Poah – let’s talk about 3 principles:
1) The emotional element of the ‘wow’ factor.
2) The principle of diminishing returns.
3) The principle of marginal gains.
You cannot rationalise the wow factor. For me as I said it has an element of hand made being part of it. It is also about something being relatively rare.
Both EE Wings and Trickstuff perform better than SLX objectively. Both are stronger, stiffer, lighter and made to much tighter tolerances. That is indisputable. Not until you live with these products do you truly appreciate just how amazing they are. Your point really relates to my second point of diminishing returns. Is the price per frame saving ‘worth it’? Are they 10 times ‘better’? Well, that’s where your own personal means and value judgement come in. If both were the same price as SLX, And you could get lighter, stronger, better made products for the same price which would you choose?
It is true that the principles of diminishing returns and marginal gains apply. But the thread is about the ‘wow’ factor, not the ‘rational’ factor. I did mention how amazing SLX is for the money these days compared to early components, but you couldn’t reAlly describe it as lustworthy or having the wow factor. How many of us as little boys has a picture of an Austin Allegro on their walls because rationally it performed the exact same task as a Lamborghini Countach?
Affordability is a big factor. Strong, Light, Cheap and all that.
In answer to your questions about why both products have the wow factor:
1) Materials. Better quality materials = lighter, stronger, longer lasting, better finished.
2) Manufacturing tolerances. Hand made products can be made to tighter tolerances = more reliable performance, lighter weight, greater efficiency.
3) Exclusivity contributes to the ‘wow’ factor. That’s a totally emotional response.
SLX is good stuff. Perfectly functional, reliable, readily available and good value. Nobody is arguing that. For me, it just doesn’t have the ‘wow’ factor.
