9 Year Update
After popping out to the bike to check the mileage, the reading makes no sense and may have reset at some point at some time. Now that I am not using the bike to commute on I have not been keeping an eye on the accumulated miles as frequently. Looking back in a dairy I use to note it down in I found a note from back on the 7th of January of this year 2024 where the bike had reached 19,412 miles. So that was 2,068 miles ridden since my 8 year update, and I have ridden it regularly since then so in its 8th year I have probably ridden it a few more miles than the 2,046 miles I did last year . Anyway at this point its all a bit academic . More importantly it still works brilliantly well and I continue to have lots of fun on it. I wonder how I and the bike will fare as I start my 10th year of ownership.
Transmission
I fitted a new transmission on the 17th of March 2023, with new Cassette, chain ring, chain, and jockey wheels, as well as a thorough clean of the rear Mech. I put a new chain on at some point during 2023 when the first on reached .5 and then have run through the Winter on that second chain. It is now stretched beyond the point that I can put a new chain on, and i will just run this until I judge it time to change everything. It is still working well, with no skipping under load, but I will need to change everything probably quite soon.This transmission is over a year old now and has around 1,450 miles on it, which includes a high proportion of off road miles, which from my perspective as a heavy rider is a respectable mileage to reach.
Battery
Still the original 400Wh battery that came with the bike. On a recent 12 mostly off road mile ride to the next town I used 26% of my battery getting there. This was using eco and off. Obviously with the riding experience I now have I know how to extend the range of my battery by the way I ride.
However the battery does still perform very well and from my perspective remarkably well as it is now over 9 years old.
Motor
I had my motor refurbished by Peter at Performance line bearings around the 18th of November 2022 and it had completed 2216 miles up to the 7th of January 2024. So with my odometer as of today not working it will have covered a few more miles since then. As I said when I got the motor back it felt as good as new and has continued to work brilliantly since.
Wear and Tear
I fitted a new back tyre on the on the 7th of December 2023. Another Schwalbe Hans Dampf 2.35, run tubeless. Its a great off road tyre that wears really well.
I found a part worn Schwalbe Smart Sam plus tyre in the garage and put that on the front.
I changed the front brake pads at some point and will change the back ones soon.
Conclusion
Another great year with a lot of great fitness/ leisure rides, but also a regular cross country ride to shop at The Lidl in Guildford as my town does not have one. Once laden up with shopping I ride to Guildford Railway station and get the train back to my home town Godalming and ride back to my house from the Station. So the bike is proving to be a tough, capable and very durable machine. It had good entry level components when I bought it which have stood up very well to a lot of use. The brakes and front forks are still functioning well. I think a nine speed transmission is a sweet spot choice for a crank drive you intend to ride a lot as it has a reasonable range of gears and is very economical when you need to replace parts. The biggest change I made to the bike was to fit a much better and much stronger hand built rear wheel. last year I pondered the question of whether I will I wear out before the bike and as I am now suffering with degenerative arthritis to both knees and also have meniscal injuries to both knees, the bike is looking a stronger bet than me! At least I now need an electric bike!