Go Back  Bike Forums > The Racer's Forum > "The 33"-Road Bike Racing
Reload this Page >

Now that the 2500 seems to be a bit broken in.....

Notices
"The 33"-Road Bike Racing We set this forum up for our members to discuss their experiences in either pro or amateur racing, whether they are the big races, or even the small backyard races. Don't forget to update all the members with your own race results.

Now that the 2500 seems to be a bit broken in.....

Old 04-01-07, 11:37 AM
  #1  
Used to be a climber..
Thread Starter
 
GuitarWizard's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Santa Clarita, CA
Posts: 6,849

Bikes: 2016 Ridley Fenix SL, 2020 Trek Emonda ALR (rim brake)

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 7 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 4 Times in 3 Posts
Now that the 2500 seems to be a bit broken in.....

For reference, in case anyone missed the other thread, below is the bike I built up for racing purposes:



Against my better judgement, since I'm feeling a bit under the weather, I decided to go on a "short" ride....my old 16 mile loop. Ended up doing it in the 3rd fastest time to date.....although had I not been overheating, I probably would've been a bit faster. So much for taking it easy.

Here's my opinions on some of the components....wheels and the groupset since I'm sure that's what most people are interested in....now that I've gotten things fairly well-adjusted for the most part and have some time with them:

Mike Garcia Niobium 30 wheels - I had these built specifically for racing. I told Mike how much I weighed, and that I wanted a stiff wheelset for racing built around the Niobium 30 rim. He recommended 20 spokes in front and 24 in the rear with my weight, and DT Super Comp triple butted spokes. Front is radial laced, and the rear is 2x. I have brass nipples on the drive side, and aluminum nipples everywhere else. I went with the Serenity hubs to save a little weight, and lastly, went with the steel skewers over the titanium ones as they are stiffer. They weigh in at 1570 grams, including rim tape and the skewers.

Overall, they seem to be a nice set of wheels for the money. Paired with Michelin Pro 2 Race tires, they roll very well. Since it's only a 30mm rim, I haven't noticed much in the way of a "speed gain", nor did I expect to....however, these are about a pound lighter than my Race Lite wheels with wire bead tires. Now that, I notice a difference with. Accelerating is noticably easier and smoother.

My only gripe is that the one area I was really hoping they'd shine in....lateral stiffness....they are "ok". I can rather easily get the front brake to rub when climbing out of the saddle; the Race Lites seem to be much stiffer in this category. If I consciously rock the bike less (i.e., barely at all), then it's not so bad, to nearly non-existent. Oh well. Other than that....I like the wheels.

SRAM Rival Groupset w/ SRAM Force Compact Crankset - After hearing word that the SRAM Rival crankset was kinda crappy....as in, flexes a lot....I sold it and upgraded to the SRAM Force compact crankset. Plus, the Rival crankset was a 172.5mm and I needed a 170mm. Crankset seems ok - didn't notice any drama from down there, so that's a good thing. I do miss the 36T chainring on my 5200 though....riding with a 34T again feels weird, and I have to shift like 3 times to get in the right gear. I have a 36T on order.

Everyone wants to know how the shifting is, how comfortable the levers are, etc. Well....once you get everything adjusted, it shifts great. Going from the small ring to big ring....flawless. I'm not much for riding in the small ring unless I'm climbing, so I didn't have any "trim" issues that people make a big deal over with Campy and the like. The rear derailleur shifts fast and without drama. Click the button, it goes. The other nice part about shifting to a smaller cog is, the amount of movement to make the shift isn't very much.....so, if you're hammering in a sprint in the drops, it's literally "right there". Another great feature is, the brake/shift levers are also "right there", but at the same time, not in the way. The shift paddle can rotate/pull into the handlebars a bit, so it follows the natural arc of your finger, unlike Shimano. To top it off, the hoods are extremely comfortable, and offer a nice flat surface for your hands. They work well in conjuction with the Deda Newton anatomic bars I have on there....a nice and flat transition, without my levers pointing skyward.

On the first ride, I was a bit put off with the 12-26 cassette....most notably because I missed my 24T cog that my 12-27 cassette has. Believe it or not, I really noticed that 1 tooth difference. It should also be noted that the maiden voyage on the bike was a fairly easy/moderate ride....in which that is not the purpose of this bike, obviously. And....when ridden fast, the 12-26 cassette is nice. I haven't had to use the 26T cog yet, but I'm sure it's good. I'm seeing a good .5 to 1.5 mph or so difference for the most part when riding in the 50x23 over my 50x24 on the 5200. For casual riding, that's no biggie...but in a race, I'm thinking that'll help.....since I often use that combo for shallower climbs. I like the SRAM cassette....it enables very fast shifting. In conjunction with the chain, it also offers a rather quiet drivetrain.

The brakes are still irritating me....not the performance (they work great for braking)....but the toe-in is off on the rear brake still, and the front brake was rubbing from time to time today, and finally had to open up the quick release. So....just an adjustment issue. The calipers themselves are very stiff, and they stop on a dime....but they offer great modulation to boot. I think I like them better than my Ultegra brakes.

Final verdict: I like SRAM more and more each time I ride it.

Frame/fork/bars/stem/post/etc - As a whole, the bike rides better than I thought it would. The fork is great; nice and stiff, yet comfortable. I still can't believe how smooth the frame feels....obviously you feel it if you hit broken up pavement and the like, but it's a nice, stiff frame without really beating the crap out of you. Stiffness-wise, it feels a bit like my OCLV bike, but with some of the liveliness of aluminum.....but not rigid like a Cannondale. I'm thinking the fork has some to do with it. The Deda Newton handlebars are ok, but I think I like the Supernaturals better.....unfortunately, they didn't have the routing for the cables on the backside of the handlebar, so I went with the Newtons.

Can't say much about Thomson that already hasn't been said.....always great stuff. I am really liking the Look A5.1 pedals....although the q-factor is narrower than my other pedals, and with booties on, really rubs the **** out of the crankarms.

All in all....this bike really wants to be ridden fast.

Last edited by GuitarWizard; 04-01-07 at 12:53 PM.
GuitarWizard is offline  
Old 04-01-07, 11:43 AM
  #2  
Making a kilometer blurry
 
waterrockets's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Austin (near TX)
Posts: 26,170

Bikes: rkwaki's porn collection

Mentioned: 4 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 37 Post(s)
Liked 91 Times in 38 Posts
Good to hear you like the SRAM. I like your rig. Thoughtfully assembled.
waterrockets is offline  
Old 04-01-07, 11:44 AM
  #3  
Used to be a climber..
Thread Starter
 
GuitarWizard's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Santa Clarita, CA
Posts: 6,849

Bikes: 2016 Ridley Fenix SL, 2020 Trek Emonda ALR (rim brake)

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 7 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 4 Times in 3 Posts
I'll be honest....after the first ride, I almost felt like going back to Shimano, as I've been using it since the early 90's....but, it grows on ya
GuitarWizard is offline  

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.