Climbing Bike Questions

[Holy Warrior]

Specifically what makes a good climbing bike, aside from the rider!

I've just done the Black Sheep Challenge (there's a thread on it in the Charity ride section) which is a very hilly route in the Yorkshire Dales. I did it on my Halfords Carrera TDF bargain basement road bike and the hills were a struggle but I did manage to ride up every one, sometimes crawling, but I still got up them all.

There are many reasons for me wanting a new bike, namely the fact that after 5/600 miles its starting to show wear and tear. It punctures a lot and rattles and such. And weighs nearly 12kg. Before now I didn't want a new bike because I didn't know if I was really that in to cycling but I know now that it isn't a fad.

Now I ask what makes a good climbing bike because that is mainly what I need the bike to do. If i can afford a bike around 8kg will that 4kg make a lot of difference? What chainset suit big steep hills but also long winding downhills? How do I check my current bike's ratio so I can tell you how my present one feels?

Edit: My price range would be in the £450-£600 bracket and I would want this bike to last me if not a lifetime, a very long time.


Thanks.

 

[StuAff]

4kg will most definitely make one hell of a difference. Gearing will certainly help though as well- on the Viner (give or take, 8kg) I can manage most climbs with a compact and 12-27 cassette. On the Trek (10 kg), still fine, but then I have a triple and 11-32 (!) on that, though to date I haven't gone lower than the 28 tooth. You'd have to go second-hand to get that on your budget though, and still be lucky to find something legit...
Just looking at the current specs for the TDF at halfords.com, says 52/39 chainset with 12-26 cassette. Definitely not ideal for the Yorkshire Dales, I'd say. Just switching to a compact (50/34) or a triple chainset would help immensely.

 

[raindog]

Light weight is a must for climbing, but especially very light, rigid, good quality wheels.

 

[smutchin]

Light weight is a must for climbing, but especially very light, rigid, good quality wheels.

Yeah, you might find spending your £600 on new wheels makes more difference than spending it on a whole new bike.

d.

 

[Holy Warrior]

Really, even with the heavy frame smutchin?

Thanks for the advice on chainsets and stuff guys really appreciated.

Looking round for possible bikes I think it may be a trip to a few LBS', can't find much online really. The likes of wiggle and decathlon are a bit expensive/ shite haha. One I really do like is this though: http://www.wiggle.co.uk/basso-devil-xenon-2011/ thoughts?

Any suggestions?

 

[StuAff]

Really, even with the heavy frame smutchin?

Thanks for the advice on chainsets and stuff guys really appreciated.

Looking round for possible bikes I think it may be a trip to a few LBS', can't find much online really. The likes of wiggle and decathlon are a bit expensive/ shite haha. One I really do like is this though: http://www.wiggle.co.uk/basso-devil-xenon-2011/ thoughts?

Any suggestions?

Really. Given the straight choice between losing weight on the frame, or the wheels and tyres, the latter wins...you'll feel the benefit more as it's rotating weight.

 

[biggs682]

so ok i have a light bike but if iweighed 3 stone more would a bike a few kgs lighter make less differance than if i lost a couple of stone !

 

[StuAff]

so ok i have a light bike but if iweighed 3 stone more would a bike a few kgs lighter make less differance than if i lost a couple of stone !

Obviously, losing the weight off you would have more health benefit than just buying a much lighter bike. But, everything else being equal, lighter bike=better climbing, faster acceleration.

 

[black'n'yellow]

[reality check mode] seriously - there is no such thing as a 'climbing bike'. People are good at climbing - bikes are not. A lighter bike might give you a minute or so if you were riding up alpe d'huez, but it really is the engine that counts more - not the bike.

I know you want to hear about rotating weight, power transfer and stiff bottom bracket shells - but I promise you if you went out and bought a £4k uber-bike tomorrow, you would not notice any appreciable difference in your climbing ability.

Get a new bike by all means - but don't expect it to get you up hills any quicker. [/]

 

[smutchin]

Obviously, losing the weight off you would have more health benefit than just buying a much lighter bike. But, everything else being equal, lighter bike=better climbing, faster acceleration.

True, but for most people, there's more scope for losing the weight from themselves than from their bike.

My road bike is about 9kg. I could fit lighter wheels and tyres, maybe lighter handlebars too, but they're going to save me 2kg at most. At my level of performance, that kind of margin just isn't worth the cost. Plus I run heavier tyres because they're more reliable so lighter tyres would actually make me slower because I'd be stopping to fix punctures more often.

On the other hand, I've shed 12kg off my body over the last 9 months and the difference it has made to my climbing ability is HUGE.

d.

 

[StuAff]

True, but for most people, there's more scope for losing the weight from themselves than from their bike.

My road bike is about 9kg. I could fit lighter wheels and tyres, maybe lighter handlebars too, but they're going to save me 2kg at most. At my level of performance, that kind of margin just isn't worth the cost. Plus I run heavier tyres because they're more reliable so lighter tyres would actually make me slower because I'd be stopping to fix punctures more often.

On the other hand, I've shed 12kg off my body over the last 9 months and the difference it has made to my climbing ability is HUGE.

d.

Not arguing with that- I did say, everything else being equal...and as you rightly note, the law of diminishing returns most definitely applies to bike components. To lose more than about half a pound off the Viner (and that wouldn't be cheap to do itself) would cost me £000s.

[reality check mode] seriously - there is no such thing as a 'climbing bike'. People are good at climbing - bikes are not. A lighter bike might give you a minute or so if you were riding up alpe d'huez, but it really is the engine that counts more - not the bike.

I know you want to hear about rotating weight, power transfer and stiff bottom bracket shells - but I promise you if you went out and bought a £4k uber-bike tomorrow, you would not notice any appreciable difference in your climbing ability.

Get a new bike by all means - but don't expect it to get you up hills any quicker. [/]

Er, yes it will....I'm absolutely certain I'm faster up Ditchling Beacon, by a small but significant margin, on the Viner compared to the Trek, and it certainly feels easier. But you & Smutchin are also right that the rider's the key element. It was a little depressing on one of the Brighton FNRttCs to see one of our number, with a Bianchi Infinito (equivalent in spec and weight to my own bike), at the foot of the Beacon already in her 34x27 gear, who'd seemingly decided (i) she wasn't going to be able to ride all the way up and (ii) that she needed to buy the Campag 12-29 cassette for the bike. I wondered to myself if she'd then decide she needed a mountain rear derailleur, 34x36.... No, she needed to decide she could get up there (maybe not that day, but to decide she could) and learn to climb.

 

[biggs682]

+ it would be cheaper to lose body weight than to buy a lighter bike

 

[Holy Warrior]

I agree whole-heartedly with the suggestion to lose body weight but that really isn't an option for me, i'm lucky to be slim and in good physical health. A point proved by being able to get up one of the toughest climbs (only slight exaggeration) in the dales on my Carrera. I have climbing determination and some skill - which I know will only get better. The Beacon example is good generally but I don't think it's the case with me.

Another question here about gear ratios, I find that currently on slight downhills and more what happens when i reach about 30-35 mph is that my pedals turn but there is no more power (spinning out?) so I've just to rely on gravity to go quicker which is annoying as I love the thrill of going quickly. Would a 50/34 make this worse than on a 52/39 or isn't it as simple as that?

I've been cycling since the start of last summer now properly and had the bike longer. It's the same in any sport that once you put the time in you upgrade to better equipment. For example I also do martial arts, you start off with the basic clothing then once you become more adept you upgrade to better clothing - it's just the same in cycling? As I said above, i'm realising that this isn't a fad for me and I want to do more charity rides, sportives and one-day/ weekend cycling trips. Much the same as you guys in here, you are not still on your basic bikes, you are on Viner's and such.

 

[StuAff]

If you're spinning out, a smaller chainset would indeed make that 'worse' as it lowers the overall gearing (assuming you had the same cassette- changing that to one with an 11-tooth top would mitigate that to an extent). A triple would keep the top end gearing and help more on the climbs as well.

 

[oldroadman]

There's some nonsense on here! 12kg is too heavy, and likely the wheels are not great either, so what you get is a heavy and unresponsive ride. Think 9kg max (still 20lbs in old money), and decent wheels - you don't need deep section carbon or anything like that, just something like Mavic SSC are good.
It would be best, on a budget, to keep away from Halfords, look at secondhand (but never ebay), or have a word at LBS as kit painted or styles in "last year" colours/specs can sometimes be had at silly prices.
For "ordinary" (not competition) riding, Shimano 105 or similar is good, 9-speed will be cheap and less wearing on chains, aluminium frames dent rather than break unlike carbon. Pay for decent tyres 25-28 mm(look at Schwalbe for a start) and if you don't mind a daily top of of air, use latex tubes for a much nicer ride. Later on you'll forget you ever spent as little as £600 once the bug bites....