£ per gram

[rockyraccoon]

I've been planning to upgrade some parts of my bike and wondering whether there is an accepted £ per gram figure that would be used to determine if buying something purely for weight savings is worth doing. According to my calculation on average it would be something like £0.25 per 1 g. This figure is based on the parts that I wish to upgrade. Is that realistic?

I understand all this is very relative and some people would pay anything to save a few grams. Also some parts such as wheels and tyres may improve the ride more than others so the reason to upgrade. Is that right? For example, would a £30 more expensive and 100 grams lighter wheels be better?

 

[2Loose]

Shimano m520 (£20) pedals are 100g heavier and cost £80 less than XTR pedals (£100).
Ultegra 9spd cassette (£50) is 7g lighter than a Tiagra 9sp cassette(£15).


I think your average cost per gram may be a little out.

Seriously though, it really is never that simple. The old "weight, strength or cost - pick any two" type arguments play a major factor with any decisions regarding engineered parts such as those on a bicycle.

You can buy light and cheap but end up buying the same thing much more often, depending on what you are trying to achieve.

It is widely recognised that reducing rolling weight (ie. off of the wheels\tyres\cassette) makes a greater difference to the ride characteristics of a bike than say, a lighter saddle. Less force is required to get lighter wheels rolling which makes it feel more nimble and responsive. This is why tyres and wheels are often deemed to be great starts in any upgrade.

 

[screenman]

Blimey I lost £16500 worth of weight off my bike last year.

 

[smokeysmoo]

At 7257.47792 grams, my CAAD10 Dura-Ace with Kysirium SL's works out at 0.39 pence per gram, or £181.25 per lb