Newbie looking for suggestions
 

Hello all,

I just got into biking some trails and I also bought a cheap bike that will need some upgrades. That being said, I also plan on doing said upgrades myself.

Can anyone recommend a nice parts website, info website or any other site that can help with all the jargon/technical lingo needed to learn about my new addiction?

Thanks,
Jeremy

http://sheldonbrown.com/

http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help

There's stickies at the top of THIS forum

Kimmo, thanks for the links!

Bill, what the heck is a "sticky" and where on THIS forum can I find it. And how can this sticky help me?

Thanks

Stickies are threads that are pinned to the top of a forum so they don't get bumped down the list.

This forum has three.

Thanks again kimmo. I did read through those.

The general rule is that bike components are a lot more expensive bought piecemeal than when bought as a part of a bike, so an overall upgrade is usually poor economics. It can be fun, and it can be made to work if you're either very good at bargain hunting or have a serious stash of parts at your disposal. But this is all assuming that you have a good quality and good fitting frame to lavish all your attention on to start with.

So, the sensible course of action is to replace-with-nicer once something breaks or wear out, and to change those things actually needed for you to be able to use the bike well. Things like saddle, stem, bar, pedals, tires etc.
But for upgrades of things that already work you're better off saving that money for another bike further on. If you keep riding you'll want to have a beater bike around anyhow.

Thanks guys for the input.

Dabac, you are correct. I did not mean that I was going to arbitrarily start replacing parts. Sorry if that is the way I sounded.

thanks again

Hey, it's your time, and your money. Nothing to apologize for.
But it's a regular thing that we see here, so I thought I'd warn you about it.
A guy starts with an entry-level bike, gets the bug, and starts throwing money at it. Tries to make it into something it isn't.
Eventually he's racked up enough experience to see that the bike is never going to become the bike he wants, at which point he has sunk so much money into it that he hasn't got the heart (or the money) to cut his losses and start over. Not a nice place to end up.

Fight the upgrade urge. Replace only as needed, what's broken, what doesn't fit you. Get yourself a jar, label it "New bike". Everytime you get the itch, stuff money into the jar until the itch has faded.

Upgrading only makes sense if you're smart about it, and your current frameset shares certain standards with nicer bikes like (for road bikes) a short brake reach, 700c wheel size and so on.

I wouldn't consider upgrading a bike that doesn't have a derailleur hanger; it's a pretty good indicator of a sort of minimum standard I have - entry-level race quality. Plus, derailleur claws are the devil's work.

If you have a source of cheap parts like a local co-op, piecemeal upgrading can make a lot of sense. Hyperglide is a must... light rims in well-built wheels is usually quite an improvement, along with light tyres... proper front brake... stiff 31.8mm bars... brifters instead of DT shifters... lightweight seat and post, these are all improvements you'll notice.

Without a source of cheap parts, you're usually best off buying another bike second hand, swapping all the best bits onto one bike and flipping the other.

Gotcha kimmo,

as of right now, I don't have a clue of what yer talking about. I'm not sure light my wheels are or what they should weigh. But I can tell you that my brakes squeal like a pig and have some friction and I don't know how to adjust them or if I can. Maybe I'll just wait for the pads to wear down so they don't rub.

Thanks again for everyone's input!

Update: figured out the brakes...

squealing brakes usually just need the pads adjusted for a bit of toein. the park or sheldon sites should have plenty on brake pad adjustment.

be realistic, total up the cost of the parts you want, and compare with the cost of a New Bike
that already has those parts..

people ask about retrofitting disk brakes on frames that have no place to mount them or hubs to bolt the disc onto.

That quickly surpasses the approximately $100 up charge between 2 new bikes same but 1 got V brakes, the other Discs.

So what sort of bike do you actually have? Kimmo's suggestions are great for a road bike, but in your first post, you say you are riding trails, which is more likely a hybrid or MTB.

Wow, I was really hoping for a few quick links. I didn't expect this thread to get this involved. I do appreciate all the post and info tho.

Mr. Jim,
i do have a mtn bike.

Don't worry, I won't over spend. And yes, if I keep riding, I will buy a new and better bike.
-j