@ John, good first post! I agree with you on the Nexus (you were talking about the Nexus Hub Gears right...?) i get the very strong feeling (from what LBS and other users say) is that they are meant to have build in obsolesence and that they are meant to force you to buy expensive 'units' rather than little parts, plus they are suppossed to be a cranky b**ch to work on. So i say to hell with those hubs, i will take the extra weight of a cheap Sturmey Archer any day and laugh all the way for the next 30 years that it will probably last me.