Help me build my dream bike

HarryB

I've been reading the wealth of information and banter on here for several weeks and am very impressed with the breadth of knowledge, forceful opinions and helpfulness of the forum.

Right that's the arse-licking over, now I need your help.

I returned to road cycling last year after an absence of many years doing other sports. While my main sport is indoor rowing (yes it is a sport) I have enjoyed my cycling so much (currently riding a Scott CR1 pro) that I've decided that next year I'm going to buy my dream bike.

I've already decided that I'm going to have a Pinarello Paris frame but have no strong opinions as to what components to put on the frame. I have a completely open mind and welcome any views and opinions. I'm happy with my ultegra on my current bike but have had Campag in the past and been impressed with that.

I'd like to thing £4,000 is top whack for the bike but could be persuaded to spend more. I'll be using the bike for long rides, possible sportives but have no intention of racing or time trialling.

Over to you . . .

kevin_stephens

I'd go to a few good local bike shops, explain what sort of riding you want to do on it and they should be able to come up with some good packages and A PROPER FIT

dangerousjules

chris king headseat(pick a colour), campag record, thomson masterpiece seat post and stem, arionne saddle titanium rails. wheels would need a thread of its own... this spec is the same as my moots road bike...pure pleasure to ride...go on treat yourself!

aracer

dangerousjules wrote:

chris king headseat(pick a colour)

Interesting idea, given the Paris takes an integrated headset :roll:

Have to ask why not the Prince for an ultimate bike?

dangerousjules

sorry never really look at pooperello frames!

HarryB

According to my LBS the Paris frame is a better option for the type of riding I'll be doing. Prince is more suited for racing. Pinarello's website suggests the same.

Without wanting to ignite the whole campag/shimano debate, what's the advantages of going for the more expensive record group set over dura-ace?

I'm really baffled about the wheels. Any help would be appreciated.

Although I realise the Pinarello frame is not the lightest carbon frame out there, I'm keen for the bike to be as light as possible.

portuguese mike

HarryB wrote:

According to my LBS the Paris frame is a better option for the type of riding I'll be doing. Prince is more suited for racing. Pinarello's website suggests the same.

Without wanting to ignite the whole campag/shimano debate, what's the advantages of going for the more expensive record group set over dura-ace?

I'm really baffled about the wheels. Any help would be appreciated.

Although I realise the Pinarello frame is not the lightest carbon frame out there, I'm keen for the bike to be as light as possible.

In a nutshell: Record is lighter (over 200g), will probably last longer, in my experience needs less attention to keep it running smoothly (though some other peoples experiences will no doubt differ) and, crucially, it looks way way better IMO.

On a personal note, though, it's worth stating that the reason i got campy in the first place was because i found the ergo levers more comfortable fro my hands than STI so that may be a consideration for you.

APIII

Deda Newton shallow drop bars and Newton stem are inexpensive, light and continue the Italian theme. Campag Chorus cranks have only a small weight penalty vs Record and are considerably cheaper. I would spend the most you can on the wheels. Although I have no experience of them, Campag Shamal's seem to be highly rated, and they are available in a silver finish for 08 (think they're called Titanium Ultras).

Monty Dog

I went over to Campagnolo after years of frustration over the lack of serviceability of Shimano parts - and having bought my first Italian frame, I wasn't going to hang anything else on it. These days, it's a tough call between Record and Chorus - trying to justify the extra £100 for the Record chainset for about a 30g weight saving is difficult, for example. I'm not sure abou the Thomson seatpost - there are nicer looking sculpted carbon posts that are more in keeping with the style of the frame e.g. the Pinarello or FSA ones. Likewise, for a sportive bike, all day comfort is important - look at something like the FSA 'shallow drop' carbon bars - a friend has a pair and raves about them. Wheel-wise, for all-rounders, a pair of Open pros on Record hubs will be plenty strong and fairly light. Unless you're going to spend upwards of £400 on factory wheels or want something to match a specific colour scheme - DT1450s in white, Shamals in gold or Fulcrum Racing reds for example - depends what colour of frame you're looking at.

dcj

I have had use of a £5k dream bike for 3 years with RECORD groupset, Mavic SSCs and £2.5k frame. It rides like a dream however for various reasons I need another machine too.
I recently purchased a £3k bike with carbon frame and DURA ACE.

The dominant cost component choice of my £3k bike is the wheels - a pair of carbonsports lightweights which on their own retail at nearly £1900. The performance improvement is frankly amazing. The combination of tubs and extreme high performance wheels transforms all of my training routes.

This experience has changed my perception totally about what proportion of budget is good to spend on wheels/tyres.

If the fastest bike is what you are looking for, with £4k to spend, my advice would be spend just under half your budget on the wheels. You can bring these into that kind of budget by going for CHORUS or DURA ACE instead of RECORD, and functional bars/stem instead of £200 carbon bars for example. Maybe if you are definitely going for the Paris, the £4K will have to be breached.

Although top line components and frames are tempting, my experience is they add little to performance compared to good functional stuff, whereas the best wheels have a massive impact on the riding experience.

Like yourself, I ride sportives (including the 2005 and 2006 Etape).

Garybee

dcj wrote:

The combination of tubs and extreme high performance wheels transforms all of my training routes.

You really use a £2k wheelset for training rides?

dcj

yep
why spend lots of money on something you hardly ever use?

Garybee

dcj wrote:

yep
why spend lots of money on something you hardly ever use?

I use a cheap, strong wheelset for training on a cheap, strong bike. This way when i'm out on a club run or training with others i have to work that bit harder than i otherwise would. This bike is set up exactly the same as my road race bike (with respect to saddle position/bar reach etc.) so when i jump on my race bike everything feels exactly the same, just faster. If i trained on my race bike then i wouldn't have to work so hard on the sprint for the top of the hill/sign.