How long do your components last?

rhodrich

Currently, I'm alternating between 2 bikes for my commute. I use the '1974 Pete Luxton Path/Track' bike when the roads are fairly dry, and when its not forecast to rain, and the '1956 Carlton Flyer' in the wet.

This means that the Carlton Flyer only ever sees mucky weather. I replaced the chain on it at the weekend, as my chain checker said that it was nearing the wear limit, but now with the new chain, the cog is making a growling sound when I put the power down - it looks like the cog is worn out. Whilst fettling, I noticed play in both the wheel bearings. Then I noticed that all the brake pads need replacing. Then I noticed that the front wheel rim is becoming alarmingly concave. Finally, I couldn't help but notice that with the bike on the stand, the steering self centres, as the headset is indexed and worn out.

So basically, the cog, wheels, brakes and headset are all toast. Bottom bracket is OK, as I replaced that last winter. The tyres are fine too, surprisingly.

I only seem to have got about 8000 miles out of the wheels - should I feel short changed? Can't remember when I fitted the cog, but it only seems to have managed about 3 chains worth. As for the headset, admittedly it came from another bike of mine (the Mercian), but I only removed it from the Mercian as I fancied a shiny chrome one on that - it wasn't worn out, and I gave it a decent clean and greasing before fitting.

How many miles do you get out of your components?

timothyw

I've never had a bike frame get to 8000 miles without breaking it (although I think the Ribble 7005 audax is now close). I don't think I have any wheels that have done that much mileage - I do have a set I retired after about 5000 miles due to corrosion around the spoke holes that were used largely in the wet.

So yeah, you sound like you're doing alright to me.

But then I'm an 18 stone beast with a 1500w sprint.

Stop start commuting is harder work on kit than more casual Sunday riding, and also the bulk of my mileage.

tgotb

Rhodrich wrote:

I only seem to have got about 8000 miles out of the wheels - should I feel short changed??

I don't have detailed records (paging Rower63!) but 8000 miles sounds fairly consistent with my experience (for wheels with rim brakes). Some seem better than others: Shimano C24 rims are like cheese in wet conditions, especially if there's any grit around; Open Pros are fairly average; I once had a set of DT Swiss rims that seemed to go on for ever...

Off topic: I've often been tempted by vintage bikes, but always put off by horrific childhood memories of cotter pins. In my memory they never lasted more than a month or two; are they really that bad, or was it just my ham-fisted teenage fettling? (I used to ride everywhere in the whatever was the 1980s equivalent to 52x11, which may also have been a factor - I thought was fast...)

hopkinb

Rower will give you chapter and verse. He has spreadsheets for this sort of thing i.e. this chain has done 1527 miles, 376 of which were wet.

I've had my current bike for 3 years.

I do 5000 miles per year, mainly commuting. I use 2 chains and 2 cassettes. I put on one chain and cassette in the autumn, leave it on until spring, whereupon I change it. I also change the BB in spring.

I get through 3 to 4 sets of front disc brake pads, and 2 rear per year. Organic. Rotors seem to last a long time, I have only ever worn one out, which just snapped off. I won't be making that mistake again.

I use tyres until they keep puncturing. Fronts last longer than rears.

Chainrings lasted 2 years and were changed earlier this year.

I suppose I should think about replacing cables, but as gear shifting is fine, so I don't see a need.

N0bodyOfTheGoat

Voodoo has done ~4700 miles over ~25 months (since I started on Strava, had it for ~7 months before that covering ~900 miles, after which I changed chain, think it was the Progold Prolink rinsing off quicker than I realised) on current chain and cassette with Muc Off C3 Ceramic Wet lube, changing for new ones this week hopefully. It got a new set of BS01 brake pads ~12months ago, fitted a new front pair last month. All weather commuter, occasional recreational ride since getting Cube in wet weather.

Cube has done ~5400 "hilly" miles over ~18 months, it's seen no more than ~30mins of very light rain and no more than a few hours of damp tarmac. Changed cassette and chain last month, new set of disc pads a few months ago.

I am a serial tyre swapper on both bikes, especially on the Voodoo, that has been equipped with 622-28s to 622-58s plus the 559-100s when I rarely use the fat wheel set these days!

gbsahne001

chains 3000 generally, MTB less
cassettes 6000
last wheelset that died : front wheel 15000, rear 8k (cup-cone, hopefully new one will last longer)
Frames currently CX - 25k, hybrid - 35k, road 12k

all figures in miles

rhodrich

Thanks all - sounds like 8000 miles then is par for the course for a cup and cone wheel (unsealed bearings), used primarily in grotty weather on a commute. I'm currently collecting the parts for a 650b wheelset, so lets see how long they last.

@TGOTB Cotter Pins - old school! Yes, they're rubbish! The only bike I have that uses them is my pre war Tandem, but that gets so little use that they're fine. My brother in law has a 1960's Dawes Red Feather that uses them, and he has no end of problems. Decent quality bottom brackets for them are impossible to get hold of these days too. The main problem is that all the parts for them these days are manufactured in the third world for Rod Braked roadsters which have non existent quality control.

fenix

TimothyW wrote:

I've never had a bike frame get to 8000 miles without breaking it (.

That's a bit worrying. I've not kept records until Strava helped with keeping track of bike mileages but two of my bikes are now nearing 8k. One CF that gets the nice weather and one Alu that gets the winter miles. I'll be sad if either of them fail any time soon.

rower63

OK here's a list of everything I've binned and its mileage since I set up my database. Everything got to the end of its natural life except where I've added the note "early death". I commute fairly hard and it involves lots of braking and gear-changing. Make of it what you will

bottom bracket bearings 1,489 (OEM) crunchy after 300mi
bottom bracket bearings 12,418 (Boca Yellow Seal)
brake blocks front 2,593
brake blocks front 4,913
brake blocks front 5,404
brake blocks rear 1,096
brake blocks rear 1,998
brake blocks rear 2,119
brake blocks rear 3,389
brake blocks rear 4,421
brake cable front 15,259
brake cable rear 3,858
brake cable rear 11,401
brake cablecasing front 15,259
brake cablecasing rear 3,858
brake cablecasing rear 11,438
cassette 1,550 early death
cassette 2,237
cassette 2,435
cassette 2,514
cassette 2,732
cassette 2,776
cassette 2,953
chain 1,271 1st time swapping out after only 5% wear
chain 1,550 early death
chain 1,736
chain 2,237
chain 2,435
chain 2,476
chain 2,732
chain 2,776
chain 2,953
chainring large 7,829
chainring large 8,280
derailleur hanger 12,721 early death
front derailleur 25,073
gear cable front 3,896
gear cable front 5,591
gear cable front 5,697
gear cable rear 6,038
gear cable rear 9,221
gear cablecasing front 16,748
gear cablecasing rear 7,527
gear cablecasing rear 9,221
pedals 15,080
rear derailleur 13,795 early death
tyre front 17,225
tyre rear 795 early death
tyre rear 3,750
tyre rear 6,998
tyre rear 7,251
wheel rear 513 early death
wheel rear 1,410
rear derailleur 1,500 early death
wheel rear 680 early death

FishFish

That's quite some record. I had 'crunchy' mtb BB bearing after 300 miles - it is a BB30 - but am still using it after 2600 miles.

rower63

... and current notable "still-in-service" mileages:

shifter/lever right 36,151
saddle 36,151
brake caliper rear 36,151
brake caliper front 36,151
shifter/lever left 30,927
crankset 18,114
chainring small 18,114
crankset 18,037
headset 16,625
fork/steerer 16,625
front derailleur 11,003
pedals 9,871
wheel rear 9,222
wheel front 9,185
tyre front 7,878
wheel front 5,359

whatleytom

Agreed on C24 rims being made of cheese I had a set only last a year of use which included a few very wet rides. 8,000 miles for a bike used only in the wet sounds like a pretty good run to me though. Maybe scraping pads for grit an alu bits on a regular basis would prolong the life a good bit more for wet only wheels.

rower63

whatleytom wrote:

...Maybe scraping pads for grit an alu bits on a regular basis would prolong the life a good bit more for wet only wheels.

This. The stuff that pads get contaminated with is not actually Aluminium dross, but Aluminium Oxide dross. Aluminium Oxide is one of the hardest materials around and a regular main component of abrasive pads. Literally the worst possible stuff to have around in particle form if there's any friction and wear.

timothyw

rower63 wrote:

... and current notable "still-in-service" mileages:

saddle 36,151

Isn't it a bit dead by this point? I mean, I'm sure the manufacturers would like you to replace them every few months but still!

I guess if it's still comfy not much to complain about!

Fascinating set of figures anyway.

mtb-idle

hopkinb wrote:

Rower will give you chapter and verse. He has spreadsheets for this sort of thing i.e. this chain has done 1527 miles, 376 of which were wet. <snip>

I also ride with someone like that. He talked us through his spreadsheet including the noted assumptions and exceptions one wet hour in the car whilst waiting at Dover for the ferry to Flanders earlier this year.

His also has cost per mile per component & total bike(s) incorporated into it.

He is an actuary for a reinsurance company; he loves his data. Needless to say we ribbed him incessantly about this spreadsheet.

rower63

MTB-Idle wrote:

... someone like that. ....

haha superb

MTB-Idle wrote:

He talked us through his spreadsheet including the noted assumptions

I don't make any assumptions. I just log my ride into a table, including whether it's wet, and log any component acquisition/attachment/removal etc into another table, and the database query does the rest. My only slightly less nerdy neighbour said it reminded him of what they do to keep track of aircraft parts.

rhodrich

Fascinating table Rower! I don't feels so bad now, as I'm no more heavy on my parts than you are. My cogs last longer than your cassettes, and they're significantly cheaper too.

Surprised you don't have any frames in the list. How long did that Titanium one last before cracking?

rower63

Rhodrich wrote:

Fascinating table Rower! I don't feels so bad now, as I'm no more heavy on my parts than you are. My cogs last longer than your cassettes, and they're significantly cheaper too.

Surprised you don't have any frames in the list. How long did that Titanium one last before cracking?

I should've put frames in, but they're in a special table by themselves as they are what everything else get attached to. My old Dolan did 18k before the BB exploded, its replacement is up to 16.6k .
I've just started changing chains about 2/3 through their old lifespan and not changing the cassettes, so we'll see if the cassettes last longer!

TimothyW wrote:

rower63 wrote:

saddle 36,151

Isn't it a bit dead by this point?

Brooks saddle, still going strong and looking fresh!

tgotb

I was staggered at R63's apparent inability to get more than ~8k miles out of a large chainring, but then I spotted his 18k miles and still going small chainring...

mtb-idle

rower63 wrote:

MTB-Idle wrote:

He talked us through his spreadsheet including the noted assumptions

I don't make any assumptions.

Fair enough. I can't recall in detail as I was either bored to tears or laughing uproariously at various stages through the explanation but it went something along the lines of "the first assumption is that the spreadsheet is updated on a Tuesday and therefore this meant...(lost in the meaningless drivel that followed the start of this sentence)".

Tetragrammaton1

I find that it mostly depends on the usage intensity, and time of the year. When I do long rides, through the worst of the winter weather, bearinged components can last as little as 400 Kms. BBs and the bottom bearings of the headset tend to take the majority of the punishment, but with a bit of TLC, I can make them last a bit longer than if I hadn’t bothered. Some of the lighter / less durable rims I’ve used have taken a ‘fatal’ pounding between December and March, after having done well during the better weathered months, and I’ve had to replace at least one rim within 500 Kms of the proper wear starting. Hub bearings are variable, dependent on quality, but anything between 500 and 2500 Kms is about right. Tyres are a problem, and again dependant on quality / durability and use, I’ve had as little as 100 Km or as much as 14500 Kms. If a frame lasts less than 100000 Kms ( without accident damage ) I’d feel short changed, same for forks, and saddles. Brifters tend to last me quite well, and chains / cassettes / rings and cranks are variable between 500 Kms and 2500 Kms as a guesstimate

-Dash

I've just replaced a BB86 after 29000 miles and 3 years. Most forums had me thinking it would only last a few months.

It has been ridden through all seasons and liberally hosed down regularly too.

kingstonian

I had to replace a chainring a couple of months ago, mainly because I hadn't changed the chain early enough and it wore the chainring down. When I was getting it done the mechanic tried to tell me I'd be needing to change the chain every 1000 miles, which would be every 6-8 weeks !!!

Nah, that ain't happening.

Tetragrammaton1

-Dash wrote:

I've just replaced a BB86 after 29000 miles and 3 years. Most forums had me thinking it would only last a few months.

It has been ridden through all seasons and liberally hosed down regularly too.

That’s probably due to a lot of forumites mis diagnosing a problem ( creak probably ) and binning the ( perfectly serviceable) B.B. then the myth proliferates.

Tetragrammaton1

Kingstonian wrote:

I had to replace a chainring a couple of months ago, mainly because I hadn't changed the chain early enough and it wore the chainring down. When I was getting it done the mechanic tried to tell me I'd be needing to change the chain every 1000 miles, which would be every 6-8 weeks !!!

Nah, that ain't happening.

That would be some serious power / work going through the chain, to knacker it inside 1000 miles :shock:

kingstonian

Tetragrammaton1 wrote:

Kingstonian wrote:

I had to replace a chainring a couple of months ago, mainly because I hadn't changed the chain early enough and it wore the chainring down. When I was getting it done the mechanic tried to tell me I'd be needing to change the chain every 1000 miles, which would be every 6-8 weeks !!!

Nah, that ain't happening.

That would be some serious power / work going through the chain, to knacker it inside 1000 miles :shock:

Yeah, I just laughed when he said that.

roger_merriman

About the only thing I seem to go though fairly quickly, is chains/cassettes, the commute bikes frame is close on 11k miles but would have. a few more pre strava though being a MTB would not be a huge mileage extra.

But my commute is fairly grubby, and the bike is heavy with panniers and what not. I have trashed chains in 800 miles before now, I have made a effort to try to keep it clean, though that will not stop the fairly heavy load on it.

As others I find headsets/bottom brackets last for years, and this is with a bike that is a outside pet.

itboffin

@rower63 seek help, quickly! :-)

wolfsbane2k

Not damn well long enough.
But then i ride hard, in all weather, and with power, not cadence, and my cleaning regime can typically be summed up in 3 words: What Cleaning Regime?
I've got something like rowers DB that i maintained for about a year after i got through BB's like they were going out of fashion, but got side tracked into creating an app that did it all on the go, and then gave up..

-Dash

Tetragrammaton1 wrote:

-Dash wrote:

I've just replaced a BB86 after 29000 miles and 3 years. Most forums had me thinking it would only last a few months.

It has been ridden through all seasons and liberally hosed down regularly too.

That’s probably due to a lot of forumites mis diagnosing a problem ( creak probably ) and binning the ( perfectly serviceable) B.B. then the myth proliferates.

Yeah I did take it with a pinch of salt when I read it. I regularly checked for wear - lateral play, grinding (when no chain attached). Only started a few weeks ago.

I've gone through multiple chains in that time and cassettes too but the large chainring seems to be fine still. Small chainring changed after 2 years.. probably due to poor cleaning. Headset bearings replaced once too and a rear derailleur (it was bent from a crash and the jockey wheels were on their way out anyway).

greenamex2

Ultegra 11 speed chain - About 1000 miles when it hits "0.75" on my chain checker
FSA BB86 bottom bracket - 700 miles
Shimano Ultegra bottom bracket - 4000 miles
Rear derailleur pulleys - 4000 miles
FSA crankset - 1500 miles (and then almost impossible to get big ring)
Tyres - 1000-1300 miles on Cyclocross/gravel tyres. Currently back to Schwalbe Mondial's...hate them...indestructible but uncomfortable and can't cope with slimey mud
FSA headset - 4000 miles

My current Strava table looking like (and yes...bike got a major upgrade 1800 miles ago, some parts being reused elsewhere or sold on) -


Frame Trek Crockett 9 6,302.6mi
Crankset Shimano Ultegra CX 46/36 3,590.0mi
Front Wheel DT Swiss ER 1400 2,785.4mi
Rear Wheel DT Swiss ER 1400 2,785.4mi
Cassette Shimano Ultegra 12-25 2,785.4mi
Rear Brake Rotor Shimano RT86 2,785.4mi
Front Derailleur Shimano FD-R8050 1,804.5mi
Rear Derailleur Shimano RD-R8050 1,804.5mi
Bottom Bracket Shimano Dura-Ace Press Fit 1,804.5mi
Handlebar Bontrager Isocore VR-SF 1,804.5mi
Shift Levers Shimano R8070 1,804.5mi
Headset 1,804.5mi
Front Brake Pads Shimano G02S 1,522.5mi
Rear Brake Pads Shimano G02A 1,522.5mi
Front Brake Rotor Shimano SM-RT800 1,522.5mi
Chain Shimano Ultegra 610.3mi
Rear Tire Schwalbe Mondial 3,153.9mi
Fork Trek Crockett 6,302.6mi
Seatpost Bontrager xxx 1,804.5mi
Chainrings Shimano Ultegra 3,590.0mi
Front Tire Schwalbe Mondial 3,127.9mi