Your most effective upgrade?
DonDaddyD
Posts: 12,689
Whether out of necessity or sheer vanity, many of us have or will buy a bike and upgrade a part of our bike. The hope, whether in real terms or placebo, is to make an improvement.
Some of us end up with completely different bikes to the ones we originally bought; this before wear and tear eats the original parts.
Wheels, followed by tyres and then arguably saddle are the most commonly changed parts of a new bike.
But I ask, What was your most effective upgrade*?
*(Effective in terms of desired effect)
Some of us end up with completely different bikes to the ones we originally bought; this before wear and tear eats the original parts.
Wheels, followed by tyres and then arguably saddle are the most commonly changed parts of a new bike.
But I ask, What was your most effective upgrade*?
*(Effective in terms of desired effect)
Food Chain number = 4
A true scalp is not only overtaking someone but leaving them stopped at a set of lights. As you, who have clearly beaten the lights, pummels nothing but the open air ahead. ~ 'DondaddyD'. Player of the Unspoken Game
A true scalp is not only overtaking someone but leaving them stopped at a set of lights. As you, who have clearly beaten the lights, pummels nothing but the open air ahead. ~ 'DondaddyD'. Player of the Unspoken Game
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Wheels....faster, quicker, harder, more......0
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Bar tape, every time.Mud - Genesis Vapour CCX
Race - Fuji Norcom Straight
Sun - Cervelo R3
Winter / Commute - Dolan ADX0 -
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Mine is my Bontrager xxx lite seatpost.
Yes it is stupidly light, but its not the lack of weight. My carbon seatpost does eliminate pretty much all roadbuzz (vibrations) from my aluminium frame and that improves comfort, greatly.Food Chain number = 4
A true scalp is not only overtaking someone but leaving them stopped at a set of lights. As you, who have clearly beaten the lights, pummels nothing but the open air ahead. ~ 'DondaddyD'. Player of the Unspoken Game0 -
My turbo trainer which I then used to upgrade me.0
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Fair play. If you're not comfortable on the bike then summoning up the enthusiasm to go out for a ride is that much harder... so saddle should also be high on the list. Most 'race' bikes are sold with saddles made for euro racing snakesDonDaddyD wrote:Mine is my Bontrager xxx lite seatpost.
Yes it is stupidly light, but its not the lack of weight. My carbon seatpost does eliminate pretty much all roadbuzz (vibrations) from my aluminium frame and that improves comfort, greatly.0 -
Effective depends on what you're after.
If comfort, then saddle.
If looks, skin tight jeans, asymetrical haircut, ironic t-shirt, cards in your spokes etc
If speed, I read somewhere that aerodynamic improvements give you the most bang for your buck.
For aero, I would guess position, wheels, lycra, aero water-bottle and holder, aero helmet, lycra overshoes etc.FCN 3: Raleigh Record Ace fixie-to be resurrected sometime in the future
FCN 4: Planet X Schmaffenschmack 2- workhorse
FCN 9: B Twin Vitamin - winter commuter/loan bike for trainees
I'm hungry. I'm always hungry!0 -
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I'll cut to the chase here and point out Planet X have reduced the Fulcrum 1's
http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/WPF ... her-wheels
Dear Santa......
Someone wiser than I once pointed out that the most effective upgrade for a road bike was a quality chain cleaner and lubricant.
I'll also post the obligatory Eddy Mercx quoteDon't upgrade rides, ride up grades“New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!0 -
Saddles and tyres for me. Tho' I've upgraded everything over all the bikes.0
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Pedals. The conversion from flat plastic to spd was a revelation, once I'd got used to them.
Although rack and panniers was probably the most effective considering the desired effect was preventing a sweaty back on the commute.0 -
where do I cast my vote for my pump?
Ahh yes - another biased poll - not even an option for "other" - bit like your age poll isn't it?Want to know the Spen666 behind the posts?
Then read MY BLOG @ http://www.pebennett.com
Twittering @spen_6660 -
Tyres for me. I went from 4 punctures in 2 weeks to 1 puncture in 5 months. They are also grippy as anything in the wet. They are also the only thing I've changed on the commuter ride.
Next up is definitely going to be pedals though.FCN - 10
Cannondale Bad Boy Solo with baggies.0 -
On the road bike its got to be wheels as they made such a difference to the speed/feel of the bike. Funnily on the mountain bike it was the tyres simply for the grip which gave better feel & in turn gave me confidence to faster. So you could say the same outcome but a different way to get to it.Pain hurts much less if its topped off with beating your mates to top of a climb.0
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I'd have to say that the two thing which made the biggest difference to my enjoyment of my (mountain bike) riding were a) a track pump and b) good quality allen keys.
Suddenly the bike worked so much better. The number of annoying mechanical plummeted and any work Ihad to do became so much easier.0 -
Needs a "new bike" option.
I upgraded my 20+ year old 531c racer to a carbon fibre last year. World of difference.0 -
Wheels every time. Not even a complete wheelset, the rims will do.
Lighter of course to reduce weight and most important, reduce the wheel's Moment of Inertia.
The closer the MoI is to the hub, the easier the wheel is to accelerate.0 -
for me it has to be upgrading from the southeastern rolling stock to my tricross sport
Hat + Beard0 -
spen666 wrote:where do I cast my vote for my pump?
Ahh yes - another biased poll - not even an option for "other" - bit like your age poll isn't it?
I guess the "desired effect" most people have in mind is "going faster". So I can understand why 'bicycle pump' wasn't on there
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Seatpost for me.
I got one with a big old 3.5cm setback. Suddenly so much more of my leg (and ass) muscles were being used and I could sustain speed for loads longer.0 -
Bobbygloss wrote:Pedals. The conversion from flat plastic to spd was a revelation, once I'd got used to them.
Although rack and panniers was probably the most effective considering the desired effect was preventing a sweaty back on the commute.
Ditto for me on both points.0 -
The annual removal of mulitple lights and the excess layers of clothing, usually around March. That makes a masssoooof difference.
Mechanically? Replacing a pair of old & well-worn but comfy shoes with a pair of decent Specialized road shoes earlier this year. Huge imporovement, more so because I didn't expect it.0 -
chainset few years ago up to a 48 big ring.Le Cannon [98 Cannondale M400] [FCN: 8]
The Mad Monkey [2013 Hoy 003] [FCN: 4]0 -
Cheap dual pivot super long drop in place of original centre pulls on the 531
I now have brakes which work
It's just a hill. Get over it.0
