Taking best bike off road for winter

bjl

Just wandering when you will be taking your pride and joy off road and how you will store it. I have a nice custom steel which is def coming off road as soon as the first sign of roads being gritted. Just bought some crud roadracer guards and might fit them on to carbon road bike and use it on the better parts of winter. Daughter away at uni so think steel frame is going to stay in her bedroom , wife's not going to be happy though

Wirral_paul

bjl wrote:

Daughter away at uni so think steel frame is going to stay in her bedroom , wife's not going to be happy though

Why wont your wife be happy? Your bike will surely be cleaner and more hygienic than your average student!!

MattC59

Mine went on the turbo last night. Over the last week, it's been very windy, very rainy, or both. (or dark by 4:30pm !), and with the forcast for this weekend not looking good, I bit the bullet and put the bike on the turbo. That's not to say it'll stay there, but for now, my winter miles will be in the dining room

(My Mrs won't like the fact that I moved the dining room table to do so, but she's in Chicago at the moment )

tipped

Nothing coming off the road - although once there's salt around I'll more likely than not stick to the hybrid while it's at its worst.

Apart from that just Race Blade's and more patient post-ride treatment is all I have planned. This is my first year of biking through winter though so if I've ruined a cassette by February I might need to rethink it for next year.

Forecast for this weekend is OK here - looking forward to it after the wind and rain of the past week

martincashman

Carbon bike up on the trainer since end of October and will stay there until start of April; live in an apartment, so when it takes more than a quick wipe to clean, it's time to hibernate.

Back on the full mudguard aluminium and steel 13kg beast for the next 4 months, it's horrible in the wind and on hills but keeps me a lot drier in the wet and doesn't suffer so much from being unloved.... one concession is that I'm currently converting it to 10speed from 8 with a cheap Microshift upgrade as I want to train on cadence and a jump from 100rpm to 85rpm on once gear change isn't helpful.

DavidJB

Haha love all the comments about unhappy WAGS mine gets so pissed off with bikes and bike clothes/parts indoors its untrue

Hinzy9

I'm still trying to convince mine to let me get a trainer for the kitchen (the only room thats feasible in our house) but she's not budging!

I've started to overplay the dangers of cycling in the dark, wind, rain etc in the hope she'll back down on the grounds of safety. Perhaps a minor crash would do it.....hmmmm..... :?

okgo

I will be using the same bike all year, and I'll buy a new one next year and use the current Ribble as a winter/training bike.

For people in London I think the 'winter' is hyped up a lot and its not really that bad when its not snowing.

Afterall a bike is metal, as long as you clean it every now and again and keep it lubed its fine, they don't melt.

cyberknight

Commuting road bike gets used lal year around, apart from when its icy and i switch to the semi slicked MTB .

"weekender " will probably be staying off the road atm but its fairly new so i am still in the " Oooh shiny " mode with it.

Thelittlesthobo

What is it that you guys think the winter will do to your bikes?

Is it the fact that you may have to strip it down and regrease everything, maybe replace some cables or is there something the winter will do to your bike that i am missing?

cyberknight

Effects on bicycle
[edit] Salt and sand

In many parts of Canada and the northern US, municipal governments use salt, sand, or gravel on the roads in the winter. Salt corrodes unprotected steel rapidly, and wet sand and gravel can clog moving mechanical parts. This is particularly a problem for chains and other exposed drivetrain parts. Winter cyclists may have to clean and re-lubricate their chain and drivetrain much more frequently in the winter. During periods of wet, rainy weather, when the roads are filled with road salt-filled slush, the chain and drivetrain may needed to be re-oiled every day. A front fender with a large mudflap helps decrease the amount of salt spray, gravel, and other debris reaching the chain. Bikes without derailleurs (single-speed or with internally geared hubs) can tolerate more chain wear, and so can be a good choice. They also work well with chainguards or totally enclosed chain cases, which can protect the chain. "Rustbuster"-coated chains and stainless-steel chains are more resistant to corrosion.
[edit] Snow and ice

After a bike is ridden in snow and slush, it quickly becomes caked with ice. The bike will work better if the bike can be brought inside to warm up once a day, so that the ice can melt off. Once the ice has melted, the bike should be dried, and the mechanical components should be cleaned and re-lubricated. The least expensive way of lubricating a bike is with oil lubes, which also have the benefits of not freezing displacing water. However, oil collects dirt and debris such as road sand, which will wear down the chain and sprockets over time.

Another problem with winter biking is very poor or even non-functional shifting with the derailleur systems. This may be due to the water in the brake and dérailleur cables freezing or due to salt water that has caused the cables to corrode and rust. These problems can be remedied by using expensive Teflon-lubricated cables, by using fully jacketed cables (which are sealed and lined) or by using a dry wax lubricant such as White Lightning. Some winter bikers bring the bike inside a heated building after each use; while this may resolve the problem of frozen cables, it is likely to accelerate the problem of rusted cables, because the slush thrown up onto the cables often contains road salt.

cyberknight

Basically road grit and grime eats components

bjl

I have got Athena 11 speed on what will be my winter bike - don't fancy wrecking expensive chain and cassette so have tried an old 10 speed cassette and chain and the shifters still work quite well - have got an old veloce rear mech i think i'll stick on as well. New 11 speed chain and cassette over £100 - new cheap 10 speed , about £50.

Lossie Loon

I'll ride through winter on the one bike (per location - I have one bike at my midlands address and one bike at my highlands address), but then I am quite fairweather in that I won't go out if it's wet, raining or snowing (other weather factors such as wind and low temperature don't phase me though) - so my bike won't get as much cr*p on it as it would if I went out in all weathers as the roads will be dry. So far winter has been kind to me as I've been able to get out every Saturday/Sunday so far since the Autumn Equinox as it has been bone dry each and every weekend - long may that continue (although I fear that it won't).

andy46

I'm about to get my first carbon bike after letting my alu Trek go, will this be ok in the winter?

I know you have to look after alu, steel etc from salt, but what about carbon?

desweller

Thelittlesthobo wrote:

What is it that you guys think the winter will do to your bikes?

Is it the fact that you may have to strip it down and regrease everything, maybe replace some cables or is there something the winter will do to your bike that i am missing?

My road bike won't take mudguards (not even Crud Roadracers), so the brakes, headset and bottom bracket all get a hammering from road debris thrown up by the wheels. The braking surfaces on the wheels also get hammered as there's more abrasion resulting from road debris getting between the pad and the rim. Basically the maintenance interval goes down from once a month to twice a week, which is too often for me to accomodate, and the drivetrain is much more expensive so the cost of replacing the parts is higher.

The winter bike is 8-speed, so the chain is heavier, cheaper and lasts longer, plus it has full mudguards, seriously heavy wheel rims that will last forever and V-brakes so it actually stops in the rain. And it's a flat bar, so the shifters are cheaper to replace if I throw it down the road.

MarcBC

Thelittlesthobo wrote:

What is it that you guys think the winter will do to your bikes?

Is it the fact that you may have to strip it down and regrease everything, maybe replace some cables or is there something the winter will do to your bike that i am missing?

Partly, due to time constraints but mainly I am happier ('tis a relative statement) throwing my £1,000 bike down the road than my £3,500 bike. The roads around me are leaf covered, slimy and almost grip free at this time of year.

phy2sll2

andy46 wrote:

I'm about to get my first carbon bike after letting my alu Trek go, will this be ok in the winter?

I know you have to look after alu, steel etc from salt, but what about carbon?

Just wash it a couple of times a week. Keep it nice and clean, you should be fine. The biggest danger will be gravel flung up into your downtube / BB and chipping the finish. Helicopter tape might be worth investing in, and / or clear nail varnish for touch ups.

AFAIK, there's no problem with Alu and salt. Alu oxidises very very quickly when exposed to air. The layer of oxide formed is what stops the metal corroding. Anyone have any experience with aluminium parts deteriorating over the winter?

If you have any steel parts on your bike (chain, rings, etc), just keep a close eye on them and treat them with water displacing solutions (e.g. wd40 / gt85) after washing.

cougie

Carbon will be fine in the winter.

I don't use my best bikes in winter as conditions are wet and gritty and slippy, and my winter bike is cheap, has mudguards and is easier to clean as its fixed wheel.

If you go out and the roads have been gritted - wash down the bike. I've seen previously shiny components buggered up by salt corrosion. (not on my bike though - I clean mine !)

DavidJB

My summer bike is getting it's last ride today. It will be out in January though for racing...although I might bring it out for a special guest ride when I get my fulcrum ones in a few days