My New Trek!

mtbjunkie08

Hi all,

Just thought I'd post my first "new" road bike in about 15 years. I'm normally more of a mountain biker but decided to get back into road biking as I miss the speed and distances that can be travelled on one. Its a Trek 1.2 2014 that I picked up for a bargain price second hand, its in virtually brand new condition probably done less than 25miles.




I've done a couple of 25 miles rides on it so far, I've had to flip the stem unfortunately because I felt far too over-stretched to reach the hoods comfortably. One slight concern I have is a noticeable buzz/rattle coming from the front end even on smoother road surfaces, stem and handlebar bolts all seem tight so not sure whats causing this.
Other than this, it rides great with fast acceleration

Does anyone own one of these bikes as I'm looking to get some mudguards that will fit properly and would appreciate any recommendations, it has mudguard bosses.

tim_wand

When you flipped the stem did you make sure the top of the steerer tube sat at least 1/8 inch below the top of the stem so you still had some slack to draw up on the headset bearings.

Stand over the bike with both brakes on and rock it back and forth to see if theres any slack in the headset.

To be fair the amount of spacers you have under the stem and the rise in the stem might be putting quite a lot of pressure on the steerer tube. I personally never run with more than 30mm of spacers under the stem.

I ve ran a Trek 1,2 as a winter bike and found SKS 35mm gaurds to be a good fit.

mtbjunkie08

Thanks for the reply but I noticed the buzz before I flipped the stem too. I will check how much space there is between top of steerer and stem though.

gethinceri

I recently installed SKS Chromoplastics on my Trek 1.1 which was a 30 minute job and they fit fine.

sloppyschleckonds

Did you consider buying the next frame size up? May be a good idea to level your saddle and shifters

arran77

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

Did you consider buying the next frame size up? May be a good idea to level your saddle and shifters

Leave him alone, he's a mountain biker, it's what we do :P

markhewitt1978

That's a mighty long stem on there!

I've you're still having trouble reaching the hoods after you've flipped it, you might consider a shorter stem.

Ben6899

markhewitt1978 wrote:

That's a mighty long stem on there!

I've you're still having trouble reaching the hoods after you've flipped it, you might consider a shorter stem.

It looks like maybe 120mm; nothing excessive.

mtbjunkie08

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

Did you consider buying the next frame size up? May be a good idea to level your saddle and shifters

I'm 6ft1" with a 32/33inch inside leg and its a 58cm frame so I thought with the new H2 fit geometry and the taller head tube that this size would be fine. I got the bike for £222 which considering they retail for £650 is pretty dam good. Also, if I've gone up to a 60cm frame surely the reach would have been even longer due to the longer top tube?

markhewitt1978 wrote:

That's a mighty long stem on there!

I've you're still having trouble reaching the hoods after you've flipped it, you might consider a shorter stem.

It's a 105mm stem and I think I'm still finding the reach a little over-stretched, im going to try moving the saddle forward 1/2inch or so first and if its still too uncomfortable I'll think about getting a shorter stem, maybe 90mm?. I think I need to drop the saddle maybe 1/2inch too.

diamonddog

Have a look on the link below for bike fitting info before you start moving and changing things.
http://www.competitivecyclist.com/Store ... orBike.jsp

sloppyschleckonds

arran77 wrote:

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

Did you consider buying the next frame size up? May be a good idea to level your saddle and shifters

Leave him alone, he's a mountain biker, it's what we do :P

The bike does appear to have been ridden in a muddy field!

dilatory

mtbjunkie08 wrote:

I'm 6ft1" with a 32/33inch inside leg

Are you serious? This sounds absurd. I am 5.9/10ish with the same measurements.

Have you properly measured yourself and your leg?

mtbjunkie08

dilatory wrote:

mtbjunkie08 wrote:

I'm 6ft1" with a 32/33inch inside leg

Are you serious? This sounds absurd. I am 5.9/10ish with the same measurements.

Have you properly measured yourself and your leg?

I'm going buy the fact I buy jeans with a 32/33inch stated leg length.

Anyhow, I've now moved the saddle a touch further forward, also dropped it a little and the riding position now feels fine.

Jules Winnfield

dilatory wrote:

mtbjunkie08 wrote:

I'm 6ft1" with a 32/33inch inside leg

Are you serious? This sounds absurd. I am 5.9/10ish with the same measurements.

Have you properly measured yourself and your leg?

Why is it absurd?

Maybe the OP has a longer torso and shorter legs whereas you have longer legs and a shorter torso. Just because the OP is 3 inches taller than you. It doesn't automatically mean he should have a longer inseam.

Jules Winnfield

mtbjunkie08 wrote:

dilatory wrote:

mtbjunkie08 wrote:

I'm 6ft1" with a 32/33inch inside leg

Are you serious? This sounds absurd. I am 5.9/10ish with the same measurements.

Have you properly measured yourself and your leg?

I'm going buy the fact I buy jeans with a 32/33inch stated leg length.

Anyhow, I've now moved the saddle a touch further forward, also dropped it a little and the riding position now feels fine.

First off it's now irrelevant what your inseam is..... When you learn how to measure it properly. But what you need to do is look on YouTube for bike fitting videos, that will guide you in the right direction as to how you fit yourself on a road bike. You could have a pro fit done at great expense, but sometimes they are just a waste of money and you can do it yourself.

iron-clover

It's a good choice of road bike- I have a 1.1 and the frame and handling is brilliant.

Hope you enjoy it!

mtbjunkie08

Jules Winnfield wrote:

mtbjunkie08 wrote:

dilatory wrote:

mtbjunkie08 wrote:

I'm 6ft1" with a 32/33inch inside leg

Are you serious? This sounds absurd. I am 5.9/10ish with the same measurements.

Have you properly measured yourself and your leg?

I'm going buy the fact I buy jeans with a 32/33inch stated leg length.

Anyhow, I've now moved the saddle a touch further forward, also dropped it a little and the riding position now feels fine.

First off it's now irrelevant what your inseam is..... When you learn how to measure it properly. But what you need to do is look on YouTube for bike fitting videos, that will guide you in the right direction as to how you fit yourself on a road bike. You could have a pro fit done at great expense, but sometimes they are just a waste of money and you can do it yourself.

Thanks for the advice, after watching a number of bike fit videos such as these:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKnfqoapMao
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQ34hed0qBw

I'm pretty sure i'm within my "comfort zones" for saddle height and reach now, it's not as if im new to cycling ive been doing it for 20years, I just havent done much road riding for a while.

iron-clover wrote:

It's a good choice of road bike- I have a 1.1 and the frame and handling is brilliant.

Hope you enjoy it!

Thank you - appreciate the positive comment, I wondered whether I was ever going to get any

johnnymcg259

Just enjoy it.........don't pay any attention to the snide comments.

dilatory

Sorry, was not meaning to sound negative. Just pictured some insanely long torso guy likely to be blown over by a stiff breeze he's so top heavy! Your jean sizes don't really mean much outside of buying jeans (and only really within each brand - jean sizes, pah!).

If your bike is comfortable then ride it. You can worry about getting low once you're more comfortable on it.

mtbjunkie08

Been another ride on her today, felt pretty comfortable, I may try an shorter 90mm stem at some point though. I have discovered that the road buzz I can hear at the front is just the gear cables vibrating against the head tube, when I pulled the cables away from the frame the noise disappeared, I just need to get some kind of rubber sleeve for the cable guide or rubber patch for the head tube, such a relief to have found out its not a damaged/loose headset or forks.

Jules Winnfield

mtbjunkie08 wrote:

Been another ride on her today, felt pretty comfortable, I may try an shorter 90mm stem at some point though.

One good starting point regarding stem length is that when you have your hands on the hoods and you look down 'through' your handlebars, the handlebars should hide the hub of the front wheel. If the hub is not hidden and is in front of the handlebars, then your stem length is too short. If the hub is behind the handlebars then the stem is too long.

mtbjunkie08 wrote:

I have discovered that the road buzz I can hear at the front is just the gear cables vibrating against the head tube, when I pulled the cables away from the frame the noise disappeared, I just need to get some kind of rubber sleeve for the cable guide or rubber patch for the head tube, such a relief to have found out its not a damaged/loose headset or forks.

Helicopter tape your frame, that way you wont get the cables rubbing off the paint of the frame.

gethinceri

Seeing as you mentioned a dearth of positive comments:
I have a Teek 1.1 as mentioned earlier in the thread, it is a tough and competent bicycle which has served me well over the last couple of years. I use Sram rather than Shimano cassettes as they are better value and cheapest chains I can find. I have fitted SKS Chromoplastic guards and they went on fairly easily. I ride it with a 11-28 cassette and 34-50 chainrings, this does everything I need it to, I am 180 cms and it has a 56 frame and 100mm stem which feels perfect for me. I changed the wheels to Fulcrum 7s some months back and i've got a Campagnolo Veloce groupset under the tree ready to put on in the spring when the salt is no longer on the road.
I couldn't imagine a better starter, wet weather, winter, knockabout, sportive, TT bike for the £300.00 I paid for it., 100 milers are no problem (and it'll introduce me to Audax in 2015). I've done all those things and enjoyed all of them on this bike.

mtbjunkie08

Gethinceri wrote:

Seeing as you mentioned a dearth of positive comments:
I have a Teek 1.1 as mentioned earlier in the thread, it is a tough and competent bicycle which has served me well over the last couple of years. I use Sram rather than Shimano cassettes as they are better value and cheapest chains I can find. I have fitted SKS Chromoplastic guards and they went on fairly easily. I ride it with a 11-28 cassette and 34-50 chainrings, this does everything I need it to, I am 180 cms and it has a 56 frame and 100mm stem which feels perfect for me. I changed the wheels to Fulcrum 7s some months back and i've got a Campagnolo Veloce groupset under the tree ready to put on in the spring when the salt is no longer on the road.
I couldn't imagine a better starter, wet weather, winter, knockabout, sportive, TT bike for the £300.00 I paid for it., 100 milers are no problem (and it'll introduce me to Audax in 2015). I've done all those things and enjoyed all of them on this bike.

Thanks for the positive feedback, I'm glad to hear it has served you so well. I was hoping for one comment along the lines of "thats a really smart looking bike and the price you paid was an absolute bargain"....but maybe I was hoping for too much

Dezza

I had a 1.1 for commuting but it was trashed after a VW hit me. I now have a replacement 1.2.

Both are solid bikes, although the sora on the 1.2 is a hell of a lot smoother than the 'agricultural' claris. However, my main complaint is the short wheelbase on the 58cm, I've suffered toe strike with the front wheel on both models.

Overall they are great for the price IMO.