Sparky Bird

I'm 6' tall and weigh only 150 pounds due to cycling in the past two years. I was wondering if frame stiffness is an issue for someone like me. In other words, am I light enough that most frames, regardless of price, will likely not noticably flex. I want to buy a new bike for about $3000. Should I pay more for a frame that's reputed to be very stiff or am I better off buying a more modest frame because I'm not heavy enough to make stiffness a concern? I love to climb hills so maybe stiffness really is important to me.

If I don't need a stiff frame, I was thinking of upgrading my 04' Lemond Buenos Aires and saving a few hundred dollars. Its carbon/steel frame is nice and I would buy a build kit to upgrade its components.

MIN 

Only way to tell is go and test ride some bikes. I am 175 and flex was noticeable from bike to bike. That's why I got a Cannondale - best stiffness for the buck.

biker7

Well...depends what you want and like. Some don't like super stiff frames. I like just a notch down from super stiff for example as I prefer a balance of good ride and decent energy transfer and I am over 6' and getting back my cycling weight this spring at 190 lbs...which will drop from there. Generally strong riders prefer stiffer frames but it is more a function of pedal force which doesn't always correlate to rider weight but many times does as bigger guys tend to be stronger but don't necessarily have as good of power to weight ratio. Big frames tend to flex a bit more by nature even though tube sections are designed with long beam members. Long beams with the same section, i.e. thickness and diameter tend to bend more due to reduced bending and torsional stiffness. I like a frame with a bit of vertical compliance for good ride quality but when I stand and sprint or climb I like to feel what little power I have is translating to speed. My last large steel frame Bianchi for example known for its wonderful ride felt noodley when hammering...I could make the chain rub pretty easy and my new CF bike which has even a better ride is stiffer and faster....a great combination.
Stiffness is in part preference over and above rider weight and to a degree power and why not always related, stiffness many times correlates to ride quality even though I just referenced when it doesn't,
HTH,
George

CrimsonKarter21

Cannondale CAAD9

Stallionforce

Good to see you're going for an upgrade! I don't believe considerations of stiffness has anything to do with your weight; it has more to do with your strengths as a rider, and the sort of races you want to excel in. If you have a lot of explosive power and you wish to focus on criteriums, then, yeah, go for a really stiff frame. Alternatively, if you prefer long road races with long climbs, then stiffness isn't as much of a concern.

That said, there are some bikes in your price range that can offer you both stiffness and lightness. I am not entirely certain, but for 3000 I imagine you are close to affording a Soloist with Ultegra.

Scott also puts out an aluminium framed road bike that is very light and stiff. In fact, most modern aluminium frames with carbon rear/front would fit the bill as well.

Edit: I just checked on the Soloist and I was wrong, it goes for about 4500 US. However, the Scott Speedster is within your range, and fairly light at 18 lbs for the complete bike. You could probably pick a couple of smart upgrades and get it down to 17.

**Also you may want to check out the Canadian maker Argon 18. They put out a well regarded full carbon with 105 that's under 3,000.

https://www.brauns.com/gc/gc_item.exe?K=ARG18-KRYPTON105EQROADBIKE&A=10100

MIN 

^ Ultegra Soloist is $2200. I'm not sure where you shop.

CrimsonKarter21

IIRC, Victoria is in Australia, you culturally insensitive prick!!!

old and new

I'd say some test rides are warranted.Spaky bird,you seem to be all over the place as far as which path you'll take:up-grading or buying new.I've always understood that your bike or most with only certain tubes of carbon rode with a good degree of smoothness while adressing the frame flex issue at the bottom bracket for example combined "best of both worlds.You DO seem to have a handle on what you want in a frame,you like hills and can climb well enough to care about stiffness.You're not heavy but you and your frames are long.Large frames are "over-built" to some extent but leverage comes into play.By test riding(i'm not a slave to test riding by the way) you'll be able to isolate characteristics of various frames.You MAY come to realize that the bike you're riding now IS stiff enough after all.i'll vote for a new bike anyday,that's just me,I let friends and such accompany me if....so I keep several and switch around. I'll add;Buenos Aires have good stuff on them,I'd keep it as is.
I have some steel bikes and one TI,I feel i'm just not worthy of Carbon(or light enough for) I never had an aluminum bike.I also never knew or witnessed a Cannondale rider that did NOT kick-ass,sometimes I wish that wasn't the case,is just is. I will commit all of what Biker 7 has written to memory,you should too.

MIN 

He said $4500 US.

smoke

soloist carbon frame is $3200 US. soloist carbon SL frame is $4500 US. both those prices are from competitivecyclist.com

Sparky Bird

Great answers--Thank you

I can get a Specialized Roubaix Expert Triple for $3000 at the LBS. I imagine the frame is stiff enough for hill climbs considering I'm 6', 150 lbs? I'd get size 58. My 04' carbon/steel Lemond Buenos Aires weighs 21lbs, and the fully carbon Roubaix is expected to weight 17.5. I'd only pull the trigger on this deal if I would notice a difference considering the weight and the full carbon frame. I have 4500 miles on the Lemond and its time for a new chain/cassette/chainrings.

dcvelo

Keep in mind that there is the Soloist Carbon and the Soloist Team. The latter is an aluminum frame and our local Cervelo dealer offers it with mostly Ultegra Components at $2200 (FSA cranks and bottom bracket). I happened to fall in with a guy on this morning's ride who was on a Soloist Team and he was pretty happy with it. For what it's worth.

msheron

Dude at your weight you could ride balsa wood and it would be stiff!

Lecterman

No doubt, or styrofoam.

Seriously, Patentcad could tell a thing or two about the Cannondale Six13

DrPete 

Pinarello F4:13/F3:13 or Cervelo R3.

cc3chan

R3 for absoulute stiffness to weight. My previous bike the Roubaix Comp felt flexy compared to the R3, which feels more like the CAAD 7 I had before that.

DannoXYZ 

I wouldn't worry about frame-stiffness too much, as there's absolutely no speed-difference between the softest vs. stiffest frames. But rather, focus on what kind of results you want. At one point, I raced two customized bikes depending upon the type of racing. I had the original fat-tube Cannondale with steel fork (pre-2.8/3.0) for maximum stiffness for crits. It handled telepathically and would turn instantly even before I thought about it. But is would beat me up and cause sore ass, hands and back on anything over 75-miles.

So for road-races, I had a softer frame with more relaxed geometry that was more comfortable. Eventually, I settled in on a Specialized Allez Epic which kinda splits the difference between the two. It wasn't as nimble as the Cannondale for crits, but I could also do fast technical downhills as well without worrying about my tyres skipping over bumps and launching me towards the barricades.

As for the subjective feel of stiffness when climbing, I've found that stiff bars & stems contribute more to this than the frame itself.

biker7

OP, read Danno's comments carefully as he is one of the guys on this list that know's what he is talking about. There is a clear distinction between crits and road racing as he adroitly states. One exception I will take and covered it in my more generic comments is...quite correct, extra stiffness doesn't necessarily correlate to speed but some still prefer a more linear power transfer. I will give you a couple of anecdotal comparisons as I grew up playing competitive golf and tennis. Two golfers with the same swing speed may prefer different flex shafts and two tennis players with same power level may elect to string their rackets 20 lbs different. As Danno states although is has been speculated that a stiffer frame means a faster frame, this has not been proven yet some still love a stiff frame. I am with Danno on the road bike front because as mentioned, I prefer just a bit of give in favor of an ultra stiff frame. Also, by analogy I always preferred slightly less stiff golf clubs and never strung my rackets too tight either.

For a weekend warrior in the grand scheme it doesn't matter a whole lot unless you have the power level of a pro rider anyway.

Lastly having just gone through this, my suggestion is build a bike you like. You can find a nice carbon frame for about $1300 and buy a new Chorus gruppo for $1100 with maybe some Campy Zonda wheels for $300-400 or so and you are close to your budget and will likely end up with a nicer bike then a package purchase.
Good Luck and be sure to share what you decide.
George

patentcad

Since Cdale replaced the Six13 at the top of their line with the System Six the Six13 is cheaper. Like a CAAD 8 or 9 combined with CF comfort. Very stiff BB, light, handsome bike, etc. Loving mine (got it in Sept. of 2005, so that's coming up on 2 years in a few month) more than ever. Just put Zipps on it too. Schweet.



The first person that tells me to 'flip it' gets a visit from my personal hit man, Cypress.

biker7

OP, If you can find a Cdale Six13 in your size...likely a 56-58, consider one. I looked hard for one before I bought my frame but couldn't find my size at the right price. The Six13 is one of the best frames I have ever test ridden.
George

DrPete 

Ryanf just PM'd me and said "patentcad should flip it."

MIN 

Patentcad - what seat post do you have? I am in the market for a non-setback.
Very nice looking bike sir!