nickf829

So I've been patrolling the forums for a few months now. Back in the winter I decided cardio in the gym sucked, sitting on the bikes in the gym for an hour or two was boring, so I started lookin for a road bike. I started out thinking i'd spend 500 max, then 700 max, then one thing led to another and here i am. I picked up a Fuji Team, 54cm, carbon frame, 105 throughout(not my first choice, but it was a deal). I've already got around 70 miles on it after 2 rides. I love it. My only beef is the shifting, not that i've ever owned a nice bike before, but i expected a better feeling shift, now i wish i would have sprung for the ultegra. Other then that, it seems i'm now the weakest link when riding, not the bike, which is where i want to be. Anyone have any suggestions on anything i can do to as far as upgrading, maybe the cost to upgrade to ultegra everything. I'm very new and very bike-tarded, so you may have to dumb some stuff down haha.

heres a pic i snapped earlier


oh, and will my ass ever adjust to that stiff seat? hopefully, it sucks the first few miles then i don't notice, but the next ride i feel it as soon as i sit down. i figure it just takes some getting used to.

baj32161

Why are you thinking of upgrading already?

Big Helmet

You WILL get used to the seat. Sore butt for a few days or a couple weeks, after that you won't even think about it (most likely).

What are the symptoms of the poor shifting vs. what you expected? The 105 drive train is generally regarded as a pretty good and reliable performer, with Ultegra being a relatively minor (though obviously worth it for many) upgrade in terms of "smoothness". Before you think about spending more money, you might want to have the bike looked at carefully to make sure the drive train components are properly adjusted and the cables appropriately tensioned.

You've already got a pretty nice ride. As you already appreciate, your major upgrade at this point will be to the rider, which will come quickly and in which you will likely continue to take great pleasure.

dr_cantalope

I've never found a tremendous difference in the shifting between 105 and Ultegra when I test rode (I have a 105 Front Derailleur and an Ultegra Rear Derailleur on my Cannondale). You might want to have the LBS tune it up for you that might do it. Also don't forget that with new bikes the cables strech and that can impact your shifting.

In the long run, upgrading will cost you more than buying a complete bike, so put your pennies away and just get something new in a few years. Concentrate on putting some miles on this bike. If you really want to spend some money, put it towards stuff you can use on another bike (like your kit or a computer).

Also... congratulations.

allez

before you jump the gun and upgrade, you shouldnt be having major shifting issues. from the sound of it, your derailleurs (both, probably) are not tuned correctly. 105 is a great group, and shifts very nicely if you have everything tuned. take it into the shop where you got it and ask them to tune the derailleurs, that should solve any shifting problems. or you could try it yourself, using sites like sheldonbrown.com and parktool.com.
as for the seat, yes, your taint/gooch and ass will adjust after a couple hundred miles. if not, you probably have a wrong width. you should be on your "sit bones"

oh, and just a couple tips......take a pic from the drivetrain side, chain in the big ring! and lose the reflectors!! and is that a dork disk inside the cassette?!?!

baj32161

Good advice this...all of it. Your cables do stretch during the first 100 miles or so, causing sketchy shifting. I also have a 105 front and Ultegra rear and had the same issues when I first got my bike....but since my first tune-up it has been perfect. The eonly upgrade I could even think of at this point would be clipless pedals if you don't already have them. Otherwise, congrats and enjoy that nice ride. Upgrade fever can really bite you if you're not careful.

Cheers,

Brian

dstrong 

You may want to consider the fact that you and your technique could be the problem you perceive in your shifting. The more I ride (I now have 1066 miles on my first road bike in 25 years) the more my technique improves.

For instance, do you "ghost pedal" when you shift? If you're bearing down with full pressure most drivetrains will grind and complain. Think about this...when moving from your big to small chainring, realize that it takes almost a half rotation of the pedals before the final link finally clears off the big ring. Think about how must stress is on the final few links before they come off the big ring if you're applying a lot of pedal pressure.

Notice how you use the brifters also. Watching the pros it's a very swift movement to upshift and downshift. I found I was sort of "slow shifting" when I wanted to move to the bigger rings/cogs and that everything kind of dragged. Now I try to shift more crisply and the drivetrain complains less frequently.

nickf829

thanks for all the good advice, the problem may lie in the fact that its brand new and not wore in, or in how im riding/shifting. its just very clanky and alot of time it "sounds" as if its inbetween gears but its not. but then again im new to this so i could just be insane, very possible. the lbs i bought it from went out of business the day i bought it haha, which is how i got it on a pretty good clearance. but i have another lbs down the road i may take it to to have them look at it. ill wait another week or two to break it in before i take it up there to see if it goes away.

side note, my chain has slipped off 3 times now, when i shift from the lowest gear on the big front ring and shift to the small front ring(sorry my terminology sucks) its fallen off 3 times, i don't know if thats not what you're supposed to do or what, but its a pain when im climbing a hill and try and drop it, again im sure it has to do with my massive inexperience, but i learned quick don't shift from the lowest gear on the big front ring to the little front ring

and yeah im definately going in to get a good computer, ill probably head up this weekend and take a look at a decent computer. i've already bought a set of clipin shoes and pedals, both shimano, i went with a more "mountainy" shoe because it had a sole on it and i would like to be able to walk around and not screw the shoe up or slip and fall on my butt haha. ill get a road only shoe eventually but for now this works for me.
if your wondering, yes i fell trying to unclip at a stopsign haha. i sat in my garage for about 20 minutes practicing clipping in and out without falling, went for a ride around the block, stopped at all the stopsigns, no problems, as soon as i set off on my actual ride, i got to the exit of the subdivision, got my right foot unclipped, tried leaning on it, weight went to the left and i couldnt get my foot out, tipped over. it was pretty funny, i think i was laughing harder then the guy watching me in the car behind me haha.

dr_cantalope

That's a quick fix. You just need to set the adjustment screws of the Front Deraileur (FD). I would HIGHLY recommend that you take it to your Local Bike Shop (LBS) and have them do it. As you mentioned you are new at cycling, and while you may think you are doing something correctly, bike mechanisms are very delicate and you can definately do more harm than good (take it from me, I've been there). Also, starting a relationship with a LBS will pay for itself in the long run. Talk to the mechanic and ask him what he's doing, thats a great way to learn.

I had another thought about your noisy drive train. When you hear noises are you in a big gear in front and a big gear in back (or small gear in front and small in back)? You want to avoid extreme angles on your chain. It wears down the chain and teeth. Also, you can do "feather adjustments" where you can half-click the shifter for the FD and that will keep the chain on the same ring, but slide the derailleur over a bit so that it doesn't contact the chain.

bccycleguy

Lots of people upgrade to 105, so don't feel hard done by just because you have 105. There is a lot of subtle technique to riding a road bike, such as shifting and cornering to name just a few. Don't feel that you should be able to ride like a pro after the first week. Learn how to do basic maintenance and tuning and ask questions, it'll pay off in the long run. Marginal technique always looks worse when the bike is out of tune.

twahl

nick: PM inbound.

(Y(L|S+

First off, congratulations on your new road bike. As far as your shifting problems, as dr_cantalope stated, sounds like your front derailleur needs some adjustments. If you wanna try to tackle it yourself I'd recommend Park Tools website. This is a good source of info. Or you can take it to an LBS. I myself seem to learn better when I try things myself but wrenching on a bike may not be something you are interested in doing.

It sure sounds like you have a great attitude and you are really enjoying your new bike experience .

Mariner Fan

Congratulations on your new bike Nick. Sounds like you already have the upgrade fever! Take a couple of Aspirins and hope you get better! BTW I have the sickness too.....

dr_cantalope

+1

I have my paycheck sent via direct deposit straight to my LBS, it avoids the middleman and speeds up the whole process of spending all my money on bike stuff.

nickf829

haha im sure it can be a sickness, i seem suceptable(sp?) to that modifying bug, i caught it with my project truck which is the bike-kickstand in the pic, and i've caught it with about everything else i've ever touched haha. but the thought of screwing this bike up scares me as i just bought it, so i'm taking it to the bike builder from the lbs that shut down, he's offered to look it over for me, ill just watch and learn, and then attempt it on my own some other time haha

thanks for the help everybody