Winfried

Hello

I've been riding a six-speed Brompton for a few weeks now, and am hooked on its IGH for riding in the city.

So I'm thinking of getting a standard bike with an Alfine 11 IGH for commuting, but also full-day touring, possibly in hilly areas. I'd also like to move to disk brakes for stronger action when riding in the rain.

Before I order one of those bikes from Bikester ("Europe's No.1 Online Bike Retailer"), I'd like your opinion:

• Cube Editor; Looks more sporty
• Serious Intention Alfine
• Serious Gates; Belt instead of chain; More relaxed

Unfortunately, Bikester isn't available in the UK, so couldn't give URLs in English

Thanks for any feedback.

TransitBiker

That middle one looks like a good pick. If you have the money, go for the belt drive model, though.

- Andy

Winfried

Thanks, that's what I had in mind.

What about performance when riding a whole day, including steep hills?

gregjones

If you have some killer hills on your commute the 2.5 steps towards the low end of the gearing ranged afforded by the 11sp vs the 8sp hub might justify the $400 extra dollars in expense. Otherwise, I could live with eight speeds.

fietsbob

Its been done , seen a few riding tours on them , and a couple Swedes who had started from Anchorage AK , came thru town , down the coast

last fall, mid November, on 8 speeds .. were heading home , from Miami Fla.

tds101 

I personally can do an 8 speed. An 11 speed is a nice bonus if the $$$ is there. I'd say get the best spec'd bike you can afford that you really LIKE!

As for getting a belt drive, it's a personal decision IMO. I prefer a chain myself. Easier to replace, and easily purchased from any bicycle shoppe. It can be a bit messy (vs a carbon belt), but I use a leg cuff to keep my pants clean during the colder weather.

PS: there's nothing wrong with an external geared bike. The second bike you posted looks more like something I'd personally enjoy. I'm considering a Fuji 21+ speed soon. No internal gearing. I'll just need to clean it up more often.

dynaryder

Also note,there's more or a difference between the 8 and 11 than just the number of speeds. 11spd shifts like a derailleur bike(trigger upshifts,lever downshifts) and runs an oil bath vs grease.

Winfried

Thanks for the info.

Looks like I'll go for the one with the Gates belt drive. Alfine 11, disk brakes, belt drive: Three new toys to try :-)

Just have to find some nice-looking fenders to go with it.

ksisler

Winfried; I like the look of the Serious Gates bike. Would seem to be a great commuter, trekker, and really decent for touring. As it is natively built for IGH, that avoids the conversion costs (and left over parts). If you like the disks and the belt drive, that would be a plus also, although for me that is neither a plus or a minus (don't care about those issues). Price look decent also assuming you can find a way to get it bought and to the UK for you.
/K

Winfried

Bikester is actually a German company, and bikes ship with free delivery.

€1K/$1,3K looks like a good price for that kind of hardware.