Should I get a road bike?
03-21-16, 03:17 PM
#26
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I have a dozen bikes, including a Spesh Roubiax. My favorite rides are a heavy hybrid all purpose bike and an 80's 12 speed with 700x20.5 tires. Hence, I support your thinking... a light, fast, responsive bike is a blast some days.
However, if you're thinking what you want is hill climber, think again when it comes to some of the C&V bikes. Whoever designed those 80's racer drivetrains either never heard of hills or those burly men of the last century had no problem with corn cob clusters, charging up hills 42x21. That's not me. So, if hill climbing is a big part of your riding experience, you'll need a modern compact double or an old triple crank to save your knees. If you end up putting one of those wide jump freewheel on a older bike you'll have big jumps in the gear options, not so fun. As a compromise you can put an alpine-type crank on the front, maybe getting a 34x25 climbing options and still have a fairly tight spread in he rear ...but you will be spending some money on upgrades.
However, if you're thinking what you want is hill climber, think again when it comes to some of the C&V bikes. Whoever designed those 80's racer drivetrains either never heard of hills or those burly men of the last century had no problem with corn cob clusters, charging up hills 42x21. That's not me. So, if hill climbing is a big part of your riding experience, you'll need a modern compact double or an old triple crank to save your knees. If you end up putting one of those wide jump freewheel on a older bike you'll have big jumps in the gear options, not so fun. As a compromise you can put an alpine-type crank on the front, maybe getting a 34x25 climbing options and still have a fairly tight spread in he rear ...but you will be spending some money on upgrades.
I hope that a new bike will have a bigger range than my current bike does. And as I get fitter I can tickle the other hills. There are plenty nearby that are a little too hard for riding in normal clothes.
A small change in gearing range would be enough to hit quite a few hills and open up some areas that are a little out of reach right now. And if I become really hardcore, well then tackling the big hills would require all sorts of upgrades. Many are for super advanced riders. The hardcore club riders struggle with them as well.
And then there are plenty of mostly flat longer rides nearby. That are not well suited to my current bike setup. I find that somewhere around 5-7 miles one way, I think, I need a new hand position. So the drop bars would solve that easily.
03-22-16, 11:43 AM
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So I have an option 1:
1. Peugeot mixte circa mid-80s. Decent price, built by a shop, 6 month "warranty" and they'll install my seat for me! I have a nice one to use in my closet now. Nice color.
2. Super cheap KHS mixte, also 80s vintage. Desperate craigslist seller. He has pinged me 5 times about the bike. Seller says it has been updated / tuned / etc in the past couple weeks. It is black / red, not my favorite colors. Not sure if it has rack eyelets, which is something that is a nice to have but I don't think the seller is super expert on these things. It might be geared lower which is a plus, saves work. Would still get a tune up, the seat swapped and maybe different bar wrap. So that starts putting it at near the same price as option #1 , but no piece of mind warranty.
I am leaning towards option #1 , even though it is more pricey because I can get all of the rest of the stuff I'd want done in one place: fitting. Swapping gearing, and I'd have a real person to talk to. And maintenance for a while in case anything comes up.
I am no bike mechanic and I don't know about any of those things, so I wouldn't totally know what to look for in a bike from a private seller. Option #1 is probably easier to resell anyway.
Option #3 : I haven't stopped at 2 of the shops I think probably have options. Luckily they are all pretty close to the location of option 1. I can easily hit them all in an afternoon!
Who knows, after some thought it seems like a good plan! I just need to find a spot to park, I'll probably put it with the other bikes in my building. It seems safe for the other people! And this would be more of "beater" so I don't need to lock as securely.
1. Peugeot mixte circa mid-80s. Decent price, built by a shop, 6 month "warranty" and they'll install my seat for me! I have a nice one to use in my closet now. Nice color.
2. Super cheap KHS mixte, also 80s vintage. Desperate craigslist seller. He has pinged me 5 times about the bike. Seller says it has been updated / tuned / etc in the past couple weeks. It is black / red, not my favorite colors. Not sure if it has rack eyelets, which is something that is a nice to have but I don't think the seller is super expert on these things. It might be geared lower which is a plus, saves work. Would still get a tune up, the seat swapped and maybe different bar wrap. So that starts putting it at near the same price as option #1 , but no piece of mind warranty.
I am leaning towards option #1 , even though it is more pricey because I can get all of the rest of the stuff I'd want done in one place: fitting. Swapping gearing, and I'd have a real person to talk to. And maintenance for a while in case anything comes up.
I am no bike mechanic and I don't know about any of those things, so I wouldn't totally know what to look for in a bike from a private seller. Option #1 is probably easier to resell anyway.
Option #3 : I haven't stopped at 2 of the shops I think probably have options. Luckily they are all pretty close to the location of option 1. I can easily hit them all in an afternoon!
Who knows, after some thought it seems like a good plan! I just need to find a spot to park, I'll probably put it with the other bikes in my building. It seems safe for the other people! And this would be more of "beater" so I don't need to lock as securely.
03-22-16, 11:54 AM
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03-22-16, 08:33 PM
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And it did win! I went on a test ride, came back, got some adjustments, tested again. And things felt pretty good. I still need to find the perfect position for the drop bars, but we got close and I'll have more ideas once I go on a longer ride.
I made a few loops around the block on the tops and the drops. It is widely different riding a road bike. And riding in the drops will obviously take some adjustment. The tops are decent for city riding. It'll take some time to get adjusted to the turning radius since it is so much faster. But that'll come with time.
They were super accommodating: swapped the tires for presta tubes so I could be lazy, changed the rear cassette to 6 speeds so I could have lower gears. And they offered to install my rack. I had a Brooks B-17s to use so that is installed. I pick it up on the weekend.
The frame was in great condition. A couple of small scratches. Although I am a little picky about aesthetics, I figured I could compromise a little bit on my second bike.
The color scheme is 80s fabulous, not sure what my accents should be. New aluminum wheels, new brake pads, recently tuned. To keep my seat safe, I'll add the less than aesthetically pleasing chain, but better safe than sorry.
Potential upgrades:
A bell
A rack (I still need to carry some stuff.)
A seat cover
Bar tape to match my saddle
Different drop bars (for smaller hands)
Different seat post (the one that goes back more if I find it to be uncomfy)
In the end I paid a bit more than the craigslist finds, but peace of mind is priceless! And they are happy to make swaps on the gearing as I wish! Win. Win for me. I got a good price for the Bay Area $300
I made a few loops around the block on the tops and the drops. It is widely different riding a road bike. And riding in the drops will obviously take some adjustment. The tops are decent for city riding. It'll take some time to get adjusted to the turning radius since it is so much faster. But that'll come with time.
They were super accommodating: swapped the tires for presta tubes so I could be lazy, changed the rear cassette to 6 speeds so I could have lower gears. And they offered to install my rack. I had a Brooks B-17s to use so that is installed. I pick it up on the weekend.
The frame was in great condition. A couple of small scratches. Although I am a little picky about aesthetics, I figured I could compromise a little bit on my second bike.
The color scheme is 80s fabulous, not sure what my accents should be. New aluminum wheels, new brake pads, recently tuned. To keep my seat safe, I'll add the less than aesthetically pleasing chain, but better safe than sorry.Potential upgrades:
A bell
A rack (I still need to carry some stuff.
)A seat cover
Bar tape to match my saddle
Different drop bars (for smaller hands)
Different seat post (the one that goes back more if I find it to be uncomfy)
In the end I paid a bit more than the craigslist finds, but peace of mind is priceless! And they are happy to make swaps on the gearing as I wish! Win. Win for me. I got a good price for the Bay Area $300
03-22-16, 09:14 PM
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I actually like the old school auxiliary brake levers, find they work just fine, and have them on my road bike. IMO, the prejudice against them is more fluff than substance.
04-17-16, 09:36 PM
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What NONE Of The Others Speak Of.
(add the issue) Especially depends on where you live/will ride in.
*COST Of Bike/Following future outlook --- for components, accessories, etc.
* Road-Rage, that Road-Cyclists get, vs. ATB. As Road Cyclists have a slimmer profile bikeframe. Generally, more expensive bikes -- than atb bikes. As motorists are more to be jealous of road-bikes. Hence, more road-rage against Road-Cyclists (add the slimmer profile).
(add the issue) Especially depends on where you live/will ride in.
*COST Of Bike/Following future outlook --- for components, accessories, etc.
* Road-Rage, that Road-Cyclists get, vs. ATB. As Road Cyclists have a slimmer profile bikeframe. Generally, more expensive bikes -- than atb bikes. As motorists are more to be jealous of road-bikes. Hence, more road-rage against Road-Cyclists (add the slimmer profile).
04-18-16, 01:50 PM
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What NONE Of The Others Speak Of.
(add the issue) Especially depends on where you live/will ride in.
*COST Of Bike/Following future outlook --- for components, accessories, etc.
* Road-Rage, that Road-Cyclists get, vs. ATB. As Road Cyclists have a slimmer profile bikeframe. Generally, more expensive bikes -- than atb bikes. As motorists are more to be jealous of road-bikes. Hence, more road-rage against Road-Cyclists (add the slimmer profile).
(add the issue) Especially depends on where you live/will ride in.
*COST Of Bike/Following future outlook --- for components, accessories, etc.
* Road-Rage, that Road-Cyclists get, vs. ATB. As Road Cyclists have a slimmer profile bikeframe. Generally, more expensive bikes -- than atb bikes. As motorists are more to be jealous of road-bikes. Hence, more road-rage against Road-Cyclists (add the slimmer profile).
04-18-16, 02:36 PM
#35
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