Heavy bike versus light bike

[Banjo]

My best bike is a Scott Speedster 2009 weighing about 20 lbs .It has 105 groupset and triple chainrings. Not light by modern standards but much lighter than my 29 lb Jamis tourer which I use as a winter trainer /tourer/whatever bike.

Things I love about the Jamis:- Comfortable steel frame,load carrying capability, handles rougfh road surfaces with ease ,mudguards keep drivetrain and me clean ,It just feels nice to ride .

Downside. Hard work on hills.

Things I love about Scott:- Floats uphill,Handles like a thoroughbred,slick gear changes.

Downside High maintenance keeping gears adjujsted ,drivetrain cleaned etc .No luggage capability.
Stiff frame beats you up on rough roads/long distance.

This is a completely pointless post , just me trying to (publicly) sort my head out.

 

[youngoldbloke]

Lighter every time for me. I need all the help I can get. I'm sure wheels (and tyres) make the most difference, lighter and stiffer the better, even at a modest price level. You can still fit mudguards to a light bike. As for 'high maintenance' of gears - one bike has Veloce, one Tiagra, and at most I only have to tweak the cable tension once or twice a year, if that, covering 2 - 3000 miles on each.

 

[sidevalve]

The advantages of a steel frame. IMHO only by spending a LOT of cash can you improve on a good steel frame. My Dawes, by no means a top of the line model and a good few years old still only weighs in at a smidge over 24lbs rides sweetly over the rough bits and hasn't really needed any fiddling with since I sorted it when I bought it a year or so ago. With better top quality tubing [853 perhaps] a lighter saddle [I LIKE the Brooks] and good components a steel bike is still very hard to beat.

 

[Shut Up Legs]

I have a 33lb tourer, a Vivente World Randonneur, which for the past 4 years I've ridden everywhere. It was not just my commuter bike, but recreational bike, too, and I've done a great deal of mountain climbing on it. I have to admit the new road bike I bought 4 months ago, a Specialized Roubaix Expert SL4 handles the climbs better, as it only weighs 17.5lb, but the tourer still has a better gear range, and is definitely more comfortable on longer rides. They each have their good points .

 

[BSRU]

Have you considered a CX bike?
I am thinking about buying a CAADX, as light as my road bike but takes a rack and big mudguards/tyres.
It is sort of in between my tourer(main commuter bike) and my road bike(sunny day bike).

 

[Chris S]

29lbs - heavy? My Batavus weighs about 40!

 

[MontyVeda]

...
Downside High maintenance keeping gears adjusted ,drivetrain cleaned etc
...

I don't understand why you have to keep adjusting the gears... the only time my gears need attention is when i change cable.

 

[biggs682]

keep it steel

 

[derrick]

I don't understand why you have to keep adjusting the gears... the only time my gears need attention is when i change cable.

He runs Shimano

 

[tyred]

29lbs - heavy? My Batavus weighs about 40!

Lightweight. My Rudge must weigh 50lb.

Funny thing is, with a 42" bottom gear, it is more capable on the hills than I ever thought possible.

 

[Chris S]

Having a heavy bike is a good incentive to keep your own body weight down - it helps you do it as well!

 

[shouldbeinbed]

My best bike is a Scott Speedster 2009 weighing about 20 lbs .It has 105 groupset and triple chainrings. Not light by modern standards but much lighter than my 29 lb Jamis tourer which I use as a winter trainer /tourer/whatever bike.

Things I love about the Jamis:- Comfortable steel frame,load carrying capability, handles rougfh road surfaces with ease ,mudguards keep drivetrain and me clean ,It just feels nice to ride .

Downside. Hard work on hills.

Things I love about Scott:- Floats uphill,Handles like a thoroughbred,slick gear changes.

Downside High maintenance keeping gears adjujsted ,drivetrain cleaned etc .No luggage capability.
Stiff frame beats you up on rough roads/long distance.

This is a completely pointless post , just me trying to (publicly) sort my head out.

Similar feelings about my Coppi roadie and Cannondale Ute bike. I always use the Cannondale if I'm feeling a bit meh, it is way heavier and the alfine 8 doesn't have the fine differentials of the derailleur but its almost as comfy as my 3 piece suite and sometimes all I want is a serene if slow ride with a papmered a**e, safe in the knowledge my neck and back will be just as happy at the end as they were at the start.

 

[MontyVeda]

He runs Shimano

so do i... even my £7 Acera dérailleur didn't need any further tweaking once set up.

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

I used to ride one of these which weighed in at approx 187lbs (85kgs) unladen:

After that, any bike seems light.

 

[MacB]

Bunged my allrounder on the scales and it weighs in at 37lbs or 17kg, that's kitted out with full guards, rear rack, front and rear dynamo lighting and a rackpack with tools and spares. That doesn't feel especially heavy to me and I can't imagine getting all the kit I want on a utility bike at a much lighter weight. But then my lightest weight bike is about 27lbs in stripped down mode. I can't deny they lack acceleration and zippiness but they are also more comfortable over poor surfaces and longer distances.

I have a personal promise that I will treat myself to something really lightweight when I have the body mass and fitness levels to do it justice. I don't think my bank balance is living in too much fear of this one.