Tool-free fittings - why?

notnot
notnot Posts: 284
edited October 2012 in Road general
Just spent half an hour fighting to get a Cat Eye rear light fitted. It comes with one of these tool-free fittings where you have to pull a band until it tightens (or not). I ended up having to tug the thing with a pair of pliers to get it not-quite-tight-enough. I had similar problems with a Kryptonite bracket.

Why do companies do this? I know you need a screwdriver to tighten a fitting that uses a screw to adjust, but is there really a big market of people who would prefer to spend time fighting with crappy fittings (and presumably either have pliers to use for this or a really strong grip) rather than buy a cheap screwdriver? Or is this a cost-saving for companies?

Comments

  • declan1
    declan1 Posts: 2,470
    I actually find my rear light fitting (same as yours) really easy to use. I suppose my bike has very narrow tubes so it's easy to fit.

    Road - Dolan Preffisio
    MTB - On-One Inbred

    I have no idea what's going on here.
  • notnot
    notnot Posts: 284
    declan1 wrote:
    I actually find my rear light fitting (same as yours) really easy to use. I suppose my bike has very narrow tubes so it's easy to fit.

    ah - my seatpost is chunky-ish compared to some, I guess. Also, though, it seems that one 'click' is a bit loose and the next one on is too tight for me to pull the strap to :(

    Glad it works on your bike, anyway :) Though a screw-adjusted fitting would have worked on both bikes...
  • nweststeyn
    nweststeyn Posts: 1,574
    We should all have a screwdriver, I agree with the OP.

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