Buk72

I've got a GIANT FCR3 road bike. Other than the frame what would be the next thing to swap to lighten the overal weight of the bike? Should it be the wheels first? In your opinion, what order would you begin with? I understand that unless I was racing, mere grams wouldn't make much difference but I carry a big load on my back to and from work and I'm uphill all the way home with a pretty big hill at the end. I think at this point every little counts...
I'm new to the bike world so please shed some light on this.. don't mind the pun

Thanks
Jay

Little Darwin

While less weight will help you climb better, you can pay quite a bit to lose a little weight.

Some of the cheaper things to change can be the stem and seat post... but the weight savings can either be significant or minimal depending on what the current components weigh. A relatively light handlebar can also be pretty inexpensive.

The best performance upgrades according to many are wheels and tires, and the argument is that rolling weight is more effective... Wheels and tires can be had for varying price points, and can save quite a bit of weight, depending on how much you care to spend. Just going to narrower/lighter tires and tubes can help, but you could become more prone to flats too...

If you carry a water bottle, you would probably save as much weight as any upgrade by not carrying the water bottle... but you obviously lose out on your ability to stay hydrated.

You can also cut down on how much stuff you carry on your back.

Little Darwin

I just looked at the specs, and it lists an adjustable height stem. Even though I don't know that one specifically, those stems tend to be fairly heavy, so if you have your stem adjusted where you want it, getting a fixed stem to put you in a similar position might save you a couple of ounces and be pretty affordable.

jack002

If I was posting this and mention weight and hills, I'd be asking about GEARS? How can I get lower gears? If you ever had a triple with a 20" low, you'd know what I'm talking about. I'm not familiar with the GIANT FCR3, what kinda gears are on it?

stapfam

FCR3 gearing depends on age - but my OCR3 had 8 speed with a triple. 52/42/30 and a 12/26 cassette.

FCR and OCR and same frame and components- except bars and levers.

My OCR3 was fine as a starter bike. Weight was acceptable for a cheap bike and for the price- the components were good---Except for the wheels and tyres.

Tale I have told before- but

a downhill I do regularly And I got to 30 mph - but I did ease off on a corner. Problem is that the mountain on the same hill and I got to 37mph and the corner was only a curve. Talked to the LBS and they loaned me a pair of wheels- A pair of Krysiums with 23 size tyres on them. Next trip down the hill and the curve was just a bit more lean on the bike and it felt so stable. The stock wheels are not that special- or light and I had been noticing a lot of front wheel flex on cornering.

Got a pair of handbuilt wheels- 105 hubs- Mavic CXP33 rims and 36 spokes with a X2 lacing pattern. They are fantastic and did not cost a fortune. Speed was back up to the 37mph on the hill but average speed on my normal 40 to 50 mile ride wnt up by 2 mph. Still have the wheels and use them on the current bike(s) and the OCR is relegated as a loaner to friends.

So first upgrade to me would be tyres- then wheels and I hate to say it but to lose weight on the rest of the bike will cost money. Bars and stem would not be expensive unless you go really lightweight but I don't think much else would be worth upgrading till it wears out. It is a cheap bike that works but only up to a level.

telebianchi

What's in your backpack? How heavy is it? I'd guess it would be easier to get the weight off of there than the bike and you would feel the difference off your back more than by shaving a couple hundred grams off of the stem and wheels, etc. Can you switch to a bike rack? It won't change the overall weight but would likely be easier to ride with it.

Also, how much do you weigh? I know that I could drop five to ten pounds a lot easier (and cheaper) than the same weight off of my 20lb bike.

That being said, I'm all for spending money on the bike (gotta help this world economy, you know) but if your goal is lighter total weight (you, bike and gear) there are probably more effective methods you could take.

jack002

[If this is not what you were wanting to hear, ignore me]
Ok, so assuming it has a triple with a 52/42/30 and a 12-26 cog that would put your low gear at like 31 inches or so. If you can replace the 30t chainring with a 28 and the cogset with something that has a 34t for the low end then you'd have a 22" low. Wayyyy better. If you can, see if someone with about a 22" low can let you borrow it for a sec to try it. Go to your LBS and ask to test ride a bike with really low gears. I think you'll forget all about this weight thing and see you just needed to gear it to the hills and weight you have to carry. This answer is simpler, cheaper and more practical.

andr0id

Put compressed helium in your tires rather than air. That helps a lot with climbing and hauling heavy loads.

Oh, and get a rack or something. Why do you want to carry the load twice?

Buk72

Wow, thanks for all your input everyone! So far it sounds like the wheel and tires are at the top of the list as lightening my load in my pack isn't possible as I ride to work with breakfast and lunch and "in-betweeners". Yeah, I have a healthy appetite. I do a lot of cross fit training and I need to eat! lol
As for the gears, I need to look into that. I'm new to the bike world so I'm kind of lost with all the lingo. STAPFAM is right about the crank being 52/42/30 but I think my cassette is 11/28 and I don't know what that means. Is that the number of teeth?

stapfam

11/28 cassette is the number of teeth on the cassette. An 11/28 was normally fitted to a mountain bike so it will have a lower gear than if it was with Road bike gearing. I can assure you that 30/28 is good enough for ALL hills up to 15% gradient. Perhaps superfluous for flatlands but you do not have to use all the rings on the front. It sounds as though you have an 8 speed set up (Or 24 with a triple up front) not a problem though as it still has the range of gears required.

The original tyres would have been a Kenda Kontendor in 700 x26 sizing. Not a great tyre and heavy. I changed to 700x23 and went for a Favourite road tyre in Michelin Pro Race 2's (Now superceded to 3's) Another good tyre is the Continental 4000s and the "s" is important. Both tyres are lightweight at 200grammes or so and roll a lot better than the Kenda's.