Originally Posted by
teachndad
You were right. I went back and remeasured. I read the calipers wrong.
Thanks DJB for the detailed response. I appreciate your time. While I have had experience those many years ago, there's still a learning curve coming back to it. Here I thought 45 psi was low. I will try it down to 35 psi. Clearly we don't want tire fold over on turns. Playing with air pressure is a lot cheaper than buying new tires. I will try that first. It's a good point that I need to settle in on fine tuning my ride set up. BTW, I weigh 145 lbs.
I had a back surgery a few years ago, so I think I am hypervigilant when it comes to the feedback from the road surface. I want to be able to ride as long as I am able.
Cheers,
Rod
- Good to see it is still a 27.2mm seatpost. That is about the most standard thing on steel frames and if you ever need to check a seatpost, all seatposts are marked with their diameter number near the bottom of the post.
- Redshift stems are well proven at this point- they are highly regarded and have shown to be reliable/lasting.
- The 'cyclingabout' links are, to me, trash. That website is barely better than clickbait, but I do agree that you should look around for options to ensure your purchases are smart. With that said, Redshift stems and seatposts are very well regarded and most every other seatpost with suspension that I have seen is cheaply made or absurdly expensive and heavy. The Redshift seatpost actually does what its supposed to and isnt junk. NOTE- I dont own redshift products, but I have ridden a lot with friends that have stems and seatposts.
- 145# is featherweight and while everyone is different for pain, tolerance, and fit- I am surprised you hurt when riding 38mm tires on pavement. Frost heaves in pavement are just a reality. I am not suggesting you just tough it out, to be clear.
- Your bike can handle up to 50mm tires. Wider tires allow for lower tire pressure without the being concerned with pinch flats or tire wiggle(wander, fold, whatever else). Wider tires also equal more comfort when run at those lower pressures. Just keep this in mind.
No idea how the back surgery went or what limitations you now have from it, if any. Again, totally get that everyone is different and not suggesting you just tough it out. My wife had surgery on...well her left side(broken left shoulder, torn left acl, fractured lower back, screws in a few bones, jacked up left hip) jsut over 4 years ago when she wanted her horse to jump one way and he decided a different way was better. Anyways, since then its been a slow process back for her riding. She used an old 26" MTB with flat bar for a couple years and only recently got back on her road bike after I made some changes to the fit. Point being, I recognize everyone is different, has different concerns and limitations, and interprets riding feedback differently. I hope you are able to find a setup that works for you that is both comfortable and fun.
Something to consider if you need less back angle or less pressure on your hands- some drop bars have rise to them- Ritchey, Surly, and others have bars that rise up 10-20mm. Heck, the Soma Condor drop bar has 50mm of rise between the clamp and the tops.