Jun 13, 2026, 7:44 PMBike shopping recently, I noticed a few things:
- Wheels have grown from 26" to 29".
- Gears have shrunk from 3x8 to 1x10.
- Cycle "computers" have GPS now and cost as much as a bike.
- Jun 13, 2026, 7:44 PM
Replies
Jun 13, 2026, 7:55 PM@mansr My current bike is about 14 yrs old and is 3x8 & 700mm, so somewhere in between. I wanted a computer for it that just did distance, speed and time so I built my own with an STM32L432 and an old cellphone LCD - looks like crap but runs for about a year on a set of AAA batteries.
- Jun 13, 2026, 8:01 PM
@emeb You can get a really basic computer cheap, but none of them have a cadence sensor. For that you apparently have to get a semi-fancy one with wireless sensors and Bluetooth.
- Jun 13, 2026, 8:21 PM
@mansr seems like cadence would be fairly easy to add to a DIY one. Just another Hall sensor + magnet on the front sprocket?
- Jun 13, 2026, 8:57 PM
@emeb If you're building the whole thing it's obviously easy to add. It's still annoying that it used to be possible to buy one for £10 and now you have to spend upwards of £50 for the main unit with the sensor sold separately for half as much again.