I Think I Am Going To Look Like A Kn*b!

mascott

Hi
My name is mascott and I have a problem!
<waits for caring compassionate looks....>


well I am trying to work out how I have ended up in this predicament.

I am hoping that a few of you have been there and some sensible ones will show me the light.

I am passionate about being out there on my bike, I have an aging Spec Sequioa with has served me well and is about to become my winter bike.

I decided after much research to go for an entry level Merckx "Gara" (£600 F+F), on arrival at shop this was instantly changed to mid range "racing" (£850)

After long delays in delivery importer offered a discount but instead i upgraded to "premium"....£lots.....

wheels............ in the bike shop I looked at a set of Zondas (£270)....very nice....... eventually bought Shamal Ultras............£500

groupset........... initially veloce..........thought about centuar...............now trying to get a deal on chorus............

i havent even started on all the other stuff......

this is obviously my dream bike. and i really cant wait to get out there, but am I going to notice the difference between centuar and chorus??wouldnt those zondas have been great for me.
I cycle everyday to work and back 25 miles and 50ish at the weekend on my own, and this year I want to join an easy going club but I dont really imagine me racing (who knows).

i feel like i am building up some race bike for some elite rider and then putting a slightly lardy (poor) fool on it.....

so
help.....tell me to go for the centuar groupset......tell me to stop reading reviews on stuff I dont need........

hit me round the head with a crank set (carbon though...........)

now wheres that review of 08 record groupset..... :?

Mog Uk

Welcome to the never ending money pit....

If you can afford it and it makes you happy then fair enough... just be sure to post up some pictures of the bike when you get it, sounds like a stunner..... 8)

cyclingfury

Mascott. Never analyse cycle shopping. It's a lovely experience just as it is. Don't break it into little pieces.......

il_principe

The truth is that none of us really need the top-level kit - we're not Pro-Cyclists after all and TBH I doubt the pros even need half of it. But the way I look at it is this: Cycling is my hobby and the source of a great deal of pleasure. If I can afford top level kit then why shouldn't I have it? Just think what some people spend on cars, or golf or even smoking!

If you want it, and can afford it then why not have it.

simbil1

So long as you don't ride it in the winter muck, it will no doubt make you happy.

You will notice some small differences to performance and your brain will greatly amplify the small increases into big ones that are more in line with the big bucks you have spent

redddraggon

mascott wrote:

help.....tell me to go for the centuar groupset......tell me to stop reading reviews on stuff I dont need........

I've got the 2008 Centaur - It's ace, some of the components have only a slight difference to the chorus - not worth it IMHO.

SDP

would eddy have settled for centaur??...then do his frame the honour of having chorus at least

mascott

i knew i had put this plea for help on the wrong forum
I should have put it on "senisible cyclists . com"

oh well..........if the missus finds out I can blame most of you.......

heavymental

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7189947.stm

Lets be honest. You don't Really need it to be top notch. When it comes down to it. Once you bolt on the Centaur and head off down the road you'll be happy as larry and won't even think about the Chorus. Obviously you'll be wringing you hands in the shop when paying for it, wondering if you've made a mistake but as the Centaur is, essentially, functionally the same as Chorus you'll get over it. Its the same with most purchases, unless it goes wrong on you or is clearly worse than the more expensive option then you'll grow to love and appreciate it.

Its all very well making jokes about the money pit of cycling, and if you can afford it then thats great but be careful. The money you save going for lower spec could pay for a weeks cycling somewhere hot or a few weekends away in the UK. Splashing out on the Chorus won't actually make you any happier. Flying down off the Tourmalet or sipping coffee at the top of Alpe Du Huez will make you happy. Even if you're on a BMX! Plus, a week away in the hills makes you faster than any componentry choice will.

I'm nearing the end of a bike build and had to be honest with myself. I decided that the only reason I was salivating over Record/Chorus as oppose to Centaur was because of the word written accross the component, for the sake of a few grams and a bit of snobbishness I decided I'd save my money and go for Centaur as it will serve me just aswell. Ok, I picked up a couple of Record bargains....a brand new 2004 chainset for the same price as a brand new Centaur and some second hand brake calipers but I wasn't going to pay double for things like mechs and shifters that won't be any worse in practice.

I don 't want to put a downer on a light hearted thread but you've got to put it all into perspective. Don't think it'll make you any happier. You're at the top end of the graph of diminishing returns at this point. Centaur will be great and you'll be a happy boy riding your lovely bicycle. Spend the money you saved on some experience for the soul.

Mog Uk

mascott wrote:

oh well..........if the missus finds out I can blame most of you.......

Just study this following article

http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/humour-how-to-justify-your-next-bike-12570

cee

I often find myself looking at pro level kit......

My method of dealing with the drooling is to say to myself...

"What is the likley hood that I will use the part to anywhere near its full potential" and "Would I even get close to the full potential of the next nodel down".

I continue this unitl I say actually, I am already utilising the kit to its full potential, so its time to upgrade.

At the end of the day, its easier to lose a pound of body weight than lighten the bike by that much.

Of course that strategy goes well until the shinyshiny eyes start interfering with the thought process!

Monty Dog

The price/performance difference between Centaur, Chorus and Record can be quite significant - if you find ourself wincing at the difference and affordability is the issue, then stick with the Centaur. I'd find it really hard to justify Record stuff when Chorus is virtually identical save for a few ti screws and carbon bits. It may be worth stretching to the Chorus shifters as they have the older, more adjustable ratchet for the front mech. Sounds like your bike is going to be a 'keeper' anyway, so you'll get plenty of chance in the future to lavish new parts and continue the affair...a bit like keeping a mistress really!

mascott

heavy mental........ you should offer couselling...........

you are of course right.........i am looking to get up in the pyrenees this year.

i am riding around on an old spec and everyday I dont use it and drive I hate it. It works just fine and has done LEJOG and 100 miles plus per day when required.....
The enjoyment is from actually cycling along and I guess I dont want to loose sight of that...

this bike is a dream bike for someone like me. so I probably wont cry too much if I spend that bit more..... as you can tell i cant decide!

ARRRRRRRRRRRRGH

mascott

monty .....

you are so right....this is a "keeper" alright!

(centuar heads into the lead!)

redddraggon

mascott wrote:

monty .....

you are so right....this is a "keeper" alright!

(centuar heads into the lead!)

£400 for Centaur from Merlin Cycles - bargain. My bike built up with Centaur is really light.

mascott

yes .......yes ........ I cured!!!!!!!!!

maybe.

heavymental

Well yeh. Its tricky isn't it. Once you have you heart set on something its hard to look beyond. I just bought a pair of Eurus for my bike but Zondas would have been fine. But then I justified it because next to the frame, the wheels are the most important thing and mines a bit of a dream bike build too.

I was set on buying a Colnago frame or something Italian at one point. When my Scott CR1 came up for sale second hand I thought long and hard, read the reviews, looked at the pics and thought some more. The reason I didn't make the decision was because it wasn't Italian and I was jibbering about it. In the end I thought to myself "what if, where it said Scott on the downtube, it said Colnago or Pinarello, would I buy it without hesitation then? And would it be any better?" The answer was Yes to the first and No to the second. At that point I realised I was a snob for the big names! In the end I though "Fck it, its a top frame for a good price and it looks great". So I bought it and have no regrets. The Colnago would probably not have ridden any better or looked any better, it just all came down to the name. Its the same with the Centaur/Chorus. It won't look or ride any better. Whats more important to you? The fact its a bit lighter or the fact it has Chrous written on it?

I'm not trying to talk you out of it. Just that its painful to see money frittered away just for no reason! But if you're loaded or you don't care then go for it! But give it a few days and the decision will become clear.

sloboy

The only mistake you can make in bike buying is to buy one that doesn't suit your intended usage. That will bug you every time you use it, but for kit levels Centaur, Ultegra etc etc all work beautifully, so not to worry too much.

This is one of the interesting parts of bike buying - you can come to know yourself better. So will Record make you happier ? For some people, actually it would. Cos their intent was to build the best bike they could.

So, I'll coin a new term "rightbuying" and starting selling self help kits, priced at 13.99 and consisting of a coin, on one side of which it says "this one" and the other side it says "that one".

Here's how it works - when faced with a buying decision you reduce it to a choice between two. Then toss the coin to find which one to buy. The magic is that you don't decide which option is "this one" and which option is "that one" until after you toss the coin. That way you get to know your heart's true desire by seeing how you fix the result.

Hope to have these kits in the shops for Christmas - should help fund my next bike !

andy_wrx

What I guess you need to do is make your decision and be comfortable with it, not decide on something today but with niggling doubts, or let those doubts surface before too long and so you end-up upgrading, then it'll cost you even more to buy something twice rather than spending more in the first place.

My 'best' bike has Ultegra and I'm happy with it - doubtless 105 would do the job just as well but I wanted Ultegra, but I didn't want Dura Ace nor ever see myself wanting it.

As others have said, riding down the road you'll not notice the difference, all will perform the function impeccably.
But if it makes you feel good about the bike and yourself so it motivates you to use it more or dare to do more with it (e.g. thinking to yourself "I can do the Etape because I've got the kit"...) then it's worth it.

mascott

will you be doing the "right buying" coin kit in carbon?? I dont want to buy a standard one and then find out I could have saved 0.1micro gram of weight. (this would make the coin easier to toss)

sloboy

mascott wrote:

will you be doing the "right buying" coin kit in carbon?? I dont want to buy a standard one and then find out I could have saved 0.1micro gram of weight. (this would make the coin easier to toss)

Actually there IS a special carbon one, made with the input of top coin-tossing pros. So you can be as big a tosser as <<insert name of favourite pro here>> and to make it simple with the pricing, the specials are available at only 139.99.

Bargain !

And if you can't decide which rightbuying kit to buy, let me show you my new "Ultimate"

redddraggon

When I was speccing my bike build, (initiated really by getting a Nero Corsa for £450), I decided to spend roughly £450 on each of wheels, frame, groupset. I ended up with the wheels and gruppo a bit cheaper than planned and that, largely, paid for the tools and a bit of work the LBS had to do.

I think it's important to set an overall budget, and not make too many compromises to get one thing better than another. I could have got Chorus on my build, but that would have probably meant Khamsins, Fulcrum 7, 5s (or similar) on my build.

Centaur + better wheels >> Chorus + lesser wheels.

portuguese mike

As far as the the whole 'using a top bit of kit to its fullest potential' concern goes my reasoning is thus: i am fat and slow compared to a pro - so i need all the help i can get.

incidentally i had the same dilemma last summer and i ended up getting mostly chorus cos i wanted the carbon cranks and the more adjustable shifters but i mixed it with centaur brakes and front mech becasue they are basically exactly the same (in fact its only the brake blocks that are different AFIK) and i'm very happy with my choice.

pliptrot

The ownership of a fine bicycle is reward in itself - nice machinery has intrinsic value. If we all bought equipment which was "not too good for us" then Campag would make such small quantities of the finer things that these things would be totally uneconomic. Out here in Texas you see some arresting sites - very, very expensive bicycles under very, very fat people, and I've seen similar things (on a slightly more modest scale) back home in Hampshire.

I say good for them. And you. And me.

sloboy

pliptrot wrote:

The ownership of a fine bicycle is reward in itself .

Permission to use that as my sig on some other forums I frequent ! That is a profound and bijou observation.

heavymental

pliptrot wrote:

If we all bought equipment which was "not too good for us" then Campag would make such small quantities of the finer things that these things would be totally uneconomic.

I say good for them. And you. And me.

Very true.

Mascott, I've changed my mind. I think that bike would just look unbalanced without either Chorus or Record. Course, Record isn't just sooo shiny but it'll work flawlessly for many years too. Hell, its only money at the end of the day. Build something sweet and post the pics here! Take the foot off the decision brake and roll on down to the shops to buy those shiny shiny things.

another jacko

Whatever you do, don't buy your 'ultimate bike' because all you can do then is ride it and you might discover that, after all, it's just another pushbike.

The alternative approach is to equip your bike from the cheapest range e.g. Xenon. In fact it will work as well as you will ever need it to, but you can justify (to yourself)upgrading it more easily than if you had top end kit already. So you do, one piece at a time until the bike is fitted with a full set of mirage...then veloce...then centaur..etc. Same with wheels, saddles, bars, stems, pumps and bottle cages. Then replace the frame and start again with the next years upgrade of everything you've upgraded before. Don't miss any stage out or you might not avoid never quite getting to the 'ultimate'.

If you have several bikes you can spin it out for even longer by spreading the upgrades between them. Don't fall for 'trickle down' - remember that the parts you've upgraded will have been used at least half a dozen times and, therefore, be virtually worn out now, that's why you had to replace them (darling).

Done this way you never have to just 'go for a ride' either - it's always a series of test rides, trying out and then fine tuning each new component.

SDP

but putting a lower end groupset & finishing kit , wheels etc on a £premium frame is tantamount to treason !

being serious Centaur or above on this frame if it has to be campagNOway ...
chorus would be nice...

spend any savings on contact points..bars/saddle & pedal...

mascott

This is it................

The Final Decsion................

Chorus.
Why.? I don't bloody know! :oops:

SDP

mascott wrote:

This is it................

The Final Decsion................

Chorus.
Why.? I don't bloody know! :oops:

good man....now for the finishing kit .....

mascott

SDP wrote:

good man....now for the finishing kit .....