions, which are to lubricate the cleats every other ride. If you do that, you’ll be fine.

[billhulley]

Gradually ramping up the outrage, I was with Nic all the way up to front mechs 🤣
Definitely agree about Hunt wheels though. No end of problems with bearings, pulled and replaced with better quality ones but still wheel side bearing in the freehub repeatedly fell apart over winter. Looks like a preload tolerance thing.

[DomRorke]

Feel the need to come to Hunt's defence here. I'm 77Kg and have multiple alloy and carbon Hunt wheels which I've ridden the hell out of both on the MTB (Trail Wides), racing CX (Carbon 30 tubulars), on gravel (4-Seasons), and on the road (Aerodynamasist Alloy), and apart from the V1 trailwide rims being a bit too easy to dent (nolonger an issue with the v2's), all these wheels have been faultless, and customer support and all communications with Hunt have been really positive. Love em!