[Closed] Is alfine really that heavy?

I've recently gone from an Alfine 8 to single speed on my commuter (Surly Troll) and I don't really notice much of a difference, which really surprised me!! Maybe a little when I have to lift the bike over things, but certainly not when cycling along. I've also put a 9-speed cassette and derailleur (XT) on recently for some touring and didn't really notice much difference then either.

TBH the only time I've really noticed a weight change when riding has been in the tyres or rims.

Bike will ride better as it would clatter into all dips and rises due to concentration of weight at the back.

It will also run free er due to less drag from the derailer set up instead of hub gears - source 2 Alfine and a rohloff.... I am back on derailleurs

My work bike has an Alfine. It like having a brick in the middle of your spokes. Going SS or 1x ASAP.

I went 3*8 with deore touring and claris .

Still lighter than with the Alfine.

Edit: Wrong thread.

Alfine is heavy but awesome for commute / touring. I do around 25 miles a day on mine.

I had the Alfine on a hardtail MTB. It made the back end very bouncy and skippy as the weight is so far back. I agree with trail_rat comments. I ditched it, but was a fun experiment.

My mate has a genesis day one 853, with alfine 11 fitted. It cost him £1800.
I have a charge filter fitted with derailleur gears. It cost £1000. Mine is lighter.
I also have a bigger gear range, and can change the whole range more easily.
Its not all about the weight though, on our last camping trip, i had dodgy gears after bending the derailleur hanger, my mates alfine worked perfectly.
I would consider an igh.

Good for commuters/workhorse bikes, at a push perhaps sadistic hill climb training bikes.

My old Saracen Pylon8 weighed significantly more than my FatNotFatted Voodoo Wazoo (~14 vs 10 Kg).

I agree with above, def better as a workhorse commuter/tourer than a mtb, although the way things are going with 1x11 stuff the weight distrution isn't that much different! Alfine is heavier though, I'm just not sure you'd notice it.

Bike will ride better as it would clatter into all dips and rises due to concentration of weight at the back.

Galileo basically disproved the idea that heavy things fall faster over 400 years ago 😉

The change in CoG might have some effect on bumps, but it won't fall into dips any faster.

Galileo basically disproved the idea that heavy things fall faster over 400 years ago

The change in CoG might have some effect on bumps, but it won't fall into dips any faster.

In fairness, he doesn't say it falls any faster - he said it clatters into dips.

Suspect what he means is that when it does fall it gains more momentum, thus the impact is more noticeable. But you knew that anyway didn't you 😉

won't fall into dips any faster

but will fall into them with more force

Edit: beaten to it whilst distracted by work 🙂

I don't think there's really any significant difference weight-wise between Alfine and a derailleur setup but the Alfine sure feels more of a lump, and feels a bit more inefficient when pedalling too.

I don't think there's really any significant difference weight-wise between Alfine and a derailleur setup but the Alfine

There is, it's between 1lb and 2lb heaver depending on the blingyness of the drivetrain it's replacing, but...

awesome for commute / touring.

And bikepacking and general workhorse bikes, basically anything where speed and 'nippyness' isn't important.

I've got one on the commuter/hauling bike and I don't think I'll ever go back to derailleur for that use case. The weight is irrelevant there as it's loaded with racks and bags anyway, most of them on the front rack too so it's still front heavy even with the Alfine at the back!

I've got one on a MTB hardtail too for winter use and slower exploration type rides, I think it's perfect for that too, but I wouldn't use one for racing or anyhting like that as you do notice [i]where [/i]the weight is, rather than the absolute amount of it.

There is, it's between 1lb and 2lb heaver depending on the blingyness of the drivetrain it's replacing

I suspect few are replacing Dura Ace or XTR with Alfine. But even 2lb isn't a significant difference on my Cross-Check. YMMV, though it doesn't sound like it if you're using an Alfine on a tourer.

But you knew that anyway didn't you

Aye, but I like being pedantic 😉

Perhaps the way to compensate, at least on a full sus bike, would be to dial down the damping a bit, to make up for the damping effect of the higher mass.

No it's not a significant difference in bike weight on an already heavy bike, but it is a significant difference in weight for the drivetrain.

ie: I doub't you'll find many other parts of the bike where two options can be 2lb different in isolation, unless you're comparing very different options like superlight race wheels vs touring wheels.

I don't really care about 2lbs, but that's a big difference to some people and on some types of bike.

Probably worth a read here

[url= http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/stu-mcgroos-lets-put-this-alfine-weight-issue-to-bed-once-and-for-all-thread ]http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/stu-mcgroos-lets-put-this-alfine-weight-issue-to-bed-once-and-for-all-thread[/url]

Alfine vs Rohloff weight
http://www.bikestation.fi/info/en/brands/rohloff/speedhub/weight/

Surprised at Stu Magoo's. I think the issue is there's a lot you can do to lighten a conventional drivetrain by spending a bit more money but you really struggle once you're working with a hub gear.

I rode Rohloff for years on hardtails and sus bikes. I've got an alifine 8 on a city bike.
They do feel slower even if they're not. Riding 1x off road it *feels* livelier.
The gear jumps on the Alfine aren't annoying.
The Alfine 8 has scared me shitless when it dropped out of gear or slipped on a steep hill in traffic. I smacked my knee hard and very nearly went down in front of a car.

id put my rohloff on a tourer

im not sure id stick an alfine with its limited gear range on a tourer.

as for the weight - weight is not the issue , weight is but a number.

IT RIDES LIKE CRAP - same bike with SS and 3x9 XTR is a sprightly skippy lively race machine stick on the rohloff or the alfine and it becomes a numb puncture prone nasty feeling bike to ride.

wanted to like them for all the benefits they do bring but i also like my bikes to ride as they were designed.

i do have a 3 x 9 SA hub on my cargo bike - dont notice the weight there 😀

Trail Rat - do you reckon the ride of the Alfine and Rohloff are similar? I've not had both built up at the same time, and they're on bikes with different geometry (and a belt on the Alfine) but the Alfine feels slow and draggy to me in a way the Rohloff never did.

had an alfine on a P7. it made a relatively heavy bike heavier. felt great on smooth downhills, but awful trying to hop it over anything, and i didn't half smack in to things. can't imagine putting one back on an MTB TBH.
it keeps looking at me forlornly sitting on my workbench.

if my commute was shorter, and or less hilly, i'd have another alfine8 in a heartbeat.

mine was a little bit draggy when pedaling. The effect was probably very small, but i could feel it, so it became increasingly annoying when i was tired and still half an hour of climbing from home.

my commuter now has a sora groupset, which is amazing.

no the rohloff is streets ahead of the alfine.

i kept the rohloff , i can see its benefits it is a wonderful bit of kit just not suited to all aspects of mtb.

ah wiles , new sora rreally is a thing of beauty with internal cable routing and everything .... far cry from the old thumb button when you would do everything in your power to push for the customer to get at least tiagra to not have to live with that hateful thumb button

Love that Stu McGroo thread! Thanks for posting! 🙂

I'd be more worried about drag. Ok so if you're touring you might not be interested in speed, but I personally would be interested in efficiency. A 12 hour day is long enough without your gears turning it into a 13 hour day.

I didn't notice any drag after running it in for a bit

RIDES LIKE CRAP - same bike with SS and 3x9 XTR is a sprightly skippy lively race machine stick on the rohloff or the alfine and it becomes a numb puncture prone nasty feeling bike to ride.

My Genesis Croix de Fer was a lovely bike, the Alfine didn't suit it though, I hardly rode it.

I've got an Alfine 8 on my full sus. It only went on there as a trial/experiment and to avoid shelling out for a new XT drivetrain to replace the worn stuff.

It's been on there a few years now, pretty happy with it. Sure, if you pick up the bike or especially, the wheel by itself, it feels like an anvil is strapped to the bike, but it rides fine and I don't notice the bias of weight to the rear.

In terms of drag...don't notice it. Its lovely in mud as you can just keep plugging away with a perfect chainline and nothing to clog up. My other bike is a singlespeed hardtail which is nice and zippy, have no strong preference to either bike. The limited gear range means 1st gear isn't that great for winching up hills, but the singlespeed means my brain is tuned to accept the lack of a spinny first gear 🙂 The only time it starts to feel draggy is when you are trying to pedal through sticky or thick mud or steep grass, but I'm sure its more in the head as you can feel the gears in the hub through the pedals.

I'm not especially fit and my annual mileage is quite embarrassing, but I managed to do the South Downs in a Day recently (100 miles and 11300ft of climbing) so I think that proves an Alfine can be used for decent long distance off-road biking.

Pretty much 1kg total bike weight difference when I had the same bike with an Alfine 11 build and also 1x10 XT. So slight less differnece if using 2x or 3x and cheaper parts.

Alfine 8 was ok, the range is quite usable, easy to treat as a variable ratio singlespeed (ie, pedal harder). Trouble with that is I broke several of the roller clutches.
Always wanted to get a Rohloff and in the last year it has been everything i hoped and more. Now saving for a second one...

You get used to the weight distribution pretty quickly and ajust your riding to compensate. Its nothing like the big deal its made out to be.

Trouble with that is I broke several of the roller clutches.

Roller clutch is what went on mine, lasted 5 years or about 15,000 miles

SLX 1*11 + SLX rear hub is ~2400g. (XTR would be closer to 2kg)
Alfine 11 + Da crankset, ring and chain is ~2700g.

Mine also has battery and motor, so another 270g.

Been working so just got back to thread, fantastic input from everyone, thanks.

Big reason i asked was that im looking to do the dirty riever and dorset gravel dash next year and my vagabond seems the best fit for the job. Was just concerned whether the alfine was suitable for 100+ miles. Sounds like it should be cool and i just need to beast the old legs a bit more!

A bit like one of the posts above, I ran mine on a full suspension frame and noticed the lack of faff and quietness more than I noticed drag, but then I also rode singlespeed.

I find it's heavier feeling. I did change it from all grease to a degrease > grease + ATF lubrication setup and its lowered the dragginess to next to nothing.

I do feel the weight difference to the rear but for a commuting bike bimbling along it matters not.

The benefit of a straight chain line, no grinding chain around mechs far outweighs the weight I feel.

8 years on from getting it, mine is still on the same chain!! .... If it ain't broke !

I used mine on the Exmouth Exodus last year. 106 miles and it was fine. Mine's done over 15000km so far.