Cyclocross - what are good things to upgrade?

I bought this http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motobecane/fantom_cross_cx2.htm
The first thing would be pedals to clipless but is there anything that needs upgraded before I race it or anything that may need to be upgraded in the near future?

You might want to swap the big chain ring for a 46T or so. You'll probably be happier with something like a Tektro CR720 (or something better like the TRP EuroX) as the front brake. Eventually, I suspect, you'll want Tiagra or better shifters, which have a better release mechanism.

But really, you can race it like it is.

yeah, race it and see what you do and don't like. you are set up better than i still am with my 19 year old steel frame and shimano SIS 12, no 6-speeds...;)

A 46t ring or smaller (44 or 42).

The new Sora is pretty good, really no need to upgrade.

The best upgrade would be to pick up a pair of tubular wheels and tires.

That's an amazing deal you got.

I'd suggest adding kool stop salmon brake pads and tweaking the brake set up (search this forum for past threads). If you can't tweak to your liking, change the cantis - but only then.

Tyres are always the biggest win for tweaking a decent bike. Although my ankles are too messed up to let me race I'll kibbitz on this: the right pair of tubulars is better than the right pair of clinchers, but what's right off road on the day depends on the conditions. I'd rather have 2 or 3 sets of clinchers - dry, intermediate, and muddy - and select the best ones just before a ride than have a single set of tubulars, as good as tubulars are. But ask the people who race what they think of this - maybe conditions vary less than I imagine.

The other thing I'd do is save some money for adjusting bike fit. Imo it's more important on a crosser than any other bike. You need to be comfortable in the drops for turning and braking, and you need leverage while you're in there. This means a shorter cockpit with wider bars than a road bike. Dialing in fit is critical. So hold some money back for possibly buying a shorter stem and maybe wider bars (perhaps cross specific ones like Bell Laps) when you have a feel for your fit on the bike. Gel tape, Bar Phat and gel gloves are all damn good ideas too.

sweet. thanks. I sold my fuji newest 3 and this should be a nice upgrade from the components on it. Im a roadie/cross newb so whats the difference between clinchers and tubular? I had R500's on my Fuji and Im pretty sure they wern't clinchers. I dont really know the difference though.

I bought this http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/motobecane/fantom_cross_cx2.htm
The first thing would be pedals to clipless but is there anything that needs upgraded before I race it or anything that may need to be upgraded in the near future?

I think the first question has to be what are you planning on doing with this bike? So many people post questions similar to this in the cyclocross forum simply because it's a CX bike. Not because they have any intention of racing CX.

1. Clipless
1a. Tires
2. The first thing that breaks when you crash
3. The 2nd thing that breaks when you crash

just go with what you've got and upgrade once something pisses you off or breaks.

The most important thing to upgrade is the motor.

The most important thing to upgrade is the motor.

Why do you have to get all personal? :p

If you are going to upgrade equipment, I think there have been some good suggestions here.

1) 3 sets of tires
2) Wheels (pricey, but can make a huge difference)
3) bike fit (I'd actually put this at #1)

Upgrading anything else would be of negligible value until you put serious miles/races on the bike, and you'd probably be looking for a new race level bike at that point anyway.

thanks guys. im planning on light singletrack and cyclocross racing :)

sweet. thanks. I sold my fuji newest 3 and this should be a nice upgrade from the components on it. Im a roadie/cross newb so whats the difference between clinchers and tubular? I had R500's on my Fuji and Im pretty sure they wern't clinchers. I dont really know the difference though.

If you don't know then they were clinchers, trust me. Tubulars don't need inner tubes and have to be glued on. Good for racing because they have lower rolling resistance and can run at lower pressures without pinch flatting. But a pian, and you really need several wheelsets so you can match tyres to the conditions - changing tyres on a wheel is a major pain because of the glue.

I just recently went from a steel fork to a full cf fork and man the weight difference was shocking.

But a pian, and you really need several wheelsets so you can match tyres to the conditionsNo, you don't. Standard approach is to have a tubular race wheelset and a clincher wheelset for the pit. Grifo tread in 32 or 34mm works well in almost all conditions. Put some Tufo sealant in them to protect against goatheads. You can find used alloy tubular wheelsets online for pretty cheap, or just get the Williams wheelset for $370.

Yes, gluing tubulars is a pain in the ass, but do it once and do it right.

Anyway... Im having problems posting a new thread but I got the bike as a 49cm. I had a Fuji newest 3 and it was a 50cm. The cross bike feels tiny compared to the fuji. Is that normal? its only a 1cm difference. I looked at the geometry chart and was sure that its the right size. im 5'6 - 5'6.5. I know you need more info on my size but is it normal for a cross bike to feel samller than a road?

If you don't know then they were clinchers, trust me. Tubulars don't need inner tubes and have to be glued on. Good for racing because they have lower rolling resistance and can run at lower pressures without pinch flatting. But a pian, and you really need several wheelsets so you can match tyres to the conditions - changing tyres on a wheel is a major pain because of the glue.
then why if I buy tires online does it give me the clincher option? if it doesnt say clincher is it tubular?

then why if I buy tires online does it give me the clincher option? if it doesnt say clincher is it tubular?Let me sheldonbrown that for you. (http://sheldonbrown.com/gloss_cl.html#clincher)

Clinchers are the standard tires that 99% of people use. If it doesn't specifically say tubular, it is a clincher.

Anyway... Im having problems posting a new thread but I got the bike as a 49cm. I had a Fuji newest 3 and it was a 50cm. The cross bike feels tiny compared to the fuji. Is that normal? its only a 1cm difference. I looked at the geometry chart and was sure that its the right size. im 5'6 - 5'6.5. I know you need more info on my size but is it normal for a cross bike to feel samller than a road?

I hate to say it, but this is one of the primary hazards of buying from Bikes Direct. A centimeter can feel huge in bike fit, but more importantly seat tube length (which is what the size is telling you) isn't the best factor for determining fit, top tube length is. The 50cm Fuji Newest 3.0 has an effective top tube length of 545 millimeters. The 49cm Motobecane Fantom CX has an effective top tube length of 525 millimeters. So now, you're talking two centimeters, not one. It looks like the 54cm Fantom CX would have been closest in fit to the 50cm Fuji (assuming the stand over height was acceptable), but having said that, I'd can't necessarily say it would have been the right fit for you.

You can probably still make the bike you have work for you by getting a new stem. Get the saddle height positioned where you want it and adjust the fore-aft position according to the comfort of your legs for pedaling. For some guidelines, look here: http://www.sheldonbrown.com/frame-sizing.html#frontback. Once you've got that down, measure the height (from the ground) of the saddle and handlebars on your Fuji and the distance from the nose of the saddle to the bars. Assuming you like the fit of the Fuji, you'll want a stem for the Fantom CX that gives you the same difference between saddle height and bar height and nose to stem measurement you saw with the Fuji. There's some math involved in figuring this out and you'll only get something approximate.

It's less than ideal to fix reach issues with the stem length because it changes the handling of the bike, but it's the best option you have. You could try taking the adjustable stem from your Fuji and putting it on the Fantom CX to try different angles, but I definitely wouldn't race it like that. You should also compare the reach and drop of the handlebars between the bikes to see if that's affecting the feel.

In general, I'm of the opinion that for cyclocross racing it's good to have the handlebars higher than most people would for road riding (I like them higher on the road too, but that's just me). This can also affect how big the bike feels and change the effective reach.

Ideally, you'd plunk down some money and have this done by a fit specialist somewhere, but you can probably get pretty close on your own.

Edit: I just looked back and saw that you sold the Fuji. That'll make things trickier.

Great looking bike at a great price.

I would look at getting a new fork sometime in the future.

Ritchey Carbon (http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-53200-19255-0/1?icep_ff3=2&pub=5574735911&toolid=10001&campid=5336467296&customid=&icep_item=130352226616&ipn=psmain&icep_vectorid=229466&kwid=902099&mtid=824&kw=lg)

Sibex Ti (http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-53200-19255-0/1?icep_ff3=2&pub=5574735911&toolid=10001&campid=5336467296&customid=&icep_item=380188070460&ipn=psmain&icep_vectorid=229466&kwid=902099&mtid=824&kw=lg)

Alpha Q (http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-53200-19255-0/1?icep_ff3=2&pub=5574735911&toolid=10001&campid=5336467296&customid=&icep_item=140367688314&ipn=psmain&icep_vectorid=229466&kwid=902099&mtid=824&kw=lg)

Either of these would reduce weight dramatically and improve ride quality.