New answers tagged road-bike
1
You might find the project is not feasible.
A long time ago when I was a poor student, I had a cheap hybrid bike and became interested in cycling. I learned that good bikes intended for riding on the road as opposed to off-road come with high-performance narrow slick tires and a drop bar. High-performance narrow slick tires I could install to the hybrid ...
3
That sounds like an extremely small frame for you. In fact, it sounds like an extremely small frame, period—frames usually aren't sized that small.
Every manufacturer is going to have its own sizing guidelines, but in rough terms, I would expect someone of your height to ride a 52-cm frame.
0
I've have good experience with the BBT-30.4:
That seems a lot more likely to be properly aligned when it's whacked with a hammer to remove the bearings than the BBT-90.3.
It's also a bit cheaper, if not exactly inexpensive.
0
I've read so many different opinions on mech disc brakes vs dual pivot sidepull brakes but I'm still not set either way...
It sounds like you have a good understanding of the pros and cons. As others have suggested, the rim-brakes are likely to represent better value overall and are easier to maintain yourself. If you find that stopping power is not as good ...
0
A good rim brake system (specifically, linear pull/V-brakes and road, dual pivot caliper rim brakes) equipped with quality pads have very comparable performance to disc brakes, mechanical or hydraulic. When the associated higher costs of disc brakes, in both complete bikes or aftermarket upgrades, are evaluated against the very minimal advantages gained over ...
3
No, you cannot, they are fundamentally different. Octalink uses a 3-piece crankset and Hollowtech 2 uses a 2-pice crankset.
The 3-piece means that the spindle is integrated in the Octalink BB. The 2-piece means that the spindle is integrated with the right crank and inserted through the hollow BB.
The BB is usually much cheaper than the crank so it is normal ...
0
It seems noone has a clue really, so my opinion (and we all have one!) is it is fashion, and ease for sizing by the manufacturers. The same size of frame can fit more people.
I do not believe that a compact frame saves weight. I ride a 32 year old road bike( horizontal top tube) that weighs 18.4 lbs (8.3 kg) My stepson has just bought an aluminium framed &...
1
Of course - the trouble is that there is no single good source of information about the EMC frames, verification will be difficult....
I've been writing about EMC bikes on various forums (bikeforums, paceline, rennrad-news) for a few years now as CyclesMakaron, Emerxil etc - that's how I got in touch with millfieldvelo (you'll find a link to me on his site)
...
4
This is quite a wide-ranging question with a number of points raised. Regarding the specific question of mechanical vs. sidepull, I can only agree with the previous commenters that you are likely to get better value and experience from the sidepull brakes, from my experience they are much easier to keep 'in tune' than disk brakes and will almost certainly ...
1
Good mechanical disc brakes (e.g. Avid BB7) can be very good indeed - plenty of stopping power, pads last for thousands of kilometers, not affected by weather. However, I've had varied experiences with cheaper mech discs, such as some Shimano models. The biggest problem seems to be a lack of stopping power when used with drop-bar levers (even though these ...
22
While specific shopping comparison questions are off-topic here due to their tendency to become obsolete, there is a perfectly good generic question here where these two bikes can be used as examples, so I will take that angle on it.
The two bikes in question have similar price points, but the braking system on the disc one is eating a lot more of the price ...
10
I'm going to focus solely on the issue of mechanical disc versus rim brakes.
All else equal, I would prefer rim brakes to mechanical disc. Mechanical disc brakes (and the hubs, and possibly the frame as well due to increased manufacturing complexity) are more expensive than rim brakes. This means that if the bikes have the same price, then the one with disc ...
0
This is a beautiful early Eddy Merckx Professional (Columbus SL/SP) frame built in late 1980, repainted in EMC ~1989
Don't use cadre.org - it's misinformation
0
Realistically - you're a tall rider, several standard deviations away from "average" And that's a difficult place to find gear that fits.
Simply raising the saddle and lengthening stems doesn't do the whole job, because the bike's wheelbase doesn't increase as much.
Shorter riders can sometimes compromise using kids bikes, (which isn't meant in a ...
1
I would just be careful you know what you are getting yourself into.
At the end of the day any older bike from that era will be heavier than modern carbon fiber and possibly aluminum bike, probably have less range on gears/bigger jumps in gearing, have less aero, and may not accept modern road wheels. I am a big proponent of a rider focusing on fitness ...
2
Sounds like you're searching for a carbon bike, but a steel bike might be more likely to be available in your size. The Surly straggler has a 620mm seat tube (62cm) option, and the Disc Trucker has a 640mm seat tube (64 cm) option. Steel bikes often have horizontal (not sloped) top tubes, so you end up with much less seat post exposed. They also have round ...
1
If you want fast with older components, you may want to consider a fixed-gear road bike. I'm adding this because it at least deserves a mention.
It may take you a bit of experimenting to find the highest comfortable gear ratio for your area, but the weight savings gained by eliminating brakes, multiple chain rings, derailleurs, shifters and extra chain ...
2
@Andrew already mentioned this, but I think it's worth emphasizing: a modern bike will likely have a "compact double" chainring setup rather than a triple chainring.
When I started riding in the 90's, most double chainring bikes had a "racing double" setup, with 39 teeth on the small ring and 52 or 53 teeth on the big ring. This is great ...
3
I feel I have some useful data to add to this conversation.
I got into riding using a road bike built in 1988, so a decade older than yours. The frame was Tange steel, with a horizontal top tube, and all up weighed about 12kg. It was 2x7 with Shimano Biopace chain rings, and had pretty narrow drop bars on a quill stem. So not super different to yours, but it ...
5
With accurate vernier calipers or a micrometer, measure the width of the outside plates.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_chain#Width shows this table of chain widths.
Speeds
Width
6
7.3 mm (9⁄32 in) (Shimano HG), 7.1 mm (9⁄32 in) (SRAM, Shimano IG)
7
7.3 mm (9⁄32 in) (Shimano HG), 7.1 mm (9⁄32 in) (SRAM, Shimano IG)
8
7.3 mm (9⁄32 in) (Shimano HG), ...
2
To keep it short, specifically to your bike, the biggest improvements would be a bigger cassette (larger gear and/or more gears) on the back, and maybe new wheels.
The cassette would greatly help, you are probably pushing too much (pedalling at low frequency), or spinning too fast, missing the optimal cadence that would propel you uphill as fast as your ...
0
With the 'invention' of the gravel bike, i see this as an easy choice. Their whole reason to exist is largely based on the compromises described in the question; the ability to ride gravel tracks without sacrificing much on the tarmac sections that link them up.
However, even within the gravel bike category, there is a very wide range of options, features ...
0
Do yourself a favor and look at the problem with a different perspective. Spend a small amount of money on an aluminum front suspension bicycle - see "Note 2" at end. Make sure it has a mid range gear system and a good set of rims for example touring rims; I'm very happy with my AlexRims G3000 after heavy use (125+kg weight with gear, forest roads ...
-1
Trek Checkpoint ALR period. Is very very capable machine. I ride it to the grocery stores, commute to work and take it on my overnight rides to the woods.
29
I coincidentally bought an aluminum road bike (Cannondale) about the same time as you got your Giant and with very similar specs. Mine was 3x8 rather than 3x7, but same size chainrings and similar gear range. I rode it until the frame was cracked in an unfortunate incident and replaced it with a relatively modern Felt aluminum bike with 2x10 gearing with a ...
5
A difference I would note is about the drive train. I'm not so much into road bikes, so I can be wrong.
Old bikes tend to have bigger chain rings and smaller sprockets on the cassette. As a result, they are less suited for steeper slopes than modern bikes. Clipless pedals are also a noticeable improvement, by allowing to transfer more power to the pedals ...
14
Generally a good modern road bike will have:
more gears (resulting in both smaller gear steps and a wider overall range)
less weight
disc brakes which brake much better, especially in wet conditions and are easier to control
better aerodynamics
less rolling resistance due to better tires with the option to go tubeless
wider tires for more comfort
more ...
4
One area of improvement has been in tires.
Tire construction and materials as well as tubeless tires.
bicycling.com credits Mavic with the first tubeless tire system for bikes in 1999.
Tire technology has resulted in a drop in rolling resistance.
A good place to check data on tires is bicyclerollingresistance.com
3
If drop handle bars are not your priority, I would also recommend considering hybrids with front suspensions.
Their advantages are the versatility and the price. They are jacks of all trades, master of none. They will be less good on roads than gravel/CX bikes and less capable offroaders than cross country MTBs, but better on road than cross country MTBs and ...
0
The bike style most suitable for your use is a reasonable drop bar bike.
Some time ago, the only reasonable drop bar bikes one could find were cyclocross and touring bikes. If you made the mistake of purchasing a "road" bike thinking you ride on roads and thus a "road" bike is optimal, you'll find the frame is reduced to such light weight ...
5
Gravel bikes, with gravel tyres, will indeed be a bit slower, but it is still a perfectly usable bike for road riding as well. I do not really see a meaningful difference between a road bike with cheap tyres and a gravel bike with more expensive tyres. I do most of my road riding on a gravel bike because I have a place for only one bike where I work.
Unless ...
22
"a decent chunk of money on one bike" this is a very slippery slope.
If this is your first bike, look for a used hardtail MTB for relatively low cost, and simply store any leftover money. You'll want to buy accessories over time like helmet, tools and lights and so on.
Ideally the fork would have a working "lockout" lever, to disable ...
4
Any of them would be fine, subject to tyres, and the ranges of geometries for each name overlap anyway, when you consider multiple manufacturers. A further category some manufacturers use is "adventure road". The frame can take a lot, but rough stuff can get quite hard on the rider if the bike isn't appropriate.
I take a (steel) tourer over all ...
11
A few considerations:
You have two competing characteristics here:
You want a bike that excels at the niche you enjoy the most.
You also want the bike to be capable of handing the other niches to an extent you’re happy with.
For example, if you enjoy road riding the most and therefore pick a road bike, you won’t be very capable off-road even though you ...
2
I've noticed the same, and largely blame the wind and tyres (same bike, but I've changed my tyres for ones that better handle mud on the road).
However there are 2 closely related factors that may play a part: nutrition and hydration.
Nutrition first: You're quicker than me, and I don't stop to eat so I assume you don't either. In winter gloves it's harder ...
0
Max safe speed on a bicycle? Wind, how straight the road is, position on the bike, and cars limit that.
There is nothing like the feeling of wind whipping as your ride down a hill. I have almost been blown over several times. I have seen others blown over and only at a speed of about 30 mph on a light hill and these were some of the top amateur guys at ...
0
I know nothing about these external things. Why do there seem to be more of them for sale than cartridge bottom brackets? Do they have larger, longer-lasting bearings? Would it benefit me to consider one as opposed to the cartidge BB's that I have been using recently?
There are two things that last longer with external bottom brackets.
Firstly, the bearings....
0
I have created a simulator for cyclist speed. Some results from that:
Continental Grand Prix 5000, the best overall tire, gives 28.5 km/h speed whereas Continental UltraGatorSkin gives only 26.3 km/h, at the same rider effort. Thus, variations in performance of slick tires alone can account for 2.2 km/h. If one of the tires has a tread pattern, the ...
Top 50 recent answers are included
