New answers tagged road-bike
1
For a 2016 bike first thing to do should be replacing "spesific urgent needs" as mentioned in another answer.
Then I would check the parts with operatonal life time and replace if they are expired. Few examples are;
Chain
Brake pads
Tyres
Handle tape
Cables etc.
When you have a solid bike without any broken or diminished part, you can start to replace ...
3
For what it's worth, the way I ride is I start off in small ring and then change up to big ring once I hit the middle of the cassette. So around the 18/21t mark. Depending on how fast I'm decelerating/accelerating, I sometimes have to change up or down on the cassette to compensate for the front change. That seems to be a 'feature' of riding with a ...
3
As Adam says there is several ratios overlap between the ratios available in the small and large rings, so you can change from the large to small chainring, then 3 sprocket up in the rear and be in approximately the same ratio overall.
It's a good idea to anticipate which chainring you'll want to be in for the section or road or trail coming up. I run in ...
5
To answer your second question, you can think of the chainrings as your high range and low range, and the sprockets on your cassette as your position inside the range. These ranges overlap a lot. You'll want to experiment a little (and it will depend on your exact gearing setup), but when you're in (or near) your little-little combination and you want to ...
14
I believe your bike has a double crankset with 50-34 chainrings.
The general advice is to attempt to avoid cross-chaining, i.e. avoid the big ring and biggest 2-3 cogs in the rear, and avoid the small ring and smallest 2-3 cogs in the rear. There is actually some empirical testing that shows that these combinations create higher friction in the drivetrain, ...
2
Very roughly, you take the ISO size (on the side of the tire, in a form like "38-584"), add the two times the first number to the second number (eg, 76 + 584), and that gives you the wheel diameter in mm.
(There is the problem that the tire width value is far from exact, but it's about the best you can go on.)
If the application you're dealing with wants ...
5
The best upgrade is the one that solves a specific problem or replaces a worn out part.
Changing out any part on your bike should be done with a goal in mind. Your goals should be determined by identifying some specific way your bike could work better for you based on your riding style, terrain and personal goals. A "good" upgrade for one person could be a ...
7
Whilst the shoes are marketed for SPD-SL cleats because that is the Shimano system and you have Shimano shoes, this is really referring to what we call a 'three-bolt' pattern. Both SPD-SL and the look cleats are a 3 bolt pattern so the cleats are compatible with the shoes.
See how there are another two bolt holes in the middle of the three-bolt pattern - in ...
0
2 things -
1st - PUMP UP YOUR TYRES!
I believe keeping the pressure up helps stop punctures and buckling.
2nd - Get out of the seat.
Stand on the pedals when you are going to hit something less than smooth, i mean why the hell wouldn't you, unless, like a incompetent boxer, you like getting pounded in the ring.
1
Personally, I'd recommend a new inner cable from the shop.
That is your brake that you are playing with and how important is it that they work when you use them?
There will be a you tube video on line on how to replace an inner cable, and it's not too difficult, as it's a normal service procedure
2
You probably won't need to unwrap the bar tape - simply release the inner wire from the pinch nut/bolt on the brake, possibly pull off any end cap crimp, and pull the wire all the way up and out.
Retwist any loose strands of brake cable so it lies flat. I suggest you use a drop of superglue now on the very end to keep it all together. When set, carry on.
...
0
This switch is a feature of my shock pump (which also works as a normal pump) and is very useful to be able to pump larger tyres and still be able to achieve high pressures. You start your pumping with the high volume setring until you are able to do so. With more pressure in the tyre or in the shock (or whatever) the pumping becomes harder and harder.
You ...
0
Essentially the problem is because all of your weight as a static mass is trying to be moved upwards by the lift caused by the bump. As you can imagine, you and the path are essentially crushing the bike with all the force of your bodyweight times the acceleration.
The only way to fight this is to unweight your bike. your legs are not bad shock absorbers, ...
16
The bike can handle those bumps just fine. As noted in other answers, just use the usual techniques for dealing with uneven terrain: get your weight off the saddle, keep your arms and legs loose, and let the bike move with the bumps as you keep your body's center of gravity in one place.
That said, unless you're riding your bike completely stripped down of ...
3
Assuming that your wheels are in good shape, they are designed to take bumps like that. Without knowing what type of wheels you use, it does help to have wheels with at least 32 spokes. I keep my elbows lose and my grip firm, and when I see those bumps coming I get ready to lift my butt a bit.
1
That interpretation is about right, I found some more explanation and a positive review of one here: https://off.road.cc/content/review/pumps-and-co2-inflators/crankbrothers-gem-floor-pump-review-2759. Interesting!
I see a couple of use cases
Two bikes one pump; if you have high volume tyres on one bike and high pressure ones on another, you can just have ...
21
Simply unweighting the saddle is enough to roll over most tree roots even on skinny tyres. On my 28mm tyres I don't even need to bother doing that very often. You may want to lift the front wheel in severe cases, or on the very lightest (low spoke count) front wheels.
1
Are you riding on Tubeless tyres? If so, the high-volume pump can help to "seat" a tyre to the rim.
Some tubeless-focused track pumps have a reservoir which can be charged with air, and then released in one fast PHSSSSST to "pop" the bead out to the rim and establish a seal.
Note they should not be stored charged, so its not like a portable air tank or ...
5
Buy a floor pump, also known as a track pump, instead of an automotive accessory.
A track pump will take about the same time to top up your tires as a small car compressor, and has an advantage of not needing electricity at all.
You still need the on-bike pump for punctures while riding, but in the garage at home a track pump works very well. I ended up ...
3
I have one of such compressors for car use and of course I have used it on my bikes.
However, I only use it on MTB bikes which I inflate to 40 psi at most. I Do not own a road bike but some slick tires sometimes inflated up to 60 PSI. For MTB tires the compressor is slow enough to allow very accurate pressure control.
The problem I have faced is that as ...
1
There's a lot going on in this question!
The pump pictured seems to be intended for car tyres, with Schrader valves, which can be considered high volume, low pressure.
A 120 psi road bike tyre can be considered low volume, high pressure, and will typically take a Presta valve to suit this status and the rim's valve hole. You can get adapters for pumping up ...
0
The valve connection is simple, there are adapters for Schrader on Presta, some cycle pumps have these as standard. Your LBS may sell these as extras as well.
Problem would be pressure. Does the pump really deliver the indicated pressure.If the max. pressure delivered by pump is 120psi and your tyre needs more you can't just let it run for a longer time to ...
4
Brake a shifter cable and housings are fairly standardized, so you don't need a special type.
There is big difference between shifter and brake cables and housings. You absolutely must not use shifter cables/housings for brakes.
Brake cables have different ends for road and mountain bikes, so you need to make sure you get road brake cables.
Obviously you ...
2
There's a great resource that will help with how to do this.
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/
Sadly, Sheldon passed a short while back, but this comprehensive site is his legacy. If you can't find the info on there, you're not trying ;-)
The bike looks to be a 56/58cm so would probably be fine for a first road bike as long as you're taller than 178cm/5'10"
...
2
Before you commit to putting money and effort into a build ask yourself is this really the bike you want? Doing your own bike build can be fun and fulfilling but you want to end up with a bike you actually want and will enjoy riding
Is the frame actually the right size for you. You obviously can't sit on it do try it out in its current condition. What size ...
3
This frame is about 10 years old (the model was sold for a few years). There is a chance that there's a crack in the carbon fiber, which would be cause for concern. There are services that will perform non-destructive testing, and there are ways to perform inspections at home with somewhat less reliability, but that would be my first concern.
It looks like ...
2
That's definitely a Japanese frame and my guess is the wheels were an upgrade somewhere along the line. The mix of Shimano and Suntour also is unlikely to be how the bike was sold. My guess is the Cyclone derailleurs were an upgrade, but since it's friction shifting it all plays fine together.
A web site with a lot of experts is the "Vintage Cream" ...
7
Perceived effort isn't determined only by power output. That is, power output is certainly one of the things that affects perceived effort but there are others. There are (at least) two other possibilities:
First, you may be overheating during indoor riding, so the perceived exertion is high compared to riding outdoors. In that case, a large fan can help ...
3
For higher performance (speed) the simple answer is better wheels and tires. Deeper dish aero wheels are definitely going to be faster -BUT- will be more of a handful in crosswinds. Light weight deep dish rims mean carbon fiber and lots of $$$. Also note that rims are trending wider as this makes for a more aero shape and it gives the tire a stiffer ...
4
Honestly? Nothing. Assuming your bike functions correctly and is not yet worn out? I'd not change anything on the bike mechanically.
Perhaps think about comfort, what would allow you to spend longer on the bike, or to go harder? What hurts at the end of a long ride, and how can you improve that?
Changing Contact points can help, so better gloves/...
1
Not to focus on those particular makes and models listed by the OP as it would be difficult to show the differences using those specific bike models.
Yes, a race bike is characterized by riding position. Traditionally with a slammed stem - steerer tube cut short and long stem angled downward. Seatpost set to near longest limit. Narrower width bars.
Head ...
2
Apart from the different geometries, tires, weight etc, etc there is a main difference between endurance & a pure sport/race bike.
It is the stiffness regards bike flex under pedal load.
A sport/race bike will flex less because it is designed to flex less in the carbon layup plus usually it is shorter with less tire clearance so again less flex. Will not ...
3
Adam is correct that it is rarely a problem to find spare parts for discontinued bikes. Most of the items you'd need to replace, like the chain and cassette, are standard items produced by big manufacturers. There are some possible exceptions, but they tend to be minor.
The rear derailer bolts onto an item called the derailer hanger. Almost all derailer ...
21
Generally it's absolutely fine to buy a relatively new bike, and not worry about component availability.
Bicycles are not like cars that have specific components for each model, or at best some component sharing across a manufacturers models. In general, practically all bicycle components are standardized so that bicycles can be built up (or modified) with ...
8
According to the 2017 Catalog on the Orbea website, the M40 comes with Shimano Tiagra 4700 components, which are serviceable if not fancy. For an entry bike they'll do fine, and Tiagra 4700 is still the current model per the Shimano website.
Even once Shimano updates the Tiagra line, there will still be lots of older components available and Shimano will ...
7
Maintaining this bike shouldn't be a problem. Although there are all too many standards for bicycles and bike parts, almost all parts are made to some standard, and that bike appears to be using up-to-date standards without any especially weird parts. The parts are not made by Orbea anyhow, they're made by other companies, and in any case you'll be able to ...
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