Whats most important on a roadbike?

sarim67

what part of the road bicycle is most important? is it the wheels, the frame or the equepment? and why?

Slow Downcp

As the heart of the bike, I'd guess frame first - anything else can be upgraded over time. Then wheels/tyres, then groupset.

sarim67

i have a Jamis ventura elite 2007 with shimano 105 and shimano r500 wheels now, will this frame benefit a lot with lighter and stiffer wheels?

i am 190cm heigth an weight in at 95 kg..no fat ..only muscles.............:=))

skyd0g

It's the fool sat on top of it.

Slow Downcp

Tyres could make a big difference, depending on what you have now? Either Michelin ProRace 3's or Conti GP4000S

sarim67

its vittoria zafira 23mm on the bike now..have used them this season,,in norway the season its like april to oktober..but used the bike almost every day and no punctures!! but maybe the best upgrade for the bicycle will be a good set of tires then?

any suggestions for wheels upgrade?

sarim67

skyd0g wrote:

It's the fool sat on top of it.

edhornby

definitely the frame & forks first - then the wheels, then IMHO the saddle and bars (pedals maybe but then again, a pedal is a pedal) because these are the contact points

I think that groupsets are much of a muchness really, is there that much difference between tiagra or 105 ??? just pedal harder...

I'm debating on buying a really nice carbon frame and putting sora on it just to annoy the purists
(actually the real reason is that I've not ridden a road bike with gears since I was 12 years old and I don't wanna spend a huge amount of money on something that may not be right and will wear out eventually anyway)

edhornby

new wheel choice depends on your budget and whether you're a tt'er or flat road racer or climber - do you need lighter or more aero ?

macondo01

Frame and then the paint on the frame

sarim67

i have the r500 shimano now, have been looking for ultegra 6700/6600 wheels? maybe fulcrum 3? seems like the fulcrum 3`s are very stiff and solid wheels? but i like the shimanos almost silent hubs..--

i`m riding a lot of hills.......and mountains.......but also a lot of flat terrains....

Jimbo.

1) Frame, forks. It is "the" bike.
2) Tyres. Rotating mass (v. important, as it impacts upon acceleration, braking and handling), grip, ride, comfort. Note this includes "tyre pressures" as well as the tyres themselves.
3) Wheels. Rotating mass (see above), comfort.
4) Groupset.

Of course, all the above fall behind "the rider" and "fit" in terms of what's important!

mattward1979

Rider:Bike interface.......

One riders cack is another mans four grand titanium beast... If it feels crap between your thighs, its not right for you.....

a year ago when I started, my arse was my focus... so seat height and padding were most important... Now its all about shoes and cleats... next month im sure it will be spacers and stems.

its an ongoing process and no answer is right to 100% of cyclists 100% of the time.

Splottboy

Brakes...

bompington

I'd say it's the wheels. After all, try riding without them.

dcab

skyd0g wrote:

It's the fool sat on top of it.

many a true word?

giant_man

it's the FIT for gods sake .....

northernneil

the colour - and making sure it matches your kit

sarim67

Brooks b-17 saddle and its black..:) very good seat indeed..actually only my 42 toshiba lcd tv makes me more happy ...and when watchin tv i`m on the trainer......... 8)

Anonymous

surfmatt wrote:

It has to fit in the boot of my BMW 330d SE touring when I am on my way to and from a triathlon. It does 0-60 in 6.8 seconds.

Mike67

I had the same combination of wheels and tyres as yourself on my new CAAD9 last year.

They are both good, reliable bits of kit but are pretty heavy in combination.
From memory (not got the figures to hand), the wheels were pushing 1.9 kg and the tyres were 350g a piece.

Swapped to Easton EA90s and Conti 4000s and saved around 750g of rotating mass, which on a sub 10kg is a fair proportion.
The bike certainly feels a lot more lively and responsive now.

I say 'now' as I keep the wheels for Summer only and ride the original combination in Winter...roll on Summer

sarim67

..thank you for sharing your experiance, seems like a nice set of bike and wheels you have got yourself there !!:) my experiance is also with the r500 and the vittoria tyres, that it is heavy.. but a reliabel set! i\m maybe looking for more aerodynamic wheels..then maybe the weight dont matter as much? shimano rs30 seems even heavier than r500 but lot more aerodynamic..? anyone tried out the rs30?

or can tell me the difference og aerodynamic wheels and normal type wheels?

kingrollo

Slow Downcp wrote:

Tyres could make a big difference, depending on what you have now? Either Michelin ProRace 3's or Conti GP4000S

+1
I couldn't believe the difference when I popped my pro race 3 's on - awesome

Squillinossett

Tyres/wheels for me.

oscarbudgie

1. Frame - its why an alu CAAD9 frame beats most entry level carbon frames
2. Wheels.
3. Groupo

softlad

sarim67 wrote:

what part of the road bicycle is most important?

The rider - without one, the bike is useless....

All this talk of wheels, frames and carbon bling is very nice - but the biggest and cheapest performance upgrade for any bike is to put a better rider on it...

Pross

Got to be the frame but not on the basis of it's weight or the material it is made from but in how it fits you and how comfortable it is. After that I'd say wheels and tyres. The groupset is pretty irrelevant to performance until everything else is right although it is obviously nice to have the best you can afford.

STEFANOS4784

sarim67 wrote:

what part of the road bicycle is most important? is it the wheels, the frame or the equepment? and why?

The legs that power it, because otherwise it's just a bunch of scrap

Squillinossett

Squillinossett wrote:

Tyres/wheels for me.

I thought you were on about components, if frame is included, then that, the difference between my 1.5 and Boardman Carbon is huge, is stiffness and how responsive it is.

Mike67

softlad wrote:

but the biggest and cheapest performance upgrade for any bike is to put a better rider on it...

Yes, but someone else would then be riding my bike

Skippy2309

quite easy really.... The Saddle if the saddle is not comfortable you are not going to ride the thing and riding without a saddle does not bare thinking about :shock: