Bike Forums - Affraid to drop the hammer.

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Affraid to drop the hammer.

Hey all you Clydes and Athenas,
I just have a single question today. I am not sure how many of you have broken equipment or what ever. I ordered that bike and it will be here Monday, w00h00
I am used to riding mountain bikes or hybrids, and have never road a true road bike. I have broken bottom bracket, bent forks before and taco-ed rims before. We are not the typical yoga types, I have these images in my head of breaking stuff.
The question I am posing to you big guys and Athenas is this, when you guys get out of the seat and crank hard are you ever worried about breaking something and wrecking?
I know it may seem like a little scared but I dont want to be one of those guys, with the headline "man hit by bus" lol
Thanks for answering my silly question. You guys are the best.

I am 250 and ride both a hybrid and road bike. I am not hard on my bikes as I watch for potholes and curbs, but I suspect the weakness on any bike our size are the wheels. There are some nice threads on here about wheels, spokes, etc. I do like to hammer down and go fast, but I do it on roads with at least semi-good surfaces. Frame wise I think you are ok.

Depending on the season, I'm anywhere from 235 to 260 pounds and I don't ease up on my equipment. I ride a 'cross bike (Surly x-Check), but I haven't found myself arse-over-elbows from failing parts. The only things I've done to beef up the stock setup are replace the brakes with Tektro CR720s, and rebuilt the wheels; fully detensioned, retensioned/trued, and retensioned/trued again at 300 miles. Same thing when I built a new front wheel with a generator hub.

Drope the Hamer!

Ok I will, like I said I get it in the mail on monday, so I will bring it to the LBS to have them check the wheels for me. I am so looking forward to going out with my Hashing friends, alot of them have bikes and the rest are getting them. Thanks for the encouragment.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tbone7812 (Post 8092997)

What bike are you getting and how much do you weigh? Just curious.:)

I got the motobecane record with sora parts, I am right around 6'7'' and 300lbs.

Those DA22 rims should hold up well for you. Just make sure to have your LBS properly tension the wheels, and have them re-checked after an initial 'settling' period of 250-300 miles. The DA22 is heavier-duty than that DA16 which I ride.

I'm not familiar with the hubs they're using, but ride 'em until they sound bad, then replace 'em (or the entire wheel and keep the old ones to learn building your own).
The only parts I could see suffering premature wear might be the FD and shifters if you tend to do a lot of gear changing, or if you shift under load a lot. Like any parts, if you don't mistreat them, they should hold up fine.
Heck, do what I do and just start putting money aside now to upgrade things. By the time stuff actually wears out (which is usually a long time) you'll have the money to replace it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tbone7812 (Post 8093045)

I got the motobecane record with sora parts, I am right around 6'7'' and 300lbs.

Is your NFL season over? :lol: Just kidding. That is tall. I would have your LBS look at the wheels and if nothing else a look over from your installation of the bike parts. It would definitely give me a piece of mind if I had put it together. Keep us posted.

I would not worry about things like forks, bottom brackets, and stuff like that while you are riding. Just ride it. If it breaks, fix it. Most modern bikes are a lot tougher than you think. Those type of parts should be able to take whatever you throw at them. If they don't, then they are covered under the bike warranty.

I also hear about people breaking the frame around the bottom bracket sometimes. I personally think that this is usually due to a shoddy frame from the factory, or some unknown but significant impact taking place in the past (smacked while in car rack, dropped hard on a sharp curb, etc.). I would ride it HARD, and see what happens. Don't baby it, and have it break down on you later on in bad weather miles and miles from the house...

I tend to break things as well, but not as often as other people on here. Stuff that I've broken and/or end up replacing within the first year or so include:

Brake Pads - I usually HATE stock brake pads, and replace them as soon as possible. Most stock brake pads don't stop bigger people as fast, lose traction when they get wet, and are usually loud. I prefer to use softer brake pads made for wet weather. I currently like all-weather koolstop brand pads (green ones).
Rims - I would suggest that you take the wheels into a LBS to have the spokes re-tensioned first thing. That will buy you a lot of time before you may have to replace them. Once you have to start replacing spokes, experience has shown me that it is cheaper and a lot less worrisome to just go ahead and have a decent wheel-builder replace the rims with something like Mavic Open Pros, Deep-Vs, or something similar that work with your stock hubs. You can also get decent wheel and hub sets online for about the same price or less than it costs to have them built up using your original stock hubs. I've found that having a good wheel mechanic build me a wheel using decent spokes and careful attention to spoke tension is better, though. Well worth the cost and trouble for me.
Chains - I chew up chains on both mountain and road bikes. Keeping them well oiled and clean is the key to seeing when my chain is on the way out (see a link that is bent/deflected sideways, a pin that is sticking, etc.).
Saddle - Fit is the most important thing. If it hurts after a week or so, get a new one. You also need to pay attention to the rail materials. Titanium and carbon rails are the lighter and really popular on mid-upper end saddles these days. The problem is, that titanium and cheaper carbon fiber rails break if too much pressure is put on them. Chormolly and other steel alloys will bend under the same pressure. I broke a titanium saddle rail this year, and the guys at the bike shop said that this has become very common with clydes and sprint-type road riders around here that were on titanium and cheaper carbon fiber saddles.
Bottom brackets, cranks, and rear cogs - I've chewed up a bunch of bottom brackets, broken the teeth off of cranks and cogs, etc. These things are easy to replace yourself. Ride like normal, and be prepared to have to replace one of them every 2-3 years.

Ride it HARD, and have fun!

I'm anywhere from 220-245. I'm always worried about tearing up my equipment. My Lemond snapped while I was climbing a steep section on a mtn climb. I could feel it flex when I cranked on it. I rarely stood on it for tha reason. My Cannondale is much stiffer so I don't worry as much but I still don't crank while standing. I've torn up a couple of bottom brackets. a crank and cogset fell apart on me.

I had Bontrager low spoke count wheels on my stock Lemond. When I cranked down on the bike, I could feel the front magnet shift and hit the sensor. I ditched the wheels as soon as I noticed they began to fail, wouldn't stay true. The Deep V's are excellent, never felt any flex.

I no longer worry about wheels but worry that sometime I migh snap the crankarms which is dangerous.
I've sprinted on a flat section of the trail and hit 32 mph while seated. Didn't stand and since I don't race, don't feel a need to stand while sprinting and have no need for improving the sprint. Even on centuries with 10-12,000 ft of climbing, I will rarely stand. Just don't have a need. That relieves my mind some!:D

The new Lemond frame is 3/4 carbon and 1/4 aluminum. Still on the flexy side under my weight, so still I don't stand much:D

Good thing I lack power or I'd really be worried about the bikes!:p

Lemond aluminum frame
http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...reme/broke.jpg
http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...eme/broke2.jpg

The only soar component I have heard that gives any trouble if the front dérailleur. It sometimes won't stay in adjustment and you can get chain rub.

If it gives you trouble, a Tiagra FD is fairly cheap and an easy switch. I wouldn't worry about it unless it keeps rubbing and you can't trim it in to position.

We will need pics. It's mandatory ya know.

i just got my new road bike, cannondale, i stand up and sprint on the bike and it feels like it can handle way more than i can crank out. I am 6' 280.

OK after 100+ miles feels good the bike that is. The motobecane Record is pretty solid. Way more solid a bike then anything I have ad in the past, can't wait to take it long, I think the longest I have been on was around 20miles, felt darn good.