Auriaprottu
03-13-2004, 06:42 AM
Does anyone here know enough about the NJS (Nihon Jitensha Shinkokai) standards for componentry to answer these questions? Since getting interested in building a fixie, I've been paying a lot of attention to pics and specs of track bikes in general. I don't plan on spending the extra cash for NJS gear, but I do have a few curiosity questions I hope someone here can answer.
1) How extensive are the standards? I.E. do they cover frame material, geometry, weight, as well as components? Do they cover track construction and specs?
2) Are they geared :) to maintain continuity over the years- same specs season after season, like baseball and golf, so that modern era athletes have as little an advantage as possible over those of the past (preserving the conditions in which the old records were set, so that new ones are validated)- or do they exist solely to insure that the racers of a given era have no advantage over each other?
3) Campagnolo's pista gruppo was rejected (several times?) by NJS before finally being certified. Was this because Campagnolo wanted to introduce improvements that would have compromised the standards, or was it a business move designed to draw credibility away from Campagnolo and give it to Shimano (a local company)?
4) Is the equipment higher quality, or is it just more consistent from unit to unit? Is a given manufacturer's NJS hub better than their non-NJS model, or simply built to different (but equal) specs? I guess most manufacturers who have an NJS crank don't offer a non-NJS model, but in the case of Phil, Paul, or any other of the higher-end hubs by manufacturers who don't have the NJS stamp of approval- are they somehow not as good as, say, Dura-Ace?
Thanks in advance.
1) How extensive are the standards? I.E. do they cover frame material, geometry, weight, as well as components? Do they cover track construction and specs?
2) Are they geared :) to maintain continuity over the years- same specs season after season, like baseball and golf, so that modern era athletes have as little an advantage as possible over those of the past (preserving the conditions in which the old records were set, so that new ones are validated)- or do they exist solely to insure that the racers of a given era have no advantage over each other?
3) Campagnolo's pista gruppo was rejected (several times?) by NJS before finally being certified. Was this because Campagnolo wanted to introduce improvements that would have compromised the standards, or was it a business move designed to draw credibility away from Campagnolo and give it to Shimano (a local company)?
4) Is the equipment higher quality, or is it just more consistent from unit to unit? Is a given manufacturer's NJS hub better than their non-NJS model, or simply built to different (but equal) specs? I guess most manufacturers who have an NJS crank don't offer a non-NJS model, but in the case of Phil, Paul, or any other of the higher-end hubs by manufacturers who don't have the NJS stamp of approval- are they somehow not as good as, say, Dura-Ace?
Thanks in advance.