Advice in making my bike lighter.

towlawrian

I have a 2014 carbon scott spark 930,

it weighs 27lb's which is ok but Ive started racing and I am wanting to try and knock some weight of the bike. So any advice would be greatful.

This is the current spec.

Frame Spark Carbon / IMP technology / HMF / BB 92 / Alloy swingarm with 160PM U-Mono Link / Tapered Head Tube / IDS SL dropouts for 142 x 12mm BB Height adj.
Travel Front 100mm Rear 100 - 70 - Climb / Shock 165 x 38
Fork Fox 32 Float Evolution CTD Air CTD damper with 3 modes 15mm QR axle / tapered steerer reb. Adj.
Rear Shock Fox Nude / SCOTT custom w. travel / geo adj CTCD 3 modes: Climb - Traction Control - Descend / reb. Adj.
Remote System SCOTT TwinLoc Remote Technology 3 modes front and rear
Headset Ritchey Pro Minus Tapered 1.5" - 1 1/8" semi integr. OD 50/61mm / ID 44/55mm
Rear Derailleur Sram X9 long cage 20 Speed
Front Derailleur Sram X7 / DM S3 / dual pull
Shifters Sram X7 Trigger adjustable clamp
Brake Levers Shimano BL-M615 Disc
Brakes Shimano BR-M615 Disc 180/F and 160/R mm SM-RT64 CL Rotor
Crankset Sram S-1000 GXP PF 38Ax24A T
BB-Set Sram GXP PF integrated / shell 41x89.5mm
Handlebar Syncros FL1.5 Tbar Alloy 7050 D.B. / T shape Flat / 9° / 700mm Syncros Pro lock-on grips
H'stem Syncros FL1.5 7050 Alloy / oversize 31.8mm 1-1/8" / 6° angle
Pedals nil
Seatpost Syncros FL2.0 / 31.6mm
Seat Syncros XR2.0 / CROM rails
Hub (Front) Shimano HB-M618 / 15mm
Hub (Rear) Shimano FH-M618 Disc CL 142 x 12mm / DT RWS axle
Chain KMC X10
Cassette Shimano CS-HG62-10 11-36 T
Spokes DT Swiss Champion Black 1.8mm
Rims Syncros XC / Eyelets / 32H XC39
Tires Schwalbe Rocket Ron / 2.25 67EPI Kevlar Bead / Dual compound Performance Series
Weights in KG 12.45 kg
Weights in LBS 27.39 lb

warpcow

Wheels are almost certainly the best place to start; the rims might be ok, but those hubs are boat-anchors. There's about 100g to be lost in the cassette by just going up to XT too. Strip and weigh as much as possible

towlawrian

I know gains are going to be little overall. would I save much with a carbon stem and bars?

cooldad

Weigh yours, weigh alternatives and see. Bar probably a bit, carbon stems are pointless. Normally similar weight to aluminium.

ilovedirt

towlawrian wrote:

I know gains are going to be little overall. would I save much with a carbon stem and bars?

No. Cut down on rotating mass first, heavy wheels make the whole bike feel much heavier than it is.

Next I'd say go 1x10 and get a narrow/wide chainring, no need for a chain guide and you can get rid of front mech, shifter, cable, chainrings etc. Loads of weight there.

towlawrian

I ve been thinking about going 1X10 but what gear ratios too compensate losing granny ring our is that defeating the object? I can save 84g by changing my bars to a ritchey wcs and a few more in going to foam grips.

warpcow

Find a gear calculator and start comparing. Only you know what gears you use and/or need. Otherwise as above, carbon bars, seatposts, etc are probably among the worst £ per g savings. Foam grips are a cheap way to lose up to 100g though.

towlawrian

well to be honset i very rarely use the granny ring so just getting a single chain ring that matches the current big ring and removing the two rings and replacing them with the single ring will work, won't it? or can i keep the big ring on and just lose the granny ring replcing the chainring bolts? Ive never done this before so sorry if I sound stupid

peter413

How much money have you got to spend?

First things I'd be changing are cranks, wheels and going single ring (either 1x10 or 1x11). The current cranks are pretty basic and if you've got the money you could be saving a decent chunk of weight by switching them to something like the Raceface Next cranks. Wheels depend on what you want but Hope Hoops are usually a pretty safe bet for not too much money, probably Crest rims so you can go tubeless which can save a little more weight there plus you're less likely to puncture which is always good for racing. For going 1x10 you'll want a narrow wide ring and a clutch mech at a minimum (you can get away sometimes without a clutch mech but for racing you want that extra security). If you've got the cash then a dedicated 1x11 groupset could be an option for you. If you want to get an easier gear for 1x10 you could look at a One Up, Hope T-Rex etc.

Changing the wheels means you'll likely need new rotors so I'd go for some nice light ones like the Ashima Airotors which are cheaper than most rotors and super light but have also proved to be plenty reliable. You'll save a little weight switching the brakes for some XTR's but not that much for the cost. Carbon bar and seat post again would save weight but probably be expensive for the weight saved. Saddle can save a bit of weight but you've got to make sure you get a comfortable replacement so sometimes it isn't worth changing. If it was me I'd be changing the seat and post for a carbon I-Beam post and I Fly saddle. Doesn't cost too much and makes a pretty light combo but not everyone finds the I Fly comfortable.

What pedals are you using? Some can weigh a tonne.

After that it's time to start looking at every single little thing on the bike and shaving every gramme you can. Not using a bottle cage? Fit some super light nylon bolts instead of steel, titanium or aluminium. Little things like that can all add up.

You might not save any weight but I'd be looking at changing the forks. I'd much rather have better suspension than save a lbs or two.

towlawrian

I am going to go 1X11 my sram mech has a clutch, so I think that will be the first step I am going to take. With the other's its going to be a case of weighing things and buying things month by month over time rather than one big spend so my budget will vary from month to month.

my pedals are xtr spd pedals which aint too bad imo.

The Rookie

For some lightweight ideas 9on a budget) have a look at my Kraken thread (link below) that is sub 22lb.

A brief look at your specs and I would look at the following.
1/ Lightweight discs, Shimano are heavy - Ashima are nice but Alligator are cheaper!
2/ Wheels, that looks a moderately heavy set
3/ Tubes - lightweight tubes can cost as little as £5 each and save you circa 65g in the most critical place - that or consider tubeless.
4/ Seatpost and saddle
5/ Bars
6/ Grips, foam are light and cheap.

Obviously how much you can afford right now effects the pecking order, but always look at wheel rotating inertia and the cheap things first, for example, if you don't need all the seat post, cut off what you don't need - free!

Also consider the more 'personal' savings, could you cope with a single chainring? Losing a shifter, mech and cables and adding a chain guide will save you circa 350g
Do you need the remotes for the shock/forks?

For seatpost, saddle and bars and stem, keep an eye on ebay, you can sometimes pick up some blinding deals! (My Son has an SDG Flite Ti railed saddle, £3.20 from a local seller)

towlawrian

awesome thanks for the advise guys. Like I said my first step will be switching to 1X11 (any advice on light weight chain rings?) then I will switch my attention seat seat posts etc

peter413

Again it depends on your budget. If it was me I'd get Raceface Next SL cranks (the newest Cinch version) with the Direct Mount Narrow Wide ring. Then either XTR shifter, mech and cassette or the XX1 or X01 equivalent if you prefer SRAM. Remember that you'll need the XD Driver freehub for the SRAM stuff. KMC would get my money for the chain.

I've actually found Ashima rotors cheaper from Bike-Discount than the Alligator rotors Rookie, that is unless the Alligators have also come down in price. Either way we both obviously agree lightweight rotors are a good idea.

I'd be looking at wheels before finishing kit like the seatpost unless of course you're wanting a dropper which it doesn't sound like.

njee20

Absolute Black direct mount is the lightest chainring, assuming you have the removable spider (think you do). Do you mean 1x11? That'll involve cassette/freehub body/rear mech as well, or are you just going 1x10?

I'd do wheels before a 1x11 upgrade, but I'd go 1x10 for sure.

WindyG

Quaxar Iris rotors are 67g, I think they are lighter than Ashima I've just put them on my Cube and they seem fine for XC use.
As above best weight saving both cost and performance wise would be wheels, tyres and then 1x10, leave things like seatposts until last as you really don't save that much weight for the cost and you also won't notice it as much it just adds to the overall weight loss.

towlawrian

njee20 wrote:

Absolute Black direct mount is the lightest chainring, assuming you have the removable spider (think you do). Do you mean 1x11? That'll involve cassette/freehub body/rear mech as well, or are you just going 1x10?

I'd do wheels before a 1x11 upgrade, but I'd go 1x10 for sure.

sorry yes 1X10

peter413

In that case let me change my post completely if you're only intending to go 1x10, which is a good move.

Absolute Black rings supposedly don't work with KMC chains in the mud, something to do with AB being made to different tolerances than every other ring. I found Race Face rings to be overpriced, they work no better than any other narrow wide and the teeth just aren't machined as nicely as other rings not that this really makes a difference. The anodising on them is pretty bad as well, it was gone from all of the teeth after one muddy ride making the ring look old and worn. My Blackspire on the other hand still has a bit of anodising on some teeth after about 6 months of riding. Again anodising makes no difference to performance, just pointing out the Race Face rings are no better, or worse really, than other cheaper rings.

As far as I can tell the S1000 cranks use a normal 104mm BCD without a removable spider. This is good and bad. It's good because it means you have plenty of choice but bad because it means you can't get a direct mount ring as Njee suggested. I really like my Blackspire ring but other fairly cheap options include Superstar (no idea how good they are) and Works Components (I know a few people running these and they've worked perfectly). I'd personally be going for either the Blackspire or Works Components depending on what is available and what is cheaper at the time. Of course there are a number of other companies that offer them including Sram, North Shore Billet, Absolute Black, E Thirteen, Hope and Race Face. As to which is lightest I have no idea but I can't see there being more than a few grammes difference between them all so I'd rather save that little bit of money and put it towards an XT cassette (and of course a new chain) as that will be a far bigger weight saving. The XT cassette's are only £30 at CRC right now and they have an extra 10% off that as well.

WindyG

Totally agree about the RF narrowwide rings, the tooth cut is not as good as some of the cheaper alternatives and it doesn't clear mud away as good as the Works Components one.
I've just started using a Superstar ring, only used it in the dry so far but it seems as good as any other ring for cheap money. I wouldn't buy another Raceface ring.

The Rookie

I'd expect the saddle is nearer 300g and the post nearer 350g to be honest.

towlawrian

Thanks again guys, blackspire looks like a option I wil go for as its cheaper.

With ref the 1X10 set up, my derailleur isnt the type 2 that I thought it was. Would you recommend me changing
this for a type 2 or just buy a chainguide (there isnt alot of difference in price on sites I am looking at). Or would I need both, type 2 and chain guide?

njee20

You may get away without either, I'd get a type 2 mech.

peter413

I'd be going for the Type 2 mech. A chain guide will add more weight and I still prefer the Narrow Wide to a lightweight guide. If the chain does fall off with the ring then you just lift it back on. With a guide the chain tends to get jammed and IME lightweight guides still aren't as secure as a DH type guide.

njee20

I've not dropped my chain once yet in 9 months with narrow/wide and type 2 mech, very impressed.

The Rookie

Fair play, I was going off some similar Scott parts, but they were obviously slightly different!