what is the purpose of these holes?

[tommydog]

Does anyone know why some bikes have holes in the plate where I have circled in red? These holes are both sides - Why not just have a solid plate? What is the purpose of these holes? I thought maybe another axle mount position, but in this case it is designed for a Rohloff and there can be no other position

[Bonefishblues]

Because less visually 'heavy' perhaps? ie pure aesthetics?

[Cugel]

That's the gremlin hole. Whether it's there to let a gremlin in or out is a debate that could go on for months or even years.

Cugel

[Mick F]

Because less visually 'heavy' perhaps? ie pure aesthetics?

Yep.
Spot on.

Same as the "triangle" in standard Campag rear dropouts. Here's mine on Mercian.

[Gattonero]

...and what is the problem with it?

[Cunobelin]

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[PH]

Never mind the frame, who re-laced the hub with a different spoke pattern? Not a good idea, as highlighted in the Rohloff handbook.

[Mick F]

Well spotted.
We had a thread on here some years ago about Rohloff flanges breaking.

[PH]

Well spotted.
We had a thread on here some years ago about Rohloff flanges breaking.

I've broken two so am maybe a bit paranoid, the second had been transferred from a 26" to 700C wheel though using the same spoke pattern and Rohloff considered this enough of a contributory factor not to replace. SJS to their credit stepped in and replaced it FOC anyway , which considering it was over a decade old impressed me.
I don't think it's Rohloff specific, re-lacing to a different pattern is probably a bad idea with any hub.

[Cyril Haearn]

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Saves a bit of material/weight (how much?)

Brucey will be along soon, bet he knows

[Gattonero]

Never mind the frame, who re-laced the hub with a different spoke pattern? Not a good idea, as highlighted in the Rohloff handbook.

Perhaps with Rohloff due to other factors, on a fairly normal hub like that is not a big problem. After many thousand wheels built, I'm yet to see a hub to fail right because being laced opposite from a previous build.
(to be fair, on hubs like that there is most often the need to chase+deburr the spoke holes, but this is a long story...)

[Gattonero]

Allows members of Cycle Forums to come with supposedly smart answers

Saves a bit of material/weight (how much?)

Can simply be a question of aesthetic/convenience of casting/saving or raw material. Aside from the former, it's all things that are no real matter for the final user

[Cyril Haearn]

One of my bikes (at least) does not have a hole there, why might that be?

Should we all stop puzzling and go for a ride instead?

[Keezx]

The cheapest frames/dropouts do not have holes , because holes would make them more expensive....

[pwa]

Yes, if you go out and buy the cheapest bike you can you are likely to see a flat bit of plate metal with no hole. Putting a hole in there is a way of making that dull feature look just a bit less basic.