5h0m3d4m0n3y

I got a pretty much stock steamroller and looking to do some upgrades to lower the weight. The Steamroller frame and fork aren't too much heavier than other bikes, so what parts on the bike weighs it down?

europa

Everything else?

Richard
this is the bit where people chime in asking you to give some more details

Hobartlemagne 

The first thing to change that can significantly lower the weight is the wheels.

mihlbach

Basically, you have a steel bike with a bunch of decent but not ultra high-end components. Each component weighs slightly more than what more expensive components weigh, which adds up to a few extra pounds. There's no single part you can change that will make a real difference. Perhaps you could remove a pound with better wheels, but thats still not a big difference. To really lighten up your bike by several pounds you'll have to swap out a lot of parts, and thats going to cost about the same or even more than the initial cost of the bike.
There are several reasons why its not worth the cost.
1. By modern standards, the steamroller is a heavy frame made of low-grade steel, so its never going to be a really light, no matter what parts you put on it.
2. Say you+ bike weigh 180 lbs. You could spend hundreds of dollars on new parts and shave off 2 pounds. Now, you and the bike weigh 178 lbs. Thats not a big difference is it?

My advice is not to worry about the weight of the bike unless you have money to burn. The steamroller is a sturdy frame, not really designed to serve as a lightweight racer. Replace parts as you need them, but forget about weight. If you really want a light bike, save for something thats lighter to begin with, but in the end, a few pounds is almost meaningless in terms of overall performance.

ZiP0082

So what you're saying is 4130 CroMoly is the new High Tensile Steel. I suppose you've got a point.

mihlbach

4130 is good steel, but its low-end by modern standards. I think of it as "utility" steel...it'll do its job as well as any other steel, but its not for weight weenies.

queerpunk

No, that's way too disparaging - like saying that Formula hubs are the new Quando. The key notion here is value - good functioning at a low price.

mihlbach

Thats basically what I was saying, although its worth noting that Surly's really aren't the best value out there. You can get well-made frames constructed from better steel for a similar cost. For example, the main triangle of Soma frames are made of Reynolds 631 (older) and Tange Prestige (newer) and they are priced about like basic chromo Surly frames. Surly's are still good, sturdy frames though, no doubt, just not a good platform for a building a light bike.

Saddle Up

Save a pound from your wheel set and you will feel the difference with every revolution of the pedals.

Sixty Fiver

A 4130 double butted frame is quite a step up from a straight gauge hi ten or 4130 frame...

mihlbach

pyroguy_3

A couple people have suggested a lighter wheelset, and I agree. The wheels are where shaving weight will make the most difference. Think of it this way, most of the weight on a wheel is at the outside, tire/rim. All this weight must be rotated to get the bike to move, the force required to enact this rotation is dependent on how long your lever(the spokes) are, and how much weight is at the end of the lever. You don't want to change the wheel size, so loose some weight at the end of the lever, and less force is needed to start that rotation. Wow, that was probably too long winded.

mihlbach

What you said is correct, but its not really very important. For instance, imagine coasting down a hill. The heavier wheels will accelerate more slowly, but will ultimately reach a higher speed, and as you reach the bottom of the hill, the heavier wheels will hold their speed longer. The same is true of climbing a hill...the heavier wheels will allow you to coast further up the hill. This is been gone over ad nauseum in the road forum. A extra pound of rotational weight is really not much more significant than a pound of any other weight.

MIN 

How much does a Steamroller Complete weigh?

Thetank

Steamroller complete is around 20lbs for the smaller frames. OP what are you comparing this bike to? This is a fair and reasonable weight for a 4130 frame, if you want lighter I would recommend higher end steel or switch to an aluminum frame.

jpdesjar

i think its the big stone drum part that makes it heavy hence it's steamrolling capabilities...seriously though i have a steamroller and it's not all that heavy, i did notice a little difference when i put my cross tires on but it was minimal

jhota

almost 6.5 pounds for a frame/fork combo is pretty porky. the frame runs 4.5 by itself.

half a pound is a big difference in weight when you're looking at frames (for example, an IRO Mark V frame is more than 13 percent lighter than a Steamroller frame).

but (as you suspect) it's probably a combination of factors - heavy frame plus heavy parts equals heavy bike. i'd just ride it as-is.

my everyday single speed weighs over 25 pounds (with a frame/fork combo about a pound and a half lighter than that of a Steamroller) - but it's durable.

kennykaos

man up

adriano 

is it funny because its so true or because you think losing 16oz is unpossible?

alpacalypse

The surly was never intended to be light; it was intended to be tough. If you want a light bike in that price range, plenty of other companies have options-- raleigh, fuji, bianchi and specialized come to mind.

MIN 

It's ridiculous to claim you won't feel a 1 pound reduction in rotating weight. That's just irresponsible.

ascend

Well if he spends all his time arguing about weight on the internet and never rides the thing, he probably won't

trons

no one said that. edit: oops, someone said that

mihlbach

Your not going to feel it with every rotation of the wheel, which somebody claimed above....thats absurd. It irresponsible to claim that a difference of one pound (rotational weight or not) will be obvious to the rider, because its not going to be. Do you honestly think that all the noobs on this forum riding around their Kilo TTs in jeans and vans shoes could tell the difference on one pound. Thats really absurd.

MIN 

Yeah the average noobs in flip flop slippers could feel that difference. 1 pound = 545 gram = about the per bike difference between running race slicks like Michelin PR2 and commuting tires like Schwalbe Marathons. It's noticeable.