On May 31, 9:46 am, Jim Thill - Hiawatha Cyclery <[email protected]> wrote: > With all due respect, Jan, that is a highly dubious assertion that 105 > cranks will cost less per mile than Ultegra cranks.
Sorry I wasn't clear - I was NOT referring to the cranks in particular, but the 105 components in general. It appears that especially the lower-grade brake-shift-levers wear out with alarming frequency. Hub bearings are another issue where extra money spent usually is well-spent. I agree with you that more money doesn't always buy you better quality, but in the bicycle world, the correlation still holds to a large degree. Better designs, better bearings, better seals, higher- grade materials all bring more longevity. Just as an example, after having gone through two sets of Shimano PD- A520 pedals in four years, I hope that the new "Ultegra-level" PD-A600 pedals will last a lot longer, and be less expensive per mile, not counting the aggravation of having to replace parts on my bike. It is true, however, that for many parts, extra money doesn't buy you better performance or durability. Just to quote a simple example, inexpensive seatposts may be ugly, but most work just fine. I also suspect that 105 brakes will stop as well as more expensive ones (assuming they use similar pads), and last as long. And of course, the ultimate in bargain basement parts, the old Mafac Racers, in fact are great brakes, especially if you equip them with modern pads. Jan Heine Editor Bicycle Quarterly http://www.bikequarterly.com Follow our blog at http://janheine.wordpress.com/ -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
