Ryan Cousineau said:In article <[email hidden]>,
Aero vincit omnia. Unless some component of this drivetrain has rusted
in place, its efficiency will make virtually no difference when
comparing it to a stock upright bike. Indeed, as a thought experiment,
put Axel on a delta-frame track bike, which has the most efficient
geared drivetrain known to cycling. Now put Bauer on some recumbent with
a ridiculous drivetrain, maybe a Rohloff with chain idlers.--
Ryan Cousineau, [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com
Verus de parvis; verus de magnis.
Every bending of the link to traverse an idler sprocket results in chainline efficiency loss-more so on the high tension drive side of the chain, less so on the low tension return side. Frictional losses at the link are a product of the a coefficient of friction and the distance the pin pivots and the tension on the chain. The rwd lowracer with its complicated chain routing has an extra 2-5% loss over the road bike. It more than makes up for this in aerodynamic loss savings, but the drivetrain is invariably less efficient.