Duane Behrens

Manufacturers typically don't post the weight of various models, and for good reason; it's easy to cheat by weighing your smallest bike sans pedals, handlebars, chain and maybe wheels, and publish that as the "weight" of the bike. :-)

But I was curious. So I bought a scale. Then I weighed my bikes. Each bike had its SPD pedals, seat, bars and bottle cages intact. I DID remove the bottles, the under seat tool kit and tire pump from each before weighing them.

First to be weighed: my wife's 50cm carbon Roubaix; 50x34 and 11x28. Ultegra all around. It came in at 18.5 lbs.

She started with a Specialized aluminum frame, a "Dulce" as I recall. I think it weighed about 3 lbs more than the Roubaix, so about 22 lbs. Can't remember the gearing or components.

Next on the scale was my own 56 cm carbon Tarmac. Also Ultegra stuff. Surprisingly, it weighed exactly the same as Jane's smaller Roubaix; 18.5 lbs.

The last bike to be weighed - my daily ride choice - the '84 Raleigh Super Course. I hoisted it up onto the scale. The nail I'd suspended the scale from bent and scale fell onto the concrete floor. It was thankfully undamaged. Thank you, Park Tools. Hammered in a new, larger nail and weighed it again. The Raleigh weighs 24 lbs. This surprised me because if feels light as anything when underway.

The old, beautiful Nishiki is gone now, ridden happily by a smaller, female employee. It would have been the heaviest bike of my group; I'll guess around 28 lbs?

So there you have it. What's the point? There is none. It was just interesting for me to see what these things actually weighed in road-worthy condition. DB

Tpgun101

When I get home I'm going to weigh mine"

GeneO 

Ones I buy generally publish the weight and size of the weighed model. They weight is as delivered (sans pedals etc.). Been pretty spot on.

Dan Burkhart 

When I had my shop, I had a hanging scale accessible to anyone who wanted to use it. It was fun to see who could come up with the best guess.

ragtoplvr

I am under the opinion that for 99.9% of us the weight of the bike is not important. The feel, subjective things like that are. I know that for me, when I ride a bike that feels good, I ride faster than I would on a lighter bike that really should be faster, but does not feel like I want one to feel. If that makes any sense.

Rod

Duane Behrens

It makes perfect sense. Why do you think I choose the Raleigh over the carbon Tarmac almost every day?

DESCENTS: At 40mph, the Tarmac is stable enough . . . but only JUST stable enough. The Raleigh on the same descent? Hell, you can take your hands off the bars if you want to. (Not recommended.)

ASCENTS: At 7 mph on an 8%, 3-mile ascent . . . I'll take the Tarmac. Every fuggin' time. :-) It's like cheating.

FLATS: As an 18mph sightseeing platform, the Raleigh wins, hands down. Along the ocean hugging Strand, from Torrance to Santa Monica, it's a perpetual-motion machine . . . . one that draws crowds at every bistro along the way.

SUMMARY: The carbon-fiber bike is more competent than the steel bike in almost every category relating to ease of use, potential speed (given the same rider), and competitive advantage.

But not all of us are competitive cyclists. And "competitive competence" is not a good measure of what we look for in our daily training or recreational rides. It's NOT a criticism of either bike. It just is.

If you own a carbon bike, find a steel bike to love. If you own and ride a steel bike, find a carbon bike as well . . . and experience riding on . . . well . . . AIR.

I think this must be heaven.

HillRider

If you have a decent bathroom scale you can weight your bike by weighing yourself, weighing yourself holding the bike and subtracting the two values.

Retro Grouch 

Every bike has 3 weights: What the manufacturer says it weighs, what the owner thinks it weighs, and what my scale says it weighs.

The last one is almost always the heaviest.

Dan Burkhart 

All bikes weigh 40 lbs. A 20 lb bike needs a 20lb lock. A 30 lb bike needs a 10lb lock. A 40lb bike needs no lock.

Retro Grouch 

Yup, I'd forgotten that one. We should make a sticky of that for all the "What bike should I take to college?" threads.

berner

I've weighed my bike also out of perverse curiosity. I say perverse because whatever it is, it can't be changed by much at this point. As Hillrider suggested, I climbed up on a bathroom scale holding the bike and without. Accuracy is likely about + or - a tenth of a pound or so. Stock bike was 22 pounds and with new wheels about 20 1/2 pounds. I'm of the opinion that weight counts mostly in racing and climbing but not much otherwise.

Retro Grouch 

Me too once you get up to speed.

On the other hand, every ride starts at 0 MPH. As you accelerate from 0 to whatever speed you normally ride at, a lighter weight bike feels livelier. Once you're there I don't think that it matters very much.

Booger1

I don't weigh my bikes,doesn't matter how much it weighs,it's coming with me anyways.....

My newest bike is a converted disk brake mnt bike made up of a bunch of weird pieces.It's built for comfort not for speed.If I had to guess,as is,35-40lbs....It's FAST.....downhill.It's in commute and touring mode at all times.

My old Shogun bike(ex commute/touring bike) with lightweight wheels is in the 22-23lbs range when I bought it in 1978.It's a couple pounds heavier now with touring wheels.

Then I have an old Ross track bike,bought in 1975,it's in the 16-17lbs range.

Give or take a pound.....

deacon mark

My Wilier GT Ex Large (about 59cm) weighs 18.6 with two cages and 105 pedals, full ultegra group. My Motobecane Immortal Spirit dura ace 7800 (smooth too) weighs 18.3 in a 59 Cm same 105 pedals. I ride basically the same on either bike but they do fit different given the geometry. The Moto is twitchier on high speed descends, the Wilier feels more stable. Maybe a bit more get up and go from a dead stop on the Moto. I could upgrade the wheels on the Wilier from Shimano RS30 and build a set of velocity's and lose a pound I bet. Probably would not go a bit faster.

NJgreyhead

Yeah, I like checking bikes and related stuff with my Xmas present hanging luggage scale.
Inquiring minds want to know.

Was looking at a bike lock online, posted a question to find out if anyone knew the weight. Got responses, but obviously all guesses, including "around 2 lbs."
Bought the lock anyway, and it came in at something like 5 ozs.

well biked

True dat!

noglider 

I'm obsessive with weighing and measuring. If I keep it up, I'll have a spreadsheet with the weights of all my components and accessories.

fietsbob

OTOH, LBS had a Bathroom scale to weigh boxed bikes of Cycle-Tourists ending up here, to be shipped back across the country to their homes ..

It died, now we make a Guess..

gregjones

The biggest improvement from weight reduction on my bike was the 50+ pounds that came off the engine.

CroMo Mike 

I bought a famous-name-brand luggage scale. Soon found it was reading two pounds light at 22 lbs. I'd hate to be counting on that one in the airport check-in line. Took it back and bought another brand and it checks as spot-on.

Duane Behrens

I have to (respectfully) disagree with your last sentence (above). Even when at speed, you and your bike are constantly influenced by a number of continuously changing conditions. Current slope or descent angle, the rate at which that slope is changing, wind speed and direction, road surface, etc. ALL of these will act as either an introduced braking force or an introduced accelerating force.

My experience:

A lightweight carbon bike makes it much easier to initially OVERCOME both types of forces. For example, if you encounter the braking force of a brief incline, 2 or 3 quick pedal bursts and you're back up to speed quickly. If faced with a suddenly-encountered obstacle on a downhill, the carbon bike and rider will stop more quickly, simply because there is less mass to slow. This is why lightweight carbon bikes control the domain of racing. Completely.

That does NOT necessarily mean a more pleasurable ride. A heavier steel bike will tend to stay in motion longer before responding to an introduced braking or accelerating force. A short incline? Yawn -your weight-based momentum will carry you through without ever NEEDING to mash the pedals. Steepening decline? Ah, yes, apparently I must apply those brakes at some point. :-) The need to respond is delayed; the simple pleasure of riding is thus prolonged.

Think "table tennis ball" vs. "bowling ball."

In the right package and on the right roads and in the right hands, the properly-maintained steel bike is simply a calmer, more pleasurable sightseeing platform, still capable of incredible speed and handling maneuvers, but not NEARLY as susceptible to unwanted environmental influences.

Hmm. I think I've just explained to myself why I ride steel 6 days each week . . . and carbon only 1.

Duane Behrens

joeyduck

I weigh mine and myself on the calibrated scale in the warehouse.

In full kit I clock in between 85 and 87 kg.

The surly lht with kids seat mount, water, lights, pump and tool kit is 36 pounds.

The 1999 rocky mountain turbo with Eaton ultralight and full ultegra, water, pump and kit was 22 pounds.

On the same uphill giving it all while catching green lights I am about 30 second faster.

hairnet

I just wish my road bike wouldn't weigh 28lbs. Time for a new rear wheel!

HillRider

My Surly Pacer "rain/beater" bike with a rack, rackpack, heavy 700-28 tires, tools, pump, etc. weighs about 35 pounds ready to ride and my Litespeed Tuscany without most of that stuff but with the essential water and tools is about 21 pounds all-up. The subjective difference in feel and objective difference in average speed over my typical 30 mile hilly route is significant. However, that's a 14 pound or about 8% increase in total rider+bike weight and that plus the heavy, sluggish tires on the Surly are certainly enough to notice.

joeyduck

No. I feel no objective difference between the two. I try to ride the crap out of them each time.