Would a modern lighter bike make me cycle faster

[vickster]

lot of bike for a monkey

Didn't know monkeys generally ride bikes?

 

[Smokin Joe]

Don’t think a saving of 2-3kg bike weight is gonna make you climb any faster. The bike is a very small part of the overall package.
What makes a slight difference in my opinion is the frame material. Carbon is usually stiffer than other materials and allows for faster acceleration and therefore faster hill climbing.

Two to three kilos is going to make far more difference to your climbing than the little bit of extra stiffness you get from a carbon frame. Modern thinking seems to be moving to the opinion that stiffness in a frame is an over-rated trait anyway.

 

[Shortandcrisp]

Two to three kilos is going to make far more difference to your climbing than the little bit of extra stiffness you get from a carbon frame. Modern thinking seems to be moving to the opinion that stiffness in a frame is an over-rated trait anyway.

You could be right although I’m not sure. Rider + steel bike = 90kg, versus rider + carbon bike = 87kg. Is that really gonna matter that much - and the heavier you are the less it will.

Agree about the carbon stiffness thing to a degree. Modern bikes have simply become too stiff for the average punter. I had a Cervelo S3 for a while. So stiff I generally felt that I didn’t have the fitness or power to make it work properly, although that doesn’t change my opinion that carbon does offer some benefits for climbing.

 

[fossyant]

2 x 9kg steel road bikes here from the early 90's. The modern stuff isn't faster. But, N+1 is the answer.

 

[simonali]

Didn't know monkeys generally ride bikes?

View: https://youtu.be/CwexQZdrFmM

 

[Crook Town AFC]

Hi and hope your all well.
Currently my daily ride is an early steel framed Peugeot road bike weighing in at around 13 kg,s....

Just caught up with the discussion and by coincidence I'd just finished listening to a podcast where this type of topic was discussed. Might be worth a listen, it's a few years old but just as relevant.
I have nothing to do with said podcast, I came across it when I was looking for TdF podcasts other than Bespoke and the ITV TdF podcast last month.
Look on iTunes for the VeloNews Podcast then find Fast Talk, Ep. 5: What would you do with $2,000? Talk was of lighter bikes but also of better wheels (probably not on a classic), getting a professional bike fit and even choosing a better saddle, all to improve overall performance.

Regards

Dave

 

[midliferider]

There was a very interesting experiment carried out by a doctor and published in the British medical journal. Here is how it was reported by the BBC and other newspapers

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-11958903

 

[midliferider]

I have done my own experiment, doing the same route in roughly similar conditions over the weekend in 4 different bikes. It is 30 mile ride. I found that I am fastest in my carbon cube 16.7 miles per hour. Next is btwin triban 3 at 15.5 miles per hour, then two hybrids specialized sirus at about 13.5.
But I always find the triban more comfortable, perhaps it is a better fit than the cube.

 

[johnnyb47]

Brilliant posts and thank you all for your input. It seems there's a much degree of views on this, but on balance a lighter more modern bike seems to be the way to go to gain slight gains in extra overall average speed, especially when hills are involved. Call me old fashioned but I do like older bike styles. I can spend hours on end polishing old style aluminium brake levers etc to an inch of there life and admire the bright colours that old retro bikes were once painted in. Modern Bikes of today often come in more subdued colours and the components are less likely to be made of raw polished aluminium that gives a bike that extra quality look of days gone by. On the flip side though , modern day bikes may well look generally understated but there far more efficient and user friendly. Horses for course :-).Since taking up cycling again I've manage to lose around 2.5 stone in weight and would still like to lose another stone. I'm currently weighing in around 88 kg at 6ft tall. At the moment I'm starting to think it would be cheaper and more beneficial to lose another one of my six bellies and five chins as to spending £££s on a bike a few kg,s lighter. Maybe after losing a little more weight I should then consider a lighter bike to propel my ageing body along the roads a little faster. At the moment I've still got scope to lose weight and when I've reached my ideal weight I can look at other ways of saving weight as in a lighter more modern bike :-) :-) :-)

 

[freiston]

Here's a video exploring the difference that weight (and money) makes:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NF4MIEkIBZs


And here's a bit of reading on the subject:

https://www.velopress.com/bike-weight-and-the-myth-of-fast-bikes/

 

[Globalti]

My BIL is a cyclist similar to the OP, doggedly sticking to his old school steel bike with downtube shifters, leather saddle etc. etc.

We persuaded him to come to York for the Cyclist magazine track day where he test-rode lots of exotic carbon bikes and a couple of alloy ones too. Next thing we knew, he had bought a Specialized Roubaix. "How do you like it?" I asked him. "Still getting the setup sorted but I'm easily ten percent faster on my regular rides" was his reply.

 

[screenman]

I remember when I was more of a full time cyclist, but not so well off and did the London to Brighton a few times. There were plenty of people who had bikes much nicer than mine, but when we got to any uphill bits I was having to climb twice as far, due to zig-zagging around all these rich twats pushing their 5 grand Cannondales up the hill!

Nasty term to use, more successful in the earning stakes than you would have been better.

 

[Milkfloat]

At the moment I'm starting to think it would be cheaper and more beneficial to lose another one of my six bellies and five chins as to spending £££s on a bike a few kg,s lighter.

Why not do both? A new bike would provide even more motivation to get out riding. You are also approaching a good time of the year to find bargains.

 

[IanSmithCSE]

Good morning,

I might be the only one but I would say don’t do it.

The main reason being that as you are already riding a lot of miles I suspect that you may be disappointed with bikes in the price range that you have indicated.

They are all entry level models so would be offering very little in way of upgrades from what you already have excepting frame wright, and possibly wheel weight.

Unfortunately the various fora are full of stories about new cheap wheels having a short working life.

Having an extra gear or two may be nice.

For years I have been riding a 531 Ribble with downtube shifters and 8sp but reasonably well spec’ed, mostly Ultegra/NOS 600 or 105, this weighed in at around 24lbs.

The whole STI shifters, and aluminium/carbon frame thing passed me by and I was quite happy but recently I was wondering what I was missing and bought a second hand but virtually unused Carbon framed thingie with 10spd Ultegra DI2 which comes in at 18lbs.

For me the speed differences are tiny and mostly seem to be related to the carbon feeling better going down hills fast and with Di2 I am more willing to change gears for a short period of time. It may also be that I tend to ride a lot in 50x17 on the carbon and 52*19 on the steel, my current level of fitness would benefit from an 18 sprocket cassette.

I ride 4-6 days a week mostly doing 2 days on the steel and 1 on the carbon, then back to the steel and I really struggle to feel the difference in speed, I need a speedometer or a clock to tell me.

I prefer the ride of the steel and have only kept the carbon as I am hoping that one day I will "get the point".

Bye

Ian

I ride mostly around the Worcestershire area which includes the Malvern Hills. http://www.malvernhills.org.uk/home/

 

[Deleted member 26715]

Coming from somebody who has no clue on this but remember back in the 80's I upgraded a Raleigh Milk Race from friction type gears to some form of Shimano (I think) indexed type gears, this made a big difference to my riding, if you're happy with the bike & it suits your purpose maybe just a gear upgrade is the way forward. Although you may get a whole 2nd hand bike for the same cost as new components.