Shift kit is great but not trouble free. The inventors stopped short in their innovation by failing to take the extra final step to create a worry free product.
You'll love your shift kit but hate it whenever the drive chain stretches and requires an adjustment. You can buy the most expensive bike chain but it'll stretch too and require multiple adjustments early on and then a chain adjustment every 2-3 hours of riding. If you ride on long rides like I do (7-8 hour day long rides on forest service roads through the mountains), you'll find yourself carrying a small assortment of tools and stopping every 2-3 hours to tighten your drive chain because the shift kit does NOT come with a spring loaded chain tensioner.
Here's what I don't understand. SBP has incrementally improved their product. Their first generation shift kit had thin side plates that flexed. Their second generation kit had thicker side plates with reinforcements. They also came out with a simple method to increase chain tension, their 3rd generation kit had an entirely new design which was better in many ways. Upgraded freewheel hubs also made their kit almost bulletproof.
SBP, why have you stalled in the improvement department and continually ignore customer requests to develop (or use exisiting designs, aka Fabian) a chain tensioner to take your design to the next LEVEL?
Thank you,
Drew- a loyal but frustrated customer. Gotta go, went on a 3 hour ride this afternoon and need to tighten the slack out of my chain.