How best to improve my 2005 Trek 1400

garnett

I'm starting to a bit more riding than in the last few years since I bought my bike:

2005 Trek 1500



Frameset
Sizes 50, 52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 63cm
Frame Alpha SLR Aluminum
Fork Bontrager Race
Wheels
Wheels Bontrager Select
Tires Bontrager Select, 700x25c
Drivetrain
Shifters Shimano 105 STI
Front Derailleur Shimano 105 T
Rear Derailleur Shimano 105
Crank Bontrager Race 52/42/30
Cassette Shimano HG-50 12-25, 9 speed
Pedals Alloy road, sealed, w/clips and straps
Components
Saddle Bontrager Race
Seat Post Bontrager Carbon
Handlebars Bontrager Select, 31.8
Stem Bontrager Select, 31.8
Headset Slimstack, sealed
Brakeset Alloy dual pivot w/Shimano 105 STI levers

I'm wondering what I should do to upgrade it. I've had it serviced, and I've fitted new innertubes and tyres.

I'm wondering about a new set of wheels. Would a £150 set (Mavic Askiums, Shimano RS30s, Planet X Models B, C or A57s be much of an improvement?

I'm not a small rider - about 95kgs - so advice on wheel strength would be really ehlpful too. The Bontragers have lasted 5 years and a lot of road and potholes, without any problems whatsoever.

nferrar

Wheels > Frame > Misc stuff would be the order I'd do it on that bike (although drive train wear & tear might mean that's upgraded earlier anyway). If £150 is your budget then the Planet X B would likely provide a noticeable improvement over what you have, it wouldn't be a massive difference though. If you can get towards £400 then something like RS80's or Kysrium Elites would provide an even more noticeable benefit.

garnett

Thanks NFerrar. The bike cost me £600 new 5 years ago, so I'm not sure about £400 wheels. The bike's a good match for my fitness level I'd say. Could only justify more than £150 expenditure when I lose a bit more bodyfat!

LazyLoki

How do you find you ride on the bike? Are you comfortable over long distances and in using the drops?

While upgrading the wheels first is almost always the best way to spend your money, unfortunately wheels are expensive and at around the £150 mark you're still looking at fairly entry level stuff from the big names.

The reason I ask about comfort etc is that if the bike is running well since being serviced and you don't want to spend any more than around £150 on an upgrade, I'd be tempted to say to save some of your cash just now and maybe consider going for a professional bike fitting.

A lot of people ride around on bikes that aren't ideally set up without really noticing but having a bike properly fitted can make a big difference to your comfort and performance. Just an idea but if you do suffer from discomfort on the bike then a proper fitting would probably make a bigger difference than any upgrade you could get for £150.

LazyLoki

Oh, and is that the picture of the bike from the Trek website?!

I only ask as anyone riding a bike set up like that would definitely benefit from having a fitting!

The set-up of those handlebars/shifters is horrific!

garnett

Hehehe. Yes, it's a generic pic (of what they call the 1500 but which is specced and painted exactly like the bike that was sold to me as a 1400).

Thanks for the suggestion about getting a fitting. Against all advice, I bought the bike online, got a size down from what seemed like the ideal for my size, and set it up myself. That said I'm really comfortable on it. I've done a couple of longish rides the last 2 weekends (80km & 95km) and apart from a small bit of saddle soreness and some numb hands, I had no complaints. Started riding for longer periods in the drops last weekend for the first time (to try and allieviate the numb hands) and found it surprisingly comfortable and oddly satisfying.

That said, my setup is slightly similar to the setup in the picture, albeit as thought someone put their hand on the join of the stem and the handlebars and pushed straight down - my stem has much less of an upward agle, and the bars in that picture would need to be rotated anticlockwise about 35°.

I think I might need to post a photo.