Is the Shimano N80 worth it over the N72?

That_Bloke_Just_Off_The_A
That_Bloke_Just_Off_The_A Posts: 48
edited July 2011 in Commuting general
I do not have the fincances to pay for a schmidt hub unfortunatly, so I was looking at the N72 hub and the N80 hub. In paying the extra £20 or so for the N80 hub am I only paying for the fact that it is lighter, it will probably have better bearings and as such less rolling resistance by compaison to the n72, but is it really going to be that noticable on a 10 mile commute?

Comments

  • optimisticbiker
    optimisticbiker Posts: 1,657
    in a word... "probably not"






    (ok, thats two words)

    let me qualify that:

    The things that affect a commute is what you carry and what you wear... 80% of your effort goes into overcoming air resistance and pushing your weight uphill... the rolling resistance of the hubs is a couple of orders of magnitude below that... better tyres would have a more material impact but thats still an order of magnitude below air resistance. Improving your own power to weight ratio, wearing less baggy clothing and being more aero will have a bigger impact overall...
    Invacare Spectra Plus electric wheelchair, max speed 4mph :cry:
  • Interestedcp
    Interestedcp Posts: 48
    That_Bloke_Just_Off_The_A wrote:
    I do not have the fincances to pay for a schmidt hub unfortunatly, so I was looking at the N72 hub and the N80 hub. In paying the extra £20 or so for the N80 hub am I only paying for the fact that it is lighter, it will probably have better bearings and as such less rolling resistance by compaison to the n72, but is it really going to be that noticable on a 10 mile commute?

    They are electrical identically, since they use the same rotor and magnets. The cup-and cone bearings are also ground with the same method to the same standards.

    The only measurable difference between these two models are the weight. The N80 has a lighter hub shell and uses a aluminium axle instead of steel. So the N72 is somewhat heavier, but also sturdier in design.

    Since the rolling resistance is identical for both models, I don't think the minuscule weight difference can result in any measurable speed difference on a 20 mile round trip commute.

    --
    Regards

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