Originally Posted by
H.S.Clydesdale
The wheel is a pain to get off. I dread doing it. But not because of the hub or cable routing, that is a snap. I dread taking the wheel off because the lock nuts strip like crazy due to the notched thread on the axle and the fact that you have to get them on VERY tight to avoid slipping (in horizontal dropouts).
that is only true for some IGH set-ups. my alfine 8 bike has vertical drop-outs and the lock nuts are very easy to get on and off and they haven't stripped in the slightest in about a half-dozen wheel removals over the past 2 years.
perhaps you would be well served getting a closed 15mm wrench, it's near impossible to strip a new nut with such a wrench. i have one like the image below and it works like a charm.
Originally Posted by
H.S.Clydesdale
Also, you need to get a J-tek shifter for any Shimano hubs. The stock shimano shifters suck as they are marketed to the casual rider, and not built for serious use.
the shimano trigger shifter that came with my alfine 8 bike has held up just fine over ~6,000 miles of daily commuting over the past two years and shows no signs of quitting on me anytime soon. but perhaps 6,000 miles of daily urban bike commuting (LOTS of gear changing for all the stop lights) is not serious enough for you?