have you seen this bike?

hedoe

okay its been a while since ive been on here.....
a long time actually
but i was watching late night tv
and i seen this bike that has an automatic shifer
its the rear deraileur that automaticly shifts for you
it uses 2 fly weights in the back
if they spin to fast they will pull appart and shift you into a new gear
and if they are going to slow they will come together and shift you into a lower gear
kinda insteresting i think
the bike looks ugly
but the auto shifer is kinda cool
here is a link
http://www.healthandbeautydirect.com/landrider/
i dont know if this is the right place for this thread
if not sorry
but IMHO its not a real mountian bike

kdelong

I had a freind who had one of these and it was basically a piece of crap. It was extremely heavy (29 Lbs?) and the auto shift mechanism took all control away from the rider. If you pedalled slow, it shifted you into a lower gear. If you pedalled fast, it shifted you to a higher gear. You could not work on your cadence or ride intervals because of the automatic shifting. Actually I don't know of any MTB rider who would give this a second look as you need to be in complete control of your shifting when riding on a trail. I think that this is aimed at novices who don't know any better, not experienced riders. IMHO, the price on it is pretty high for what you are getting. You could get a good entry level bike that would be much lighter for $700.00.

__________________
One life, one chance. Don't waste it!

garage sale GT

The last thing you need to worry about on a modern bike is shifting. On most mtbs you just push a lever till it clicks and it changes one gear up or down. The shifters are right by your hand. You don't have to release the bar and fiddle with a paddle shifter until you find just the right spot.

Getting a bike at a shop will ensure proper fit which will be worth way more in comfort vs the Landrider.

__________________
Your mouthwash ain't makin' it.

hedoe

i know it looks interesting
at least it was a good idea
i never said that i wanted one
it would be like driving an automatic car vs a manual
now that i had a manual car
and went back to an automatic
i want a manual back

garage sale GT

I forgot to say, I think those things used to move for $169. If I had $399 to spend on a bike, it wouldn't be that thing.

I did get something a bit silly once, just to try something different. It was the Cadillac AV-8 from Amazon. It's got a "nearly automatic" 8-speed gearhub and drum brakes. I wanted to put the stuff on a mountain frame but changed my mind. However, at least the components were worth the $299.

__________________
Your mouthwash ain't makin' it.

TheDarkLord

So, did you try it out on some bike? How did it work, and what is your opinion of that product?

garage sale GT

I used the bike as-is for a time. It worked great but the shifter cable has to be kept well adjusted.

I bought the cheapest mtb frame ($30) and chain tensioner and couldn't make a go of getting everything to work together properly. I cracked the special antirotator washer trying to keep it from rotating, too.

I had some second thoughts about using it for a rigid frame mtb because the sealed bearings in the front drum brake hub were so small.

Also, the rear hub had dust shields but not rubber seals. I am sure it would keep out grit and rainwater but getting it into the mud might be a problem.

If you bought a "proper" singlespeed frame for it, you'd still have to find a way to attach the front brake reaction arm to the fork. If it's a solid fork, it might twist from the force and cause the bike to steer a bit on sudden stops.

__________________
Your mouthwash ain't makin' it.

Thinkly

If you are too lazy or too inept to shift an indexed modern bicycle than you probably shouldn't bother riding one.

__________________
American Idiot.

TheDarkLord

That flame was uncalled for. He said that he tried out something, and posted his experience about using the product. Chill out dude!