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Friction Shifting

Friction shifting uses a continuously adjustable lever to control derailleur position without fixed gear stops. The rider moves the […]

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High-Modulus Carbon

High-modulus carbon is carbon fiber engineered for greater resistance to elastic stretching than standard- or intermediate-modulus fiber. In bicycle […]

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Q-Factor

Q-factor is the lateral distance between the outside faces of a bicycle’s crank arms at the pedal mounting points. […]

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Pedal Assist (PAS)

Pedal assist, commonly abbreviated PAS, is an e-bike control system that activates the motor in response to the rider […]

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Oval Chainring

An oval chainring is a non-round chainring that changes the drivetrain’s effective gear ratio as the cranks rotate. Its […]

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Indexed Shifting

Indexed shifting uses defined shifter positions to move a derailleur or internal gear mechanism between specific gears. In a […]

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Cadence Sensor

A cadence sensor detects crank rotation in an e-bike pedal-assist system. It tells the controller when the rider is […]

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2x Drivetrains

A 2× drivetrain uses two front chainrings with a multi-sprocket rear cassette. The front derailleur makes large changes between […]

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Single Pivot Suspension

A single-pivot rear suspension carries the rear axle on a swingarm that rotates around one fixed pivot on the front triangle. The axle follows a circular arc centered on that pivot. Extra links may…

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Head Tube Angle

Head tube angle is the angle of the bicycle's steering axis relative to level ground, expressed in degrees. A smaller number is described as slacker; a larger number is steeper. It affects steering geometry,…

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Layup Schedule

A layup schedule is the manufacturing plan that defines the material, shape, orientation, position, and stacking order of every […]

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Prepreg Carbon

Prepreg carbon is carbon-fiber reinforcement supplied with a controlled amount of resin already incorporated into it. It is the […]

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Topics intentionally overlap. A drivetrain component can also be a technology; an e-bike system can include components, software, and manufacturing concepts. Cross-listing keeps related reference material discoverable from more than one path.

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Technical entries are one part of bicycle knowledge for the life of the bike. Discover bicycles in the Archive, use the Encyclopedia to understand them, then carry useful context into Bike Reports or My Garage.

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