Originally Posted by
albireo13
I have been using my Felt F75x for a few years now. I do only road biking, no cyclocross. It's a nice bike but, I want something
more efficient and
appropriate for road biking .. and
faster on the roads.
F75X - Felt Bicycles
At first I was planning on shopping for a new road bike. I'm a casual, recreational biker .. not hardcore ... so I am thinking something midrange, or high entry-level. Budget ~$1500 or so.
Talking with a biking friend, he suggested that if I like the bike just upgrade components instead of getting another bike ... new wheels with skinny tires, new gear set, upgrade deraileurs, etc.
Any opinions out there on which way to go?
Bike models to consider?
Thx,
Rob
If you replaced this bike with a road bike, even a $3000 one, you'd need a stop watch to measure the speed increase.
I posted this in
another thread:
Due to wind resistance, it takes a big increase in power to go just a little faster. For instance, on
this bike calculator, using the default settings, 100 watts is
15 mph, but 160 watts is 18 mph. That's 60% more power!
But there are other ways to increase your speed. From the same calculator, riding in the drops instead of the hoods, at 100 watts, you get
16.2 mph, and 120 watts gets 18 mph.
A road bike in your price range might be a pound or two lighter. But a 20 oz small water bottle weighs 1.3 pounds. I can't tell the difference when climbing with 2 full bottles or 2 empties.
Efficiency
I'd work on the Felt, and put off a new bike until later.
Tires -- Continental GP4000S in 25c. These are very low rolling resistance, with decent puncture protection, very good grip in turns, and long life. They will be faster and very comfortable on rough chip-seal roads, since the flexible sidewalls really soak up the bumps. Add some reasonably lightweight tubes. Run at appropriate pressures: try 85-90 psi front and 100-105 rear to start.
Riding position -- I have
shallow drop bars, similar to these
FSA Omega bars. Those are a few grams heavier than more expensive bars, and very affordable. I have the bars set a little higher, so it's very easy to ride in the drops. I'll ride probably 60% hoods, 35% drops, and 5% tops near the stem. Getting just a little more aero in the drops will boost your speed, and the different hand positions are helpful on long day rides.
Wheels -- new wheels won't help that much. On my previous road bike, the original wheels got rim cracks at the spoke holes after 15,000 miles, so I replaced them with a more expensive, much lighter set. I went from about 2000 grams to 1550 grams, a pound lighter. The difference was fairly subtle, mostly showing up as a quicker steering response. It seemed faster, but I think that was an effect of slightly faster acceleration and quick response. (light wheel faster acceleration means it decelerates faster too, making the net effect pretty small.)
Drivetrain -- it's not worth upgrading the 105 components. Years ago, my rear derailleur had worn pivots after a lot of riding, so the shifts started getting sloppy and noisy. Tuning the derailleur didn't help. A new rear derailleur fixed it.
Your 46-36 chainrings could be swapped to 50-34 rings, typical for a road bike. But only if you have fairly long or steep hills, otherwise the 46-36 is fine.
And,
Saddle -- if your saddle doesn't work well on long rides, try a bunch of different styles. Some bike stores allow returns or have demo saddles to try.
Brake pads -- some Koolstop pads will likely help your braking, with good modulation and strong stopping force.
Bar tape -- new tape is nice to have.
Shift cables -- new cables and housing every few years, depending on how many miles a year.
Fit -- work on your bike fit. This will help for long ride comfort and for aero efficiency.
...
In the future, you'll have a better idea of what you want in a new bike. Maybe by then, the electronic shifting will be affordable, and there will be other improvements. I ride rolling hills, and the fast shifts with Di2, both front and back, are really nice.
With your current bike fit settled, you can find a new bike that works for you.