My monster LBS dug around in back and gave me one for free while subtly sneering under their breath. Unfortunately, my wheels were French, so it didn't fit.

Same thing with auto's and airbags. They really aren't need, although they do make surviving a crash better, but they're put there for sense of mind. Instead of giving someone something to fall back on, ie the DD or Air bag make the person a better driver or in this case, know your bike like the back of your hand. It's just another one of those things that lull you into a false sense of security instead of checking your rd when you think there might a problem you think, 'Oh that's what the disc if for'.

I think you underestimate airbags...

In my last & most infamous crash, the chain jumped off in back and jammed between the rear sprocket & the frame at speed under load. I cannot imagine what would have transpired if it was a cassette drive & the chain went the other direction. If i ever do get a cassette drive bike, it will have a "dork disc".

I may just get one for the front wheel, for symmetry...

- Andy

Mhm. Nasty crash happemed pretty much right in front of me while i was riding. Few teen girls were driving proper & a pair of teen guys in another vehicle pulled out & the first group went into a ditch at 30 mph. I went down in the ditch to see if anyone else was in the vehicle, but they all got out on their own before that. The airbags were deployed. That truck was totaled, the girls walked away. It was a pretty nasty scene, but all 5 of them were ok and the worst of it was some nervous crying once one of their moms came on the scene. I asked them the standard first responder questions, asked what day it was, etc.

Long story short, airbags are not there solely for peace of mind. They save lives.

Not to go too far off topic, but i sincerely would have not survived a crash in 2010 if i had not had my helmet on, then few months ago my last helmet saved me from probable fractures to my face & busted teeth & concussion (as well as horrible road rash).

I am not one to gamble with my own well being, or that of my beloved bike.

- Andy

You'll never need one...

Just make sure you never bump your derailleur while riding, never get debris like a twig hung up in your chain, never ever let your cables stretch at all and never hit anything out of square with your rear wheel. Other than that, yeah, you'll never need one.

...a properly adjusted bla bla bla...

What a bunch of pompous nonsense.

If you wrench your own bike, you know the shiftgear needs to be adjusted from time to time. What, pray tell, causes it to become out of adjustment? Does this magically happen when my bike is sitting still between rides, or does it happen while it's being ridden? If these minor adjustments come from some mysterious something that happens during a ride, who re-adjusts the screws en-route so the bike stays properly adjusted for the rest of the ride?

Sometimes, I come here just to read how dumb the advice from supposedly intelligent people can actually be.



HA! Actually, I agree with these guys. You'll never need it. Don't replace it. While you're at it, remove the front brake & reflectors, too. Heck, throw away your helmet. A good rider doesn't need them anyhow.

Twice properly-adjusted rear derailleurs have gotten into the spokes of my rear wheel. That's in 40 years of riding bicycles with gears, so it isn't often. The first time happened when I was riding on a dirt road with a lot of loose stuff and picked up a branch, the second time when I took my bicycle out of a hitching post - apparently a neighbor had hit the derailleur, bending it into the spokes. I've bent the hanger, broken spokes, destroyed derailleurs. I have bought replacements at Niagara Cycle and e Bike Stop

In my other hobby I fly hang gliders,
people are always amazed when they learn
I fly with a parachute. They always ask,

"Do you ever use your chute?"

"Yes, every damn time I fly"

It's no different from a seatbelt or a helmet.


Recently on a two day two hundred mile road trip,
I started to have trouble shifting to low gear,
because I don't have the protector, I lost a lot of time
trying to adjust the derailleur a little at time, with a
Swiss Army knife, because a catastrophic failure,
would of really screwed me over.

Uh oh, I guess we're still in Zombi Thread mode???

A disc came stock on the 1999 Lemond Zurich that retailed for about $2000.

If it were not there you would be looking at replacing 1 in 4 spokes. all of the head-in ones on the right side.