ericmerg1

Hello I have a trek 7.2 that I really enjoy but think could be better suited for me as more of a roadbike, does anyone know roughly how much it would run to upgrade the bike to having the handlebars changed and moving the shifters and brakes to that and getting thinner tires put on? or would it just be better to get a low end 600$ bike I use the bike to get to and from college so I'm not going to be putting thousands into a bike as of yet.

MRT2

So you want to convert an FX to a drop bar road bike? If so, it will cost more that just selling the bike and buying what you actually want. If you just want thinner tires, that might work.

AnkleWork

Post a detailed list of the parts you want installed and I'll take it to several LBSs and get you some quotes.

cny-bikeman

Could you do that for me while you're at it - but I need you to make up the list, too.

AnkleWork

Of course. And I'll even ride it for you.

dedhed

Almost always, unless you are in an expensive market, it is more cost effective to sell (or keep) your old bike and buy a used bike of the type you desire. Lots of issues and expenses going flat to drop bar. Expensive shifters, brake pull issues, FD pull etc.
Honestly $600, even pushing $1K, barely gets you into the lowest level quality new road bike. Cheaper to buy a used road bike.
https://milwaukee.craigslist.org/bik/5204428091.html

Retro Grouch 

What are you planning to use for shifters? As a general rule, brifters are the most expensive component on a bicycle. Once you price them out that might answer your question.

Delmarva

Unless you riding an unusually long distance to and from campus I wouldn't spend much money on enhancing a college bike for the simple reason bike thefts are common on most campuses. I believe your bike uses somewhat knobby 700 x35 tires. Switching to a 700 x 28 road tire that is kept properly inflated will give you a noticeable reduction in pedaling effort and won't cost much. Otherwise don't make any changes and be sure to use a good lock.

gsa103

The main issue with conversion to/from drop bars is the sizing of the bike frame. Drop bars put your hands significant ahead of the stem, so a road bike typically has a shorter top tube than the equivalent flat bar bike. If your hybrid is slightly too small, its a good conversion candidate, otherwise sell and buy a new bike.

ericmerg1

it's about 15 miles each way, i'll just get road tires and put clip in pedals on

thanks for the help in telling me my thoughts are unrealistic, I've never done something like this before so didn't know where to start to even get a price range going.

Delmarva

30 miles round trip every day to school? That's a lot of time spent commuting on a bike.

mstateglfr 

Agree it's cheaper to buy a good used bike, but can't say $1000 will barely get you the lowest level quality road bike. $600?...no way.

CliffordK

I'll disagree with some here.

Are you doing your own work? It probably wouldn't be worth it to pay a shop to do the conversion, and they may not choose to touch it.

There may be benefits of doing a Hybrid ==> Cross/Gravel conversion as the good Cross bikes are currently astronomically expensive.

Not a lot of reason to do Hybrid ==> Road though, although I did see a Jamis Coda the other day that had been done up nicely, and my "Winter Bike" is a Litespeed MTB ==> Road conversion, a little funky, but I like it.

It depends a bit on your parts availability, and how much you are wishing to convert. And, I suppose how much your unaltered bike is worth.

Is your Trek an 8 spd? Are you keeping it as 8 spd?

So, your basic conversion:So, on the low end, you might get the drop bar/brifter conversion with mostly new parts, and a few used parts for about $100-$150 or so.

To do a nice 11 speed Ultegra conversion with new road wheels, you could easily pay $800 or more (and still have to skimp a bit).

As mentioned, there is a lot of good value in the used road bikes, either the Classic/Vintage if you know what you're looking for, or reasonably new bikes.

Classtime 

Yep. Good decision. Skinny tires pumped up hard, SPDs and some shoes. Then you should probably raise your seat some and learn to tune up and maintain your "new" ride. Meanwhile, contemplate a Second hand road bike.

RoadGuy

The biggest barrier to making the changes that you are considering is the cost of the parts, and the relatively low market value of your bike. Right now, your bike is at relatively risk risk of theft at school as long as you used a good quality U-lock when you park it. The upgraded parts you are considering will cost you more than the bike's market value, yet won't raise the market value, while replacing the replacement cost if it's stolen,while at the same time making it more attractive to thieves. But it still will not be as attractive as a newer road bike left unattended.

Can you install and adjust the parts yourself? Labor would be a big chunk of the conversion costs. if you can service the bike yourself, changing parts makes more sense economically.

Want to lower the cost of the conversion? Shop for used parts, AND/OR a donor bike. I picked up a 2004 Felt Z90 $80 yesterday to use as a donor bike to build up a 1994 Trek 1400 frame that I bought. The Felt has a cracked frame at the headset, so the frame is headed for the scraper, after I strip it. Other than the cracked frame, the bike is in good/excellent used condition. I'm going to be able to use the wheels, tires, 8-speed cassette, rear derailleur, Sora 8-speed brifters, handlebars, brake calipers, and seatpost. I'm going to sell the Claris front derailleur, handlebar stem, and aluminum front fork. Probably going to install the FSA triple crank and bottom bracket on my son's Trek 1000.

It's a shame that the Felt frame is a total. It' looks really good, and even though the frame is a compact 52, measuring the dimensions, it isn't much smaller than the Trek 56cm frames I usually ride. I mean the thing is branded a 52 (must be the effective seat tube size), but the seat tube center to center is around 18". It has a 90 mm stem, but while the bike's top tube is only about 1/4-1/2"" shorter than my 56cm Trek 1100 with 100mm stem, the reach is actually longer. Probably has something to due with the more aggressive seat tube angle of the Felt

Kimmo 

Along with the skinny tyres, you might want to cut your bars narrower and lower and/or flip your stem. Is your seat high enough?

fietsbob

Doesn't the College Fees And Tuition include a Bus Pass? Then just ride to the nearest Bus stop .

save a big part of that time for studying.