S&S Couplers vs Ritchey Breakaway (best travel bike system)

[@gttim]

I had a Ti road bike built with S&S couplers 6 years ago. I ride it as my main bike and travel with it all over the US and to Europe. I never carry a spanner with me while I ride and have never had the couplers come loose. I apply as much torque as I can with the little wrench wrapped with a shop towel, but have no idea how much that is. I do know that an old adjustable spanner wrench I had as part of an old bottom bracket tool will also work pretty well. As far as grease, I use what they recommend, only apply new about half the time when I travel. I just wipe the old grease off and put new grease on. I recently upgraded to SRAM eTap so only have to use one cable splitter on the rear brake. It packs down to 26x26x10" and flies as checked luggage. I love it!

[@biking-places]

nice, you had the couplers put in? i'm tempted to retrofit something because i think i'd like a 26er option for flying with. my s+s bike also fits in the same size box and it is really nice to just check it with no questions asked.

[@kenlxpd3491]

I bought a used 2004 Spec steel Allez for $240 & retrofitted with S&S by Bilenky for $700 about 15 years ago & it was great. I bought a Ritchey carbon Breakaway before the pandemic & it was also great. No longer need them since the only place I travel is in Arizona where I have a gravel bike in storage, but if you travel to different places either is great with the pros & cons you've shared. It also helps to get a rear wheel like the Ritchey Zeta which allows you to easily pull off the rear cassette & freehub so the wheels fit better in the case. I bought the Zetas for the Allez, and then used them with the Ritchey. I also recommend Sram wireless shifter/Derailleurs because they are so much more convenient for assembly & disassembly of the bike.

[@ritcheydesign2518]

Wow! Fantastic side by side comparison. It's good to see how people genuinely feel about both systems. It should be noted the cost of the Ritchey BreakAway includes the case, which on its own retails for $390.

[@peterhehn9511]

Got one, an Outback! Still my go to bike and I have Aluminium, Carbon Fiber and Titanium bikes!

[@biking-places]

thanks for watching. that's a good point, those cases are great and add a lot of value. the one i use is the S&S hard sided case which ironically came with a ritchey breakaway i bought 2nd hand.

[@pavelg4990]

That's great! PLEASE put that info next to the price on your site! I have looked at Ritchey Breakaway for a couple of years, but only now after reading this comment I went to your page and scrolled all the way down to the the middle of the description to see the word "included" in there. I love Ritchey (how could you not), so please don't take this as a criticism. I just think having "$390-value travel case INCLUDED in the bike price" in big bold font somewhere along with pictures of the case would help you make more sales. This is huge. Cheers.

[@wilkbor]

Thanks for the video. I have known about the S&S system for some time now and have considered retrofitting an older model touring bike. Now, I'm learning about the Ritchey breakaway system. On an unrelated note, I have considered removing the cantilever break system from my touring bike and replacing it with v-brakes. You mentioned that you do this regularly. If you have time, it would be interesting to see a video on why you do this, the benefits of v-brakes over cantilever (I've read mixed reports), and how you overcome the technical challenges of the different brake pulls. Thanks again for the video.

[@biking-places]

hi, happy to hear this is helpful. on the subject of cantis vs v-brakes. many people are happy with their cantis and keep them. others, like me, find them more difficult to setup and adjust. they also require an extra cable stop. in my experience i get a little more stopping power and ease of use from v-brakes. keep in mind canti levers and road levers intended for calipers have a different pull ratio so you will have to change your levers or use mini-v brakes which are usually compatible with the shorter pull levers. if you check out my video on the specialized crux it's setup with ultregra brifters and TRP mini-vs. the brakes on that bike are awesome. i might do a video on this, thanks for the suggestion.

[@Fetucinee]

Had the S&S couplers retrofitted on a 700c 56cm Columbus steel lugged frame oh, about, 20 years ago and the setup is still going strong. Some points: the couplers can be welded or brazed (subject to the grade of frame metals); mine were silver brazed and the sites of the couplers are actually stronger than the adjacent tube spans so no compromise of the frame's structural integrity. IIRC a chief selling point at the time was that an S&S coupler bike would fit into 26x26x10" (62 linear inch) travel bag which did not incur oversized baggage fees; I'm not certain but I think the Ritchey Breakaway requires are larger case. Two decades later, no regrets about installing the couplers.

[@sammycda]

I have a Rodriguez bike with S&S couplers and the frame was damaged in shipping it from a ride to back home. I sent it back to R+E Cycles in Seattle and they were able to replace the crushed top tube. While it was there I decided to have them build a new rear triangle to couple to the front of the bike with the S&S couplers. The original rear triangle accommodates a Rohloff hub and the new one is set up as a 1x12. Now I have the option of riding either with just a little bit of time to switch the rear frame section and shifter controls on the handlebars. R+E Cycles calls it a "convertible". I'm enjoying two bikes for the price of 1 and one half.

[@biking-places]

ha that's one hell of a project, you should make a video about it. is it still a rodriguez if half the frame isn't the original tubing? who knows. thanks for watching.

[@sammycda]

Yep. Still a Rodriguez as they've done all the work and repaired and built the new sections of the frame.

[@james-p]

That is bloody brilliant. I'm actually going up to Seattle to see them in a couple of weeks.

[@azamwaugh]

Great video! I was looking for this info a few months back and I really appreciate you putting this together.

[@biking-places]

thanks for watching, glad it's useful info

[@pavelg4990]

Thank you for a thoughtful technical video. I learned quite a bit.

[@biking-places]

Glad it was helpful!

[@dudeonbike800]

Nice review! Thank you. I've worked on bikes with both and think they're great. The Ritchey design is very elegant and efficient by utilizing the seat post. I own a Co-Motion tandem with S&S and they're amazing. For tandems, S&S provides the opportunity to make a two-person tandem a triple or a quad, and back. Kinda cool that this can be so easily done. Added bonus: you can access the insides of your frame tubes to remove and prevent rust so easily! Cool bonus of the S&S. Steve S. at S&S was kind enough to give me a quick shop tour last year and I must say that we cyclists are so lucky to have him! It's a pet project of his that doesn't really make him any money. Thanks to his love of cycling, he designed and produced them and the world is a better place as a result! Oh and you are correct about the S&S being stronger than the Ritchey downtube connector. Tests showed frame tubes failing before the S&S couplers. S&S are available for carbon bikes; Calfee is one manufacturer that offers them. Since carbon repair is more commonly available today, I'd expect you to be able to find someone to do it. It would require appropriate tube inside diameter dimensions as well as a smooth, concentric and perpendicular, straight bore though. You aren't "out of luck" if you lose your spanner. The bottom bracket spanner wrench was and still is a standard of most bike shops. It works on S&S no problem. The longer length makes it easier to reach the required torque than the S&S travel wrench. In three years of ownership, I've never had our tandem couplers loosen. Perhaps the couplers retro-fitted to your frame aren't aligned properly? Or your frame suffered damage and isn't aligned? Also, Ritchey makes it very clear that the lower coupler should NOT BE OVER-TIGHTENED. So that's why they supply the portable 5Nm torque wrench with all their BreakAways. And the fluoro grease is pricey but will probably last a rider's lifetime. I'm gonna find a Ritchey Breakaway and have a friend install S&S couplers in it just to mess with people. Yes, I'm bored.

[@biking-places]

Ha, s&s on a breakaway would be a funny sight. Please post photos when you're done. I guess if you lose your wrench standing in front of a bike shop which is open you are not out of luck but I do sometimes ride away from them and wouldn't want to ride a split frame to come back (or be unable to disassemble the bike because the shop is closed or whatever). Point taken though, it's not the only wrench that can do the job and obviously the s&s one is still widely available for sale. I'd still give advantage to the ritchey here because an allen wrench is always going to be easier to source than a bb spanner or the s&s coupler tool. It seems you're right about the carbon fiber. Probably not the standard technique but I did find a few in the gallery who did it. What a strange idea. Thanks for watching.

[@yarryrob]

I have a very, very old Montague Paratrooper. It is set up for road use (skinny tyres, rigid fork etc). With 26 inch wheels this can be broken down (not so much folded as top tube removed from the seat tube), I also remove the forks and wheels and can be packed in a fairly ordinary big suitcase. The wheels become the widest part, therefore the minimum size is about 26inch X 26 inch X 12-15 inch.

[@biking-places]

how does it feel riding? i've been curious about the 26" versions of some of these folding bikes because i think the larger wheels would help with some of the handling issues and improve ride quality. there was actually a 26er made in the ritchey breakaway tubeset that i'd love to get my hands on for "research."

[@yarryrob]

@@biking-places The ride is fine. I have done some long tours around Australia, length of Japan etc. The only original part left is the frame. The weight of the bike is about 12-13kg, but I use marathon plus tyres and forks and gears from an old Giant Upland. All the best.

[@mingueyox]

I have had my fair amount of bike touring (Americas/Europe/Asia) with the Dahon Tournado with the Ritchey Breakaway system. As much as I love it for most of the reasons you mentioned, I will not use it for heavily loaded long-haul touring anymore... it introduces too much flex in the frame, making it painful to ride not to mention the number of times I was afraid it would fail. It never did though. I would really love to try out the S&S as I am still very fond of the idea to be able to split the frame for transport & storage. Thanks for the video. cheers from Europe

[@biking-places]

thanks for the feedback. i'm definitely curious about the flex because i keep a ton of weight in the rear of the bike. i will set my ritchey up at some point and report back.

[@mikekrasovec6390]

Does the flex seem to be due to slop in the split down tube, a less perfectly stable down tube joint which still allows some movement at the joint or flex within the tube set itself? I've read that when the down tube clamp for a Ritchey breakaway gets old it gets a little sloppy. Also how tall and heavy are you? For a given diameter and wall thickness tube flex increases exponentially with the span. Double the span and the amount of flex will increase by 8x. How much weight do you carry and what rack system are you using?

[@StanEby1]

Brilliant. Seriously. All the best.

[@biking-places]

appreciate it, happy riding

[@juniperDave]

Good review. I have the Ritchey system on my Waltly ti frame. Quite happy. (Yes, I carry a spare collar)

[@biking-places]

that sounds like a great ride. the ti version of the ritchey breakaway cross is the one i really want if i can find it.

[@PRH123]

Great review, thanks! Very interesting, i knew about the S&S, and their cost, although i hadn't heard about having to carry the spanner around. Have never seen a review on the ritchey system before. I read an interviews with Andy Hampsten a couple years ago, wherein he said he uses a bike with the S&S couplers when travelling, and seemed to be quite keen on them.

[@biking-places]

thanks for watching. the s&s setup is great as long as you don't mind the challenging packing. otherwise, it takes very little time if you need to split the bike to fit in a trunk of a car or something.

[@bikenraider99]

Considering a coupler bike; the first one. Kinda nervous about it but this helps.

[@biking-places]

they're pretty rad, you have my blessing

[@PeterPeadar]

Thanks for this video!

[@biking-places]

sure thing, hope it was helpful

[@janeblogs324]

6:00 they keep going on about the non staining benefits of the grease. Its got micron sized raw Teflon in it, so you'll get an invisible stain which you'll spread around for years and breathe/digest it.

[@biking-places]

yikes, i think i'm gonna need a hazmat suit when i get around to re-greasing this thing

[@ashwath22]

Great video! Super informative! I have never owned a bike with an S&S coupler. But i have some experience with the Ritchey BA system. I used to own the same Cross-check BA you have and travelled with it twice. It was a great experience for me. That frame was a little too big for me so i sold it and just bought the new outback breakaway that fits me better. So far I have done many local gravel rides on it and its an incredible bike for my needs. I look forward to travelling with it soon :) Ill come back and update here after i travel with it.

[@weedmanwestvancouverbc9266]

I own an S&S coupled Naked Bike made on Quadra island. A great bike, you wouldn't even know its coupled together. I really look forward to taking it to San Diego or possibly Hawaii. You make a statement that the S&S couplers haven't really been tested. He shows on their website a couple of bikes that were crashed where the frame did break but in the middle of the tube not at the coupling

[@biking-places]

hey, thanks for watching. hope those trips work out for you. i'm not sure what you mean about saying they haven't been tested though, don't remember saying anything like that. it makes sense that the couplers would be stronger than the frame material itself since they're a pretty solid beefy construction (as long as they were welded in properly that is).

[@weedmanwestvancouverbc9266]

@@biking-places these couples are derived from torque tube couplers which are used to power and connect the shaft drives on helicopters with a rear rotor.

[@jswrenn]

For S&S couplers, you can use any regular hook spanner of the appropriate size. A bottom bracket wrench works in a pinch.

[@biking-places]

yeah, this is a good point. it's still a fairly uncommon tool to bring with you traveling and not super common outside of bike shops (though some plumbing spanners could also maybe work if you're desperate).

[@jswrenn]

​@@biking-places We've actually entirely converted to using plumbing spanners! Amazon sells some that have rubberized handles, and are much more comfortable to hold.

[@tomruth9487]

Just finished a month with a s&s system. Checked that it was tight on the second day and they never loosened at all after that.

[@biking-places]

nice, you got it right the first time. i haven't had a lot of issues but i do need to check it from time to time.

[@rrrrr1883]

The spanner for the S&S looks like the locknut wrenches at the hardware stores. I wonder if those would work or if the size is too specific.

[@biking-places]

you're right they do look similar and i see they come in different sizes online. i might try it for research if i get my hands on one.

[@saavichisays]

Ritchey actually sells the tubbing/clamp system. the Pedros Trixie tool is great for the S&S frame as it fits on the water bottle holder. I have both never have i had to mess with teh S&S System or tighten it on rides etc. The BA system will need to be lined up. they are expensive as they should be. Hard to find that is for sure esp if its the Ritchey Cross version.

[@biking-places]

thanks for the input... the pedros tool seems pretty handy.

[@pavelg4990]

Do you mean Ritchey also sells raw down tube for the breakaway? That's amazing, how do you know this? They do sell clamps, but the split tube with manufactured ends? I think its Tange steel.

[@saavichisays]

absolutely I have bought 3 sets of the. contact them they are not that much. @@pavelg4990

[@mazditzo]

I’m a world troller owner, and my spanner lost idk where and when ... 🤦‍♂️ contacted s&s and no reply at all ... TI cycle helping me alot but the spanner is sold out... fortunately a bike shop in japan has it and had to wait for a week to assemble my bike 😂

[@biking-places]

i do see them crop up on places like ebay but definitely a down side of proprietary tools. hope you're back up and running now.

[@johnbravo7542]

All I can say is you really got to have a love for travelling with your bike to collapse it and rebuild it all the time.

[@biking-places]

yeah it's a hassle but if your trip is longer (over a week i'd say) and you'll be primarily biking during that time it's worth having a bike you trust. also renting can be a huge hassle, i rented bikes on 2 recent trips and it can be very expensive and your bike choices can be really underwhelming.

[@james-p]

@@biking-places Yeah, even more so for tall people. I'm getting a coupled bike just because of that.

[@TR-xf7pl]

Please share your bike case link? I’d much rather have mine in a hard case

[@biking-places]

mine is the s&s case: www.sandsmachine.com/ac_hard.htm

[@ke0kie]

I think in 2023 Ritchey discontinued the carbon Breakaway frame-set?

[@biking-places]

that may be true and a shame. they do come up second hand though.

[@ZenoLee0]

Weight weenie? I feel personally attacked.

[@biking-places]

let he who has never noticed the weight of a bike throw the first stone

[@sitoudien9816]

There is the dahon GB2. 650b gravel folder. The joints use locking teeth with springloaded screws. Tool included. There are no reviews. Frame size looks small and specs don't reveal sizes. It's the simplicity that sells it. No futzzing about. There is no reviews of fitting in a case. Availbility is scarce. Only seen it in Hong Kong.

[@biking-places]

it looks like a decent option. i don't have any first hand experience so hard to judges where it fits in the hierarchy.

[@jackiechan8840]

I'm thinking maybe bike rental is a better solution. Comes with its own issues however.

[@biking-places]

it works for some folks but if you want to be as comfortable traveling as you are on your bike at home it's better to bring one with you, depends on the kind of trip you're doing