calling all weight weenies, advice on lightening needed

swagger

hi guys,

help me make my bike lighter! spec as follows:

Frame: 2007 spesh stumpy ht
Forks: rock shox j2
Bars: use atom carbon
Stem: thomson elite x4 90mm
Headset: cane creek
Grips: odi ruffian lock on

Front Brake Lever assy: shimano lx
Front Caliper: shimano xtr m965
Front disc: xt 160mm 6 bolt
Rear Brake Lever assy: shimano lx
Rear Caliper: shimano xtr m965
Rear Disc:xt 160mm 6 bolt
Hoses: shimano


Shifters: shimano lx
Cables: shimano xt
Front Mech: shimano xt
Rear Mech: shimano xt medium cage

Seat: wtb pure v race
Seat Post: thomson elite
Seat Post Clamp: standard spesh

Cranks: shimano xt
Chainring(s): 44, 36, 22
Chain: shimano lx
Cassette: shimano slx
Pedals: shimano m520
Bottom Bracket: shimano xt

Front Wheel:
Rim: dt swiss xr400
Spokes: unknown
Hub: hope pro3 straight pull
Tire: paneracer fire xc pro 2.1

Back Wheel:
Rim: dt swiss xr4.2
Spokes: unknown
Hub: hope pro3 straight pull
Tire: paneracer fire xc pro 2.1

Weight: 24.6

i know that the forks have to go. fitting some rebas/sids/foxes could save in the region of 2lb??

what else is worth doing to get the weight down, that isnt going to cost a mint?!
does any one know what the frame weight is? or how to find out bar stripping it down and weighing it?

and what can i expect to get it down to realistically? is 20lb unlikley?

many thanks
joe

njee20

Throw enough money at it and 20lbs is very doable, not cheap though, you'd be best replacing everything you have, save the frame. They're around 3.5lbs IIRC.

After the fork, Tyres and grips would be a cheap place to start, but nothings that light.

weescott

tyres and inner tubes. XT cassette. Shifters: Sram Attack. ever so slightly better than LX and cheap.

njee20

SRAM/Shimano is personal, and not going to save much weight, wouldn't bother with that, unless you don't like your LX ones.

XT cassette isn't that much lighter than SLX either, it's only the HG50 and below that are really heavy. A future upgrade when needed perhaps.

swagger

i have been thinking of changing the shifters.
was potantialy going to try sram, maybe changin to xo/xx over a loooooooooong period of time.

only ever t used shimano, i guess i need to try the sram out before i take the plunge.

if i keep the frame and ditch most of the other stuff what should keep and what should i aim to aquire?

i know alot of it comes down to what you like personally. at the end of the day, id like to eventualy get the bike down to 20lb. even if it takes a year(or 2!)

tah
joe

njee20

Like I say, it's doable, with reasonable kit, but you'd probably need to change virtually everything! You may get away with keeping your wheels, but you can still drop a chunk of weight from what you've got.

If you want to aim for 20lbs then go for it.

This was 19.7lbs with Rocket Rons and ti Eggbeaters. Other build kit was XTR/X.0 2x9, SIDs, Roval Controle SL wheels and New Ultimate finishing kit.

swagger

thanks njee20,

i think its going to be a slow process, was possibley thinking of changing the frame to a scott scale somewhere down the line.

out of rebas, sids or somthing by fox what would you recomend? theyre gonna have to be bought 2nd hand, as with most of the other stuff!

joe

fyldesmurf

Don't stand under a tree during a storm?

weescott

Where did Sram/Shimano come from? Sram Attack shifters are 2:1 Actuation ratio anyway. Performance wise they are just below XT. Pretty damn light too. The XT cassette is a major improvement for a few reasons: Rotational weight. overall weight, shifting performance, durability, acceleration...


It's one of the areas that you really notice the difference in quality and the benifits it brings.

njee20

The shifting ergonomics are different though, if the aim is to make the bike light and he likes how Shimano shifters work, and not how SRAM ones work it's a waste of money. Grip Shift would be the lightest solution.

On cassettes, an SLX is 282g, an XT is 256g, assuming his cassettes not worn out that's another waste of money, when spending the same amount could save him 300g on tyres! Theres no real durability difference either, and I'd even question the shift quality differences, they've all got roughly the same ramps. And I don't believe you can tell a real world difference in acceleration when you fit an XT cassette! I can't with an XX one over XT or XTR!

I'd get SIDs every time myself, particularly if buying second hand, too many Foxes need stantions at great expense!

benpinnick

NJee is right, beyond forks, tyres (& Tubes!) there's little big bangs to be had. You'll spend a fortune on each gram, and IMHO not notice much incremental improvement. As it happens your forks and tyres are pretty low performance in all areas, so that will be a real boost to the overall ride, as well as to the weight. Once they are done, id recommended replacing as you go through the bits on the bike.

To add to weescott's comment on XT, you forgot that the XT cassettes have a nice ping sound when you change gear. Very important that! Also worth a look to see if you can convert the Pro 3 hubs to take the new hope all in 1 cassette and freehub. That should shave quite a bit from the rear wheel.

supersonic

sell the thomson kit and replace with exotic. Will easily save over 100g, and make money!

elPedro666

Tyres (maybe go tubeless), grips, Thomson bits (check out Smica), brakes. After that you're really not going to get very far without throwing loads of money at every little thing.

Like everyone's saying though - tyres are the biggy and the thing you'll notice most 8)

damo2576

How much do you weigh? May be easier to lose weight that way, and cheaper!

SDK2007

Upgrades I would do first.
SID forks
Light tyres and tubes
SLX Cassette - HG80 : 11-28 (230g)

Later
Upgrade to lighter wheels
Grip shifters - SRAM X0
Carbon bar & seat post

I ran through a lightening process on my 2007 FSRxc bike earlier this year and got it down from around 30lbs to 24.2lbs including pedals. The upgrades cost about £1500 including fork, wheels and shock.

njee20

I'm not sure about the 12-28 cassette, that comprimises the gearing, I found when I used a road cassette that I spent more time changing on the front, which wastes more time than the weight loss saved, if that makes sense! I'd far rather go 2x9/10 than run a road cassette with a triple.

Carbon bars/post aren't necessarily light either, although those Exotic bits SS mentioned are great value.

SDK2007

I guess it depends on fitness, I rarely need to change down to the granny ring and if I do it's a pretty instant change.

njee20

But you have to change out of the big ring more, and it's more changing up, however well set up it is it'll take a couple of seconds off the power, do that 30 times a race and you've given away a minute. I personally just run a double up front and find it spot on. YMMV, but I certainly found a narrower cassette more limiting. You also don't get the chainline advantages that you do with a double. Maybe I just need to get as fit as you...

If the OP changes to X.0/XX in the future 2x10 is the obvious way to go anyway.

Anonymous

damo2576 wrote:

How much do you weigh? May be easier to lose weight that way, and cheaper!

Was about to say the same. Lay off the beer and pies and ride more. Massive weight saving, not to mention money

njee20

Irrespective of what you weigh a lighter bike is still nicer to ride though IMO! Unless bits snap!

SDK2007

Yeah agree and the benefit is huge if you do both

njee20

Well yes that's the best, but if a light bike provides the impetus to make one lose weight then great, why lose weight first!?

Dr S

I doubt you'll get to to 20lb,
My Kona is 21.2lb thats running a scandium frame, crossmax SLR's full xtr, reba world cups and fsa finishing kit...

However I reckon some sensible choices will net a real world 24lb and thats plenty light enough.

I'd start with the wheels and tyres.

Nick

njee20

Well it is doable, there's 12lb MTBs out there, and the frame's not carrying more than 1.5lbs over a Scale or whatever, but it will take a lot of money!

swagger

thanks for all the replys guys,

computer packed up so ive been off line for a few days.

as to what i weigh, i think im reasonably light at 65.5kg?

i had been considerering going the tubless route, mainly for its improvement in the puncture department. not that i get that many tho.

i ride 5 times a week and ive only had 2 punctures this year!
i dont want to start another "what tyres thread" but what tyres would you recommend for this time of year? tubless or tubed, and what light weight tubes? are some better than others or are they all much the same?

im tempted to go 2x9 at the moment as i cant remember having need use the granny since the cranks where fitted.

how does this work with the xt fr der and shifter? i know i can set the stops on the mech, but theres always going to be an etxra click on the shifter.

thanks again
joe

p.s, i dont drink and i dont eat pie!!!!

thel33ter

swagger wrote:

thanks for all the replys guys,

computer packed up so ive been off line for a few days.

as to what i weigh, i think im reasonably light at 65.5kg?

i had been considerering going the tubless route, mainly for its improvement in the puncture department. not that i get that many tho.

i ride 5 times a week and ive only had 2 punctures this year!
i dont want to start another "what tyres thread" but what tyres would you recommend for this time of year? tubless or tubed, and what light weight tubes? are some better than others or are they all much the same?

im tempted to go 2x9 at the moment as i cant remember having need use the granny since the cranks where fitted.

how does this work with the xt fr der and shifter? i know i can set the stops on the mech, but theres always going to be an etxra click on the shifter.

thanks again
joe

p.s, i dont drink and i dont eat pie!!!!

Generally 2*9 means getting rid of the big ring, not the granny. as for the extra click, if you set it so the middle click is the bottom chainring, then it should be fine.

Lightweight tyres - Maxxis Highrollers or maybe Ignitors, depending on your local trails, I managed with Ingitors all last year but it did get a bit sketchy at some points.

Lightweight tubes - Maxxis Flyweights are the lightest butyl tubes you get without spending silly money.

thel33ter

njee20 wrote:

Well it is doable, there's 12lb MTBs out there, and the frame's not carrying more than 1.5lbs over a Scale or whatever, but it will take a lot of money!

http://weightweenies.starbike.com/articles.php?ID=94 - 5.5kg, wouldn't trust a road bike that light, let alone an MTB.

njee20

Yep it was Heinz's Scale I was thinking of.

2x9 needn't be about just taking off either ring. I did take my granny off for a season, but there are no chainline benefits, I'd recommend going for new rings, I found 28/40 worked very well for XC, spent 90% of time in the big ring, and just dropped to the inner for really steep stuff.

The High Rollers and Ignitors are pretty weighty. For a good all round winter tyre the Bontrager Mud X is hard to beat, although still not that light. The Rocket Ron is a great all rounder, but they struggle a bit in the wet IMO.

Tubeless is a whole new discussion, I think it's great for the weight, pressure and puncture advantages. If you want light tubes then Conti Supersonics are among the lightest that are still sensibly priced. Wouldn't use them myself though.

njee20

And this is the lightest incarnation of the Scale, 10.79lbs. Sub 2lb fork anyone?!

supersonic

Pity his frame is such a porker!

He must have taking the damper out of that fork lol!

njee20

It's terrifying what he did, among other things he drilled a hole in the bottom of the crown, a reasonably big one too! There's a thread about it on WW. Not really usable though lets be honest!

Edit: here you go!

Get that Dremel out!