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Mountain bikers ride on rough terrain: they travel over roots, rocks, dust, mud and grass, over ramps into compression. Failure of a bike component can be dangerous for the rider as speeds of up to 80km/h can be reached on downhill trails. If a bike rider wants to reach his best form, he has to be able to rely on his bike and, for this, he needs fail-safe components. In addition, precise haptics (responsiveness e.g. of the suspension fork) and low weight are among the most important characteristics that a mountain bike must have, and not only in professional sports. Bearing components made of plastic instead of metal have been gaining in popularity for years – and for a very good reason:
Lightweight plastic components reduce the strain on the frame and can make the bicycle easier to manoeuvre. Moreover, the lighter the bike, the easier it is to travel uphill. Our iglidur plain bearings are around 80 % lighter than metal bearings.
Compared to rolling bearings, our polymer bearings have the advantage that they need around one third less installation space. Moreover, thanks to their greater elasticity, they have much better vibration-dampening qualities than metal bearing solutions. This means more effective shock absorption and greater comfort for the rider.
Dirt and moisture have an adverse effect on metal bearings In the case of PTFE-coated plain bearings, the gliding layer is quickly worn away after the ingress of dirt. Metal rolling bearings wear out quickly unless they are regularly maintained. In addition, cleaning the bike can be a problem for them if the jet of water hits the bearing point with too much pressure and flushes out the grease. The result is corrosion. For iglidur plain bearings, dirt and moisture do not present a challenge thanks to the absence of lubricants. No external lubrication and no maintenance are needed here.
The manufacturer of premium mountain bike components Crankbrothers needed a solution for their pedal bearings. Resistance to dirt, a reduction in weight and a long service life were the main aspects. Thanks to plain bearings made of the material iglidur JB, the company was able to achieve an eight times longer service life compared to the previous solution and reduce the weight. Dirt does not stick to the lubrication-free bearings, they can simply be cleaned from the outside without any loss of performance.
For the ConTrail MGN, Bergamont has changed from ball bearings to iglidur J plain bearings at the bearing points of the rear frame. The bearings are very dimensionally stable when exposed to moisture and can easily be cleaned from the outside – cleaning with a high-pressure jet cleaner does not affect them either. Moreover, thanks to their larger contact surface, they ensure greater rigidity and a more direct, faster response.
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iglidur plain bearings on the mountain bike, cargo bike, recumbent bike and folding bike
