derrick
The Glue that binds us together.
- Location
- On the edge of London
Buy what you like. Its all about the feel good factor. If you are happy with your bike you will ride it more. There is lots of stuff out there to help you along.
Upgrading.
- Thread starter martin-g
- Start date
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wonderloaf
Veteran
I try to buy at a physical store using cash, doesn't show up on the credit card.
Shhhhhh....
DCBassman
Guru
- Location
- The lumpy far South West
Really? Really? This "hiding stuff" happens in the world of guitars and basses too. One guy only ever bought Fenders of a particular colour, to help with the confusion factor.I try to buy at a physical store using cash, doesn't show up on the credit card.
Shhhhhh....
If you were a keen cyclist/musician/whatever before your relationship, the other half knows what to expect and gets to live with it, always within the bounds of common sense and proper compromise. There is, IMHO, no place for the "well, now you've got me, you don't need all that" attitude.
Of course, if you ARE outside the bounds of common sense and proper compromise...
DCBassman
Guru
- Location
- The lumpy far South West
I'm not being entirely serious with this, but it is puzzling.
rogerzilla
Legendary Member
I have heard that you should buy all your bikes in black, because bikes all look the same to non-cyclists. Same theory as the guitars.
Which gives an excuse for a rubbish joke:
A woman is in court accused of murder.
"What's the charge?", the judge asks the prosecution barrister.
"She beat her husband to death with his guitar collection."
"First offender?"
The woman interrupts, "No! First a Gibson, then a Fender."
Which gives an excuse for a rubbish joke:
A woman is in court accused of murder.
"What's the charge?", the judge asks the prosecution barrister.
"She beat her husband to death with his guitar collection."
"First offender?"
The woman interrupts, "No! First a Gibson, then a Fender."
cyberknight
As long as I breathe, I attack.
- Location
- Land of confusion
If your looking to upgrade i would look at better wheels and tyres 1st
Dependant on your budget you can spend anywhere from£100 to £1-2 K +
I up graded mine to RS11swhich are nice wheels for the budget
https://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/shimano-pr-whls-rs11-clincher/
Dependant on your budget you can spend anywhere from£100 to £1-2 K +
I up graded mine to RS11swhich are nice wheels for the budget
https://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/shimano-pr-whls-rs11-clincher/
12boy
Guru
- Location
- Casper WY USA
An ounce on the wheel is a pound on the frame. Well maybe not quite.
overmind
My other bike is a Pinarello
- Location
- Reading, Berkshire
Invest in a tent and a camping stove and head for the coast (well once the spring comes)
... or invest in a bike box and head for Fort Lauderdale and then onto the Florida Keys.
One of my favourite all time video series.
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKSQjXmB0q8
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arlJG1_GiK8&list=PL5S7V5NhM8JQ17-FsABwJKWJmFFWU1uL7
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z81PJtgwAXE
I wish I could buy time.
... or invest in a bike box and head for Fort Lauderdale and then onto the Florida Keys.
One of my favourite all time video series.
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKSQjXmB0q8
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arlJG1_GiK8&list=PL5S7V5NhM8JQ17-FsABwJKWJmFFWU1uL7
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z81PJtgwAXE
I wish I could buy time.
chriscross1966
Über Member
- Location
- Swindon
If not mentioned before then a great upgrade is to clean your chain, cassette and mech and oil your cables :-).... Other things you might look at are transferable things, a good saddle makes a world of difference, but what defines a good saddle is your sit bones and preferred stance, the saddle one of us swears by might be a saddle the other one swears at..... Upgrading groupsets on a lower end machine is getting your priorities wrong (and this from a guy who routinely puts carbon Campagnolo cranks on Bromptons), I'd echo the above, good tyres will make any wheel feel faster, and good wheels are a lot easier transferred than most other parts, it is surprising how much difference a few hundred grams makes if it is one of the bits that you have to make spin (part of why I like Campy carbon cranks on my Bromptons :-)) , but really chucking 105/Ultegra/SRAM Force/Campag Potenza on a low end frame/wheels/contact points won't give you a much better bike..... better to sell the one you have and buy a S/H bike that is already at the level of the groupset that you desire....
confusedcyclist
Veteran
Fools and their money and all that.
If you really want to, save upgrades for when your old stuff is worn and can't be easily replaced like for like.
I went from 5700 (10spd) to 5800 (11spd) when my right shifter karked it... but later regretted not just buying a second hand shifter and saving £300 and the pain in the ass labour involved in swapping hubs.
I'm less inclined to upgrade these days, and have even begun to replace my pricey XT parts with alivio components on my commuter on account of massive savings, I haven't noticed a difference.
If you really want to, save upgrades for when your old stuff is worn and can't be easily replaced like for like.
I went from 5700 (10spd) to 5800 (11spd) when my right shifter karked it... but later regretted not just buying a second hand shifter and saving £300 and the pain in the ass labour involved in swapping hubs.
I'm less inclined to upgrade these days, and have even begun to replace my pricey XT parts with alivio components on my commuter on account of massive savings, I haven't noticed a difference.
Smokin Joe
Legendary Member
- Location
- Bare headed cyclist, Smoker
Can you define what fools and their money are, please?
confusedcyclist
Veteran
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/a_fool_and_his_money_are_soon_parted
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/foolish
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/money
Also see Cipolla’s theory on stupidity for more context on the term fool/stupid/misfortunate
http://www.quadllc.com/Quadrivium/B.../3/15_Prof._Cipollas_theory_on_stupidity.html
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Drago
Legendary Member
- Location
- Suburban Poshshire
You can upgrade to 105. It may feel a little slicker, but won't make you any faster. Be honest with yourself about what you're seeking to achieve...and then go for it.
Smokin Joe
Legendary Member
- Location
- Bare headed cyclist, Smoker
Except they are wrong with the broad brush they are using. If you spend five grand on a bike while you are struggling to feed yourself and you can't afford the rent you are indeed a fool.
But if your disposable income is such that 5k is only loose change you are free to indulge in such a whim, even if you want the bike just because you prefer the colour to your present one. It's all relative.
confusedcyclist
Veteran
Indeed, the proverb is never going to be one size fits all, and I would never present it as such, I wouldn't do precision work with a rule of thumb... but that doesn't make it unuseful. For the average Joe with an average income, upgrading from a £400 road bike to a £5000 road bike will not make them a better rider. Worse still, spending over a certain amount buys almost no improvement. The rule of thumb still applies to those with deep pockets, whilst £5K to a millionaire might seem like pocket change from the perspective of someone looking from the outside.... Typically millionaires don't stay millionaires if they throw their money around like it's going out of fashion.
The thing is, when you spend big money you are seriously long way down this S-curve. People who ride rarely would do well to buy somewhere between A and B, and serious hobbyists around C. Only those with deep pockets, or involved in elite competition should be looking to buy beyond D. Anyone doing so should be doing it full well knowing they are buying into a diminishing returns, if they do not realise, then they are by definition a fool. I am not throwing around insults. A fool is an ignorant person! Ignorance of the law of diminishing returns is ignorance, plain and simple!
Imagine the X axis is capital outlay in this argument.
Consider if most buyers are spending around D, and of course we know the market responds to what people purchase collectively, yet people who are buying around D but don't really need it and would be better served conserving their capital and stopping at C. They are considered foolish according to Cipolla’s theory. Spending 5K 'foolishly' harms the rest of society, because there is now less incentive for the market to build a selection of bikes around the value sweet spot (C). OK, I'm stretching the theory a bit here... but I hope you can see where I am coming from.
In the road groupset world, it just so happens the C in this argument is not Ultergra or Dura Ace, but a lot closer to Tiagra. 105 is pushing it.
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