Originally Posted by mihlbach
Achieving drivetrain silence is not always as simple as choosing the right components and/or achieving a perfect chainline. I've had junky drivetrains with messed up chainlines that were dead silent, and I've had other drivetrains with perfect chainline made up of quality track parts that were noisy as hell.
In my experience different brand name cogs and chains don't effect the drivetrain noise much. It has more to do with the amount and type of lube, chain tension, and the state of wear of the various components. You can always expect your drivetrain to make some noise and there are a lot of variables that will effect how effectively that noise is transmitted. For example, switching to a deeper aluminum rim on my track bike increased the apparent noise of my drivetrain pretty dramatically. I've given up trying to make it silent. I keep it clean, replace worn parts, and maintain a good chainline, and I've have learned to not worry about the noise.
Nice discussion.
Thanks.
I agree with everything mihlbach has written, and I'd like to add that in the past chainline has had a bearing on my drivetrain noise.
I think getting a Phil bottom bracket and having the ability to move the crankset a little more to the right made the biggest single difference in drivetrain noise.
I also discovered a blue liquid lube (I don't have the energy to go out in the garage and check the name) that seriously quieted down the drivetrain.
I really can't say why a quiet bike gives me so much satisfaction, but it does.
Funny: some guys want to go fast; some guys want to go fashionably; and I want to go minimally, precisely, safely and quietly (with a segmented fork).
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Deer don't seem able to recognize a person on a bicycle as a person on a bicycle, and so, if a person has a quiet enough bike, he or she can ride right into the middle of a family of deer without alarming them.
Not that I want to sneak up on deer...