Upgrading a Giant

NathanJ

Hello,

I am completely new here having only just bought my first road bike after switching from a MB. I bought a second-hand Ginat Defy 3 (09) for a very small ammount and am very pleased with it on the whole.

Now apologies if this is in the wrong place, but I was wondering if it would be worth upgrading some of the slightly worn scuffed parts like the stem, seatpost and handlebars? They are a bit worn and dont look great so I was wonderingt if it was worth putting new FSA or Ritchey parts on for example, and would this make any difference other than cosmetic?

I dont want to spend a fortune on it as it wasnt an expensive bike but could put some cash on it if it makes it look a little smarter and perform a little better. I realise better wheels would probably help too.

Thanks,

Nathan

SCR Pedro

Here's what I did to my Giant. The seatpost made no difference; the shorter stem and narrower bars were necessary.

The biggest differences to performance were the chainset and wheels, although I don't have a photo of the new chainset on the bike.

Before

After

Cheers

pedro

topdude

Changing those tatty parts won't make much difference but if it makes you feel good then why not
As above, think about the stem and bars, what do you want from them.
Shorter stem or different angle.
Wider / narrower or more compact bars.
This would be the opportunity to tweek the bike to fit you perfectly

TommyEss

Yep - cosmetic only really.

I've got a Defy 3 also, and the only changes I've made so far are new wheels (trickled-down some Mavics off my Cannondale when I got Fulcrum R3's for that) and the saddle, cos I didn't get on with the Giant one.

The brakes, mechs etc are getting upgraded as they wear out only - since it's a winter bike, I've ridden those parts into the dirt. Same for other wearing parts really.

But bars, stem etc - just cosmetic - you won't get much performance or weight difference. Remember the seatpost is a weird 30.9 mm as well - there aren't loads of those post diameters around - majority seem to be 25.4 (1"), 27.2 ("standard") or 31.6 (oversize)

jimmcdonnell

What would an upgraded Giant be, anyway? A Behemoth? Juggernaut? Leviathan?