Dolan Preffisio - help make me pretty!

h34e0f

I have a fairly budget build on a Dolan Preffisio frame. I'm not massively fussed about it as it's my first propper road bike, and I plan to upgrade in the spring. However, there is something about it that just isn't right, but I can't put my finger on it!

Ignoring the fact it's dirty and has mtb pedals (temporary), what can I do to pretty it up a bit? The front end also looks sort of clumsy, or is it just me?

declan1

Nicer wheels would improve it a lot. Also maybe compact bars? It's a nice looking bike already though! I love that blue!

h34e0f

declan1 wrote:

Nicer wheels would improve it a lot. Also maybe compact bars? It's a nice looking bike already though! I love that blue!

That may have hit the nail on the head. The bike looks front-heavy, and it may well be due to the large bars. Will look into it, thanks!

I was also planning to upgrade the wheels at some point as the current ones are very old and heavy! However funds are tight currently.

jermas

Maybe flip the stem over. Get a black seat post. I've got some deda rhm 02 bars on my preffisio, they're great value, look good, super stiff and comfy.

woody1545

The stem and bars are at the wrong angle. Flip the stem, you may not be able to ride it due to back pain but your bike will look cool. 8)

Ben6899

Spray it black and get some shallow drop bars.

memsley89

Rule #8

Saddles, bars, and tires shall be carefully matched.
Valid options are:

-Match the saddle to the bars and the tires to black; or
-Match the bars to the color of the frame at the top of the head tube and the saddle to the color of the frame at the top of the seat tube and the tires to the color where they come closest to the frame; or
-Match the saddle and the bars to the frame decals; or
-Black, black, black

RideOnTime

That field looks very muddy.

h34e0f

Ben6899 wrote:

Spray it black and get some shallow drop bars.

Cooor that's sexy If I'd had a choice I would have had it in black!

Ben6899

h34e0f wrote:

Cooor that's sexy If I'd had a choice I would have had it in black!

Thanks. I've lost the spacers now and fitted some better tyres. Yours looks like a BIG frame. Mine's a 56 and there's barely any headtube to speak of. Yours must be a 60, no?

h34e0f

Ben6899 wrote:

h34e0f wrote:

Cooor that's sexy If I'd had a choice I would have had it in black!

Thanks. I've lost the spacers now and fitted some better tyres. Yours looks like a BIG frame. Mine's a 56 and there's barely any headtube to speak of. Yours must be a 60, no?

62. I hate big bikes and think they're hideous generally, but I'm a big lad unfortunately.

h34e0f

New Bidon holders and flipped stem. Massive improvement in my eyes. Next step is to start blacking up some of the silver (saddle and post mainly).

Getting there!

ed_j

Is it just the photo angle or is that saddle pointing at the ground?

h34e0f

Hmm I don't think so, it does bend downwards slightly at the tip of the saddle, but I think it's mostly flat, either way it's perfectly set up for me comfort wise.

arthur_scrimshaw

still need to rotate the bars, I think the brake levers should be in a vertical plane to look right, but that's just my opinion!

h34e0f

Arthur Scrimshaw wrote:

still need to rotate the bars, I think the brake levers should be in a vertical plane to look right, but that's just my opinion!

Bars should be horizontal or pointing slightly upwards.

Rule #46
// Keep your bars level.

Handlebars will be mounted parallel to the ground or angled slightly upward. While they may never be pointed down at all, they may be angled up slightly; allowed handlebar tilt is to be between 180 and 175 degrees with respect to the level road. The brake levers will preferably be mounted such that the end of the brake lever is even with the bottom of the bar. Modern bars, however, dictate that this may not always be possible, so tolerances are permitted within reason. Brake hoods should not approach anything near 45 degrees, as some riders with poor taste have been insisting on doing.

arthur_scrimshaw

h34e0f wrote:

Arthur Scrimshaw wrote:

still need to rotate the bars, I think the brake levers should be in a vertical plane to look right, but that's just my opinion!

Bars should be horizontal or pointing slightly upwards.

Rule #46
// Keep your bars level.

Handlebars will be mounted parallel to the ground or angled slightly upward. While they may never be pointed down at all, they may be angled up slightly; allowed handlebar tilt is to be between 180 and 175 degrees with respect to the level road. The brake levers will preferably be mounted such that the end of the brake lever is even with the bottom of the bar. Modern bars, however, dictate that this may not always be possible, so tolerances are permitted within reason. Brake hoods should not approach anything near 45 degrees, as some riders with poor taste have been insisting on doing.

I always take this to mean the lower part of the bars.

h34e0f

Arthur Scrimshaw wrote:

h34e0f wrote:

Arthur Scrimshaw wrote:

still need to rotate the bars, I think the brake levers should be in a vertical plane to look right, but that's just my opinion!

Bars should be horizontal or pointing slightly upwards.

Rule #46
// Keep your bars level.

Handlebars will be mounted parallel to the ground or angled slightly upward. While they may never be pointed down at all, they may be angled up slightly; allowed handlebar tilt is to be between 180 and 175 degrees with respect to the level road. The brake levers will preferably be mounted such that the end of the brake lever is even with the bottom of the bar. Modern bars, however, dictate that this may not always be possible, so tolerances are permitted within reason. Brake hoods should not approach anything near 45 degrees, as some riders with poor taste have been insisting on doing.

I always take this to mean the lower part of the bars.

Ohh maybe... Hmmm

They used to be more downward, however I found it uncomfortable... How they are in my photos are how they were set up by my LBS after a service too. Either way they're comfortable so I'm pretty happy with them, although am tempted to give a compact set a try...

bigmat

h34e0f wrote:

Arthur Scrimshaw wrote:

h34e0f wrote:

Arthur Scrimshaw wrote:

still need to rotate the bars, I think the brake levers should be in a vertical plane to look right, but that's just my opinion!

Bars should be horizontal or pointing slightly upwards.

Rule #46
// Keep your bars level.

Handlebars will be mounted parallel to the ground or angled slightly upward. While they may never be pointed down at all, they may be angled up slightly; allowed handlebar tilt is to be between 180 and 175 degrees with respect to the level road. The brake levers will preferably be mounted such that the end of the brake lever is even with the bottom of the bar. Modern bars, however, dictate that this may not always be possible, so tolerances are permitted within reason. Brake hoods should not approach anything near 45 degrees, as some riders with poor taste have been insisting on doing.

I always take this to mean the lower part of the bars.

Ohh maybe... Hmmm

They used to be more downward, however I found it uncomfortable... How they are in my photos are how they were set up by my LBS after a service too. Either way they're comfortable so I'm pretty happy with them, although am tempted to give a compact set a try...

If an LBS altered the angle of my bars without me asking, I wouldn't go back...

Bars need to be angled downwards - might not fit you as well, but you did ask about what would make it look better. Saddle is a bit of a minger as well and should be level (same caveat re bike fit) - you could pick up a nice Selle Italia in the classifieds probably. Other than that, looks nice enough, I've raced on worse bikes without any problems.

h34e0f

BigMat wrote:

If an LBS altered the angle of my bars without me asking, I wouldn't go back...

Bars need to be angled downwards - might not fit you as well, but you did ask about what would make it look better. Saddle is a bit of a minger as well and should be level (same caveat re bike fit) - you could pick up a nice Selle Italia in the classifieds probably. Other than that, looks nice enough, I've raced on worse bikes without any problems.

He re-weapped the bars and levelled out the hoods - I was very happy with it.

I plan on upgrading the saddle at some point, along with the seat tube.

Crankbrother

I'd buy a white saddle and get some white bar tape to emphasise the white accents on the frame ...

ed_j

Crankbrother wrote:

I'd buy a white saddle and get some white bar tape to emphasise the white accents on the frame ...

If you were going to do that then white wall tyres would be nice too.

h34e0f

I'm not a fan of white kit. It gets dirty and stains, and also makes the bars look oversized and clumsy to me

Karlos69

To my eye, the bars are the wrong angle as already noted, I would try white bar tape and possibly get a new saddle.
WD40 cleans the white stuff up when it gets dirty.

hipshot

Essential:

Lightweight saddle, black seatpost, rotate bars, flip and slam the stem.

(These alone will make make it a really attractive bike. The bars and stem are the worst culprits and they cost nothing to fix)

Optional:

New wheels, bling groupo $$$ etc.