Originally Posted by
CompleteStreets
So, by "those can be had," you mean "those cannot be had." Big, big difference between a chain guard and a fully enclosed chain case. The derailleur bike needs to be revolutionized, or perhaps scrapped in favor of a brand new design. IGH bikes are great but they are heavy and don't operate as well on uphill stretches as derailleur bikes. Maybe one day there will be a bike that has the best of both worlds (great on hills and zero maintenance with no need to roll up pant leg).
Pretty much. They may be better in person than they look, and certainly better than the one I tried to make, but I can't see slapping a chain case on my road bike. It's a big plus for the internal gear bikes in my opinion. My own issue with internal gear bikes are one, price and two, the extra drag. Not so much the weight of the IG mechanism, although the bikes they come on tend to be heavy. I'll stick with my gears and derailleurs at least for now, and this SS/FG of course.