Originally Posted by Barabaika
Why do you add every time that Bohh wants off-roading? He told about 90% commuting, 9% - paved trails. OK, maybe 1% or 0% (never) - off-roading.
Must have missed the post where he quantified his riding needs like that. Could you provide a quote?
Originally Posted by Barabaika
People select mountain bikes as commuters because the nearest LBSs don't have commuting bikes.
What do "real mountain" bikes have that "relatively good mountain" bikes don't? I'll tell you: expensive suspensions and high-end groups. They are not important for commuters.
"Real mountain bikes" have lighter weight, stronger frames, lighter weight components and, yes, suspensions that have lockouts on the shock so that you can ride them on flat paths and still ride them off-road.
Originally Posted by Barabaika
I suspect that most children and many women don't know how and why change gears in the derailleur bikes. The easier to change the gears the better.
You might want to be careful what you say. I'm sure there are lots of women around here who might take offense. My daughters and wife certainly would. My oldest daughter has be riding multigeared bikes since she was 10 and she's 21 now. She's even done a loaded selfcontained tour along the Columbia River. She even knows how to change her own flats.
Originally Posted by Barabaika
I liked the coaster brake when I rode in the childhood, it was very intuitive. I didn't understand why more expensive bikes didn't have it.
Because it's an ineffectual and rather non-intuitive brake. Teach a child how to ride a coaster equipped bike and eventually they are going to run into something with it because they don't understand how it works. Give them a bike with hand brakes and they will get it immediately.
Originally Posted by Barabaika
When you commute in the hills, you don't accelerate in the streets going downhill (it's too dangerous), you brake to slow down. So you don't need high-speed gears, and you can adjust the chainring and cog for slower gearing. They don't require ramps and pins, so they're cheap.
Sorry. That's just not true. I live in a hilly city. Every hill I go down as fast as I possibly can. I've been doing it that way for 30 years. I don't creep down hills and I seldom see anyone with any experience riding a bike doing the same.
Originally Posted by Barabaika
If you don't like Milano, there are other commuting bikes that have all equipment installed, they are more expensive. But you still get Shimano Nexus 8-speed, which is $150 + $40 for the shifter.
It comes down to personal choice. I don't like 'commuter' bikes. They have too much stuff that I don't want, don't need and wouldn't use on them. I don't see the Nexus system as a big step up from derailer systems. It doesn't have the range nor the weight that I want on a bike. Let's face it, if it were so superior, it'd be on the majority of bikes. Hint: it isn't.