Posts Tagged ‘bike parts’

After reading the title, you’re probably saying to yourself, “I can easily find new, quality bike parts.”   I say, “You’re probably buying new parts that are branded with a name you associate with quality.”

New bikes or bike parts are much like any product sold around the world today.  Much of what we buy is designed and built to be used lightly and temporarily and then discarded.  It’s good for consumerism.  We buy, discard, buy, discard, buy, discard…  However, if you happen to me like me, you strive to get the most out of almost everything you buy.  But even the most durable goods (high quality) wear out with time and use.  Again, if you’re like me, you try to replace parts of worn out goods.  If irreparable, I immediately begin lamenting buying a replacement.

One definition I have of quality is something that functions correctly for its intended purpose and last longer or much longer than I expected.  Especially with bike parts, I tend to have a pre-conceived notion of how long something will last based on what type of part, its design and who made it.  Usually, my notion about the quality of the part matches the part’s longevity.  Usually that’s enough for me to buy the part again or repair it.

The problem is, if I’ve used the part more than six months (likely, if it has good quality), the part is no longer available from the manufacturer.  It’s been replaced by a new model which features numerous design changes, many of which may affect quality.  Or the part has been obsolete.  Or you can’t buy repair parts because the newest design uses new components and the manufacturer doesn’t carry the replacement parts anymore.

To illustrate my point here a couple of examples:

Lowe Alpine Contour Mountain 50 (See Review here):  After 11 years of use, it’s still going strong.  I tried looking at the selection of backpacks Lowe Alpine has now to see if there is an equivalent but nothing looks even remotely close to what I have.  I’m sure their new product line is not manufactured in the same location or made from the same materials.  How do I know my next LA pack will have the same quality?

White Industries Hubs (See Review here):  These hubs have worked well over a long time.  When I contacted WI, they were able to tell me what parts I should service and had all of the parts available.