why is my bike so heavy

R.lepecha

my bike is only just sub 35lb, and it seems by what i've read most hardtails are about 27-29lb's

spec:
Handsomedog Talisman(steel) frame,
RST Omega TNL forks,
Continental Gravity Rear Tyre,
WTB Velociraptor Front tyre,
XT Rear Derailleur,
Acera Frnt Derailleur,
Tektro IO brakes,
Handsomedog Sumo bars,
EA30 Stem+Seatpost,
WTB Rocket V saddle,
8 Speed shimano HG40 cassette, HG40 Chain and RPM CK755D Octalink Chainset.
MACH1 Subzero Wheels.

is it because its a steel frame?

Oxygen Thief

Steel frame would make sense.

ravey1981

The steel frame should only add a couple of pounds at the most...

The reality is that non of the components on you're bike (apart from perhaps the xt mech) could be considered light-weight. So is an addition of many heavyish parts that makes up the total weight.

Main offenders are likely to be the wheels, forks, chainset perhaps...

It depends how bothered you are about weight but if i were you I would look to replacing the wheels and forks with lighter models, should also make the bike ride a lot better too...

butcher of bakersfield

I'd agree with wheels and forks. But also stuff like handlebars...are they alu or steel? Alu parts like that are very light, and can cost very little. If they were steel, it would make a difference. Not so much by themselves, but added up...

R.lepecha

the wheels arnt exactly heavy though. sub 2100g for the set. and just got the forks so no chance, i dont spend loads on forks, they work. i dont like realy soft forks.

R.lepecha

butcher of bakersfield wrote:

I'd agree with wheels and forks. But also stuff like handlebars...are they alu or steel? Alu parts like that are very light, and can cost very little. If they were steel, it would make a difference. Not so much by themselves, but added up...

there alu.
and they dont weight much more than my ea30's i bent.

supersonic

Have you weighed it correctly?

The frame is very light for steel at 4.3lbs.

Dirtydog11

Your current forks alone weigh 2.4Kg and your wheels around 2Kg. Whereas a light fork would weigh around 1.5Kg, and wheels the same at around 1.5Kg.

So there's a 1.5Kgs saving there. I Don't know what your frame weighs but I guess it would be around 2-3 Kg wheras a lightweight alu frame would be closer again to 1.5Kg. Its not to difficult to see how you could drop 2-3Kgs

R.lepecha

supersonic wrote:

Have you weighed it correctly?

The frame is very light for steel at 4.3lbs.

i wieghed it on scales so yeah its done properly really. and yeah it is quite a light steel frame,

Dirtydog11 - yeah but wheels weighing that much are going to be 200+ for the set, and fork would be like 400. like i have that sort of money on me. and yeah the frames a replacement because i cracked 2 aluminium frames. and steel is stronger plus steel makes a better trail bike because it rides smoother.

blister pus

800g each ish for front and rear tyres will feel like your dragging a dead body about sometimes

pastey_boy

a few years back i had a talisman built up with some quality bits , sids, hope/mavic wheels and lightweight carbon finishing kit and it easily weighed less than 25lbs. your weight problem seems to be caused by everything but the steel frame (and rear mech)

R.lepecha

pastey_boy wrote:

a few years back i had a talisman built up with some quality bits , sids, hope/mavic wheels and lightweight carbon finishing kit and it easily weighed less than 25lbs. your weight problem seems to be caused by everything but the steel frame (and rear mech)

yeah built up using xc race forks. probably rather light xc wheels and a carbon finishing kit, all money i dont have.

Louis84

Surely its the fact that pretty much all the components on the bike are only middle of the road. Not really top end spec. Although there are only a few grams between each components (ie the weight difference between Easton EA30 and EA70), these all add up. Like they say, every little helps.

If you want a lighter bike you'll have to buy lighter (and unfortunately more expensive) parts

pastey_boy

you will be surprised how much you can build up a light bike for. ebay and the classifieds are goldmines for bargains. ive built many bikes up from parts bought only from ebay and the finished articles have been amazing value for money

Andy B

pastey_boy wrote:

you will be surprised how much you can build up a light bike for. ebay and the classifieds are goldmines for bargains. ive built many bikes up from parts bought only from ebay and the finished articles have been amazing value for money

Indeed, I have a 100mm travel 27lb steel hardtail that I built up for ~£500. Orange Clockwork frame Reba forks, X7, X9 & XT, SLX, Hope, Thomson, Schwalbe, Mavic...

Mostly bought from forums & ebay. If you look around long enough you can find loads of bargains.

Louis84

Be patient in finding them though. Its just so easy to crumble and spend spend spend!

R.lepecha

its taken me 6 months to get my bike to this point. and i dont quite just have the money there when something pops up on a forum at a realy good deal.

D-Cyph3r

R.lepecha wrote:

pastey_boy wrote:

a few years back i had a talisman built up with some quality bits , sids, hope/mavic wheels and lightweight carbon finishing kit and it easily weighed less than 25lbs. your weight problem seems to be caused by everything but the steel frame (and rear mech)

yeah built up using xc race forks. probably rather light xc wheels and a carbon finishing kit, all money i dont have.

Jesus christ stop whining then. No one can expect to buy/build a sub-25lbs lightweight XC machine without the money. If you really, really want a lighter bike work overtime, get an interest free credit card or rob a bank....

R.lepecha

when im 15. yeah that works. i never actualy asked for people to recommend ,e what to buy, i asked why it seemed so heavy.

butcher of bakersfield

D-Cyph3r wrote:

R.lepecha wrote:

pastey_boy wrote:

a few years back i had a talisman built up with some quality bits , sids, hope/mavic wheels and lightweight carbon finishing kit and it easily weighed less than 25lbs. your weight problem seems to be caused by everything but the steel frame (and rear mech)

yeah built up using xc race forks. probably rather light xc wheels and a carbon finishing kit, all money i dont have.

Jesus christ stop whining then. No one can expect to buy/build a sub-25lbs lightweight XC machine without the money. If you really, really want a lighter bike work overtime, get an interest free credit card or rob a bank....

To be fair, there's a big difference in asking for a sub-25lbs bike and asking for a sub-35lbs bike...

Seriously, I'd try weighing it again. On some different scales. Failing that, save your dinner money...

Raymondavalon

R.lepecha wrote:

when im 15. yeah that works. i never actualy asked for people to recommend ,e what to buy, i asked why it seemed so heavy.

Perhaps it's a combination of gravity and the fact your bike just sucks?

bike-a-swan

time to get used to the fact that this is the time when you get fit riding a heavy lump and get to mock people who complain riding lighter bikes. My old bike (£150 lbs jobbie) was significantly heavier than a friends coiler but it kept me fit. Eventually decided I wanted to spend the money to upgrade, scraped some cash together, and put something decent together. Just something to put up with I'm afraid.

Dirtydog11

R.lepecha wrote:

supersonic wrote:

Have you weighed it correctly?

The frame is very light for steel at 4.3lbs.

i wieghed it on scales so yeah its done properly really. and yeah it is quite a light steel frame,

Dirtydog11 - yeah but wheels weighing that much are going to be 200+ for the set, and fork would be like 400. like i have that sort of money on me. and yeah the frames a replacement because i cracked 2 aluminium frames. and steel is stronger plus steel makes a better trail bike because it rides smoother.

I have simply pointed out three items that I would regard as heavy. As it turns out your frame is pretty light for steel. You mentioned nothing about budget and why would money even come into it when the question was why is my bike heavy?

armymankin

just ride what you have... it is a never ending story to pursue the lightest bike.
take a dump before the ride, that should save a couple hundred grams.

supersonic

I don't think your scales are correct.

RichMTB

You could always travel to the moon you 35lb bike would only weigh 5.5lbs there.

Might be less hassle to replace some of the heavier parts though, start with the tyres

RichMTB

You could always travel to the moon you 35lb bike would only weigh 5.5lbs there.

Might be less hassle to replace some of the heavier parts though, start with the tyres

The Rookie

Google "weight weenies" and go to the listings pages, it will give you an idea of the weights of your bits relative to others.

35lbs still sounds heavy, my daughters cheap and cheerful commuting MTB (Shogun Jackal) only weighs that (ally frame but cheap steel forks).

A bit anal maybe, but when I built my commuter, and doing the same with my MTB I weigh every part before bolting it on so I know where its overweight and where its competative, so for future upgrades I can look at cost/weight saving very objectively!

Simon

Dirtydog11

I bet he's sorry he asked.

SDK2007

With your current kit you're at the point where saving weight is actually very cheap.
Like a earlier poster mentioned - you could save 3.5kg (7.7lbs) by upgrading a few key components totaling around £400-£500, that's around £12 per 100g weight saving.

By comparison i'm at the point where I need to spend £200 to save 100g in weight.

Upgrade in stages to spread the cost.

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jadamson

this thread just all seams a bit pointless to me :?

why ask "why is my bike so heavy?" and then we tell you (heavy component's) and you say you don't have the money?

what did you really want out of this thread?