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Now Here is a Reason to Buy a New/Lighter Bike

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Now Here is a Reason to Buy a New/Lighter Bike

Old 03-21-17, 05:58 PM
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Now Here is a Reason to Buy a New/Lighter Bike

Background: I will hit age 68 this year and have been riding 5-10K miles per year for 2-3 years now. Not much before that except for a couple years in the 90's. I own a Bianchi EL/OS Nivacrom Steel road bike (that I bought in the 90's) and have upgraded to a Campy Chorus (2014) groupset, new wheels, pedals (Garmin Vector), saddle, and that is about it. Stripped down to 'how a bike is sold' (no meters, pedals, etc) it weighs in about 18 pounds. Hardly heavy but not light. And I am not kidding here - I have NEVER ridden another road bike of any size, shape, or form. No joke.

My garage is crowded so I keep the bike hanging from the ceiling where it is out of the way. I am developing rotator cuff issues in my shoulder and getting this thing on/off its hooks is becoming somewhat painful. So how about this for an excuse to buy a new/lighter bike!!

But the truth is that I like this bike, it has a measure of 'coolness' to it that $2-3K worth of new bike won't match, and I just like this bike. And I don't want another one (or if I did it would be an additional bike like a TT bike, but that hardly addresses the problem as I don't see myself turning a TT bike into my daily rider). I really don't even want to know that I would like some other bike better. And I can do the math and 2-3 fewer pounds is not zero, but it isn't some big deal either.

FWIW.

dave
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Old 03-21-17, 06:10 PM
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Take it down and leave it down. Ride it. Sorry, but that's a lame reason to buy another bike, especially when you love the bike you already have.
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Old 03-21-17, 06:14 PM
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Hopefully, this is clear from my post. But in my case I am not replacing this bike. But there is a space vs. pain trade-off here :-)

dave
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Old 03-21-17, 06:18 PM
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If removing the bike from the ceiling is the problem, don't keep it on the ceiling. If there's no room, keep it inside, not in the garage. If there's no room inside, let it use your bedroom and you can sleep outside.
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Old 03-21-17, 06:21 PM
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What kind of bike are you looking for?
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Old 03-21-17, 06:25 PM
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Why don't you just take off the wheels before hanging? That's at least 4-5 pounds.
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Old 03-21-17, 06:33 PM
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I feel you DaveLeeNC, even with all the innovation with bikes and such your old 90's bike is still cool and you are not seeing a good enough reason to buy a new one for $2-10K. Retro is cool though too! Enjoy your bike! Its not what you ride its enjoying the ride! Not sure what to tell you about the bike hanging part though. Build a bigger garage or build a shed?
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Old 03-21-17, 06:35 PM
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Originally Posted by alpine 318is
What kind of bike are you looking for?
Truthfully - other than lighter I am not looking at all. And I will almost certainly solve my problem some other way.

dave

ps. OTOH, a good TT bike (n+1 purchase) might make sense for the kind of stuff that I like to do. But for those bucks I would probably choose instead to upgrade my Eastman 905CE archtop guitar to a (even) wider fretboard custom something-or-other archtop guitar.
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Old 03-21-17, 06:40 PM
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Originally Posted by mcours2006
Why don't you just take off the wheels before hanging? That's at least 4-5 pounds.
Of course it hangs from the wheels, but doesn't have to be that way, I guess.

First of all rotator cuff problems are kind of weird. I can let my right arm hang down and point my arm forward - no problem. Same thing except try to point to the right - painful. But I can pull my hand up right right side until my right hand is under my armpit and then point straight right - no pain. I have considered a pulley system that would rachet up the rear tire. From there I can (painfree) push the front up/over the other ceiling hanger (by doing that from the front of the bike).

I think this would work.

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Old 03-21-17, 06:44 PM
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GARAGE GATOR!!
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Old 03-21-17, 06:59 PM
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Originally Posted by DrIsotope
I was going to suggest a hoist of some sort.

However, I also have been riding vintage Carbon Fiber with fairly modern components. Depending on your current bike, it does make a difference. And, I think it retains some of the coolness factor.



Assembled from parts, I don't have an exact estimate, but < $1500, I think.
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Old 03-21-17, 07:04 PM
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Problem solved.
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Old 03-21-17, 07:08 PM
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Originally Posted by HTupolev
If removing the bike from the ceiling is the problem, don't keep it on the ceiling. If there's no room, keep it inside, not in the garage. If there's no room inside, let it use your bedroom and you can sleep outside.
This is the correct answer.
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Old 03-21-17, 07:13 PM
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Garage Gator is certainly interesting.

In the meantime this is the bike, although I have since put different handlebars on it.

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Old 03-21-17, 07:24 PM
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hang your bike on the wall, not on the ceiling.
It's so much more accessible and easy to deal with.
,
edit: Oh, and buy a lighter bike.
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Old 03-21-17, 07:56 PM
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Originally Posted by DaveLeeNC
Garage Gator is certainly interesting.

In the meantime this is the bike, although I have since put different handlebars on it.

dave
HUGE drop. Hurts just looking at it.
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Old 03-21-17, 07:58 PM
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I'm just coming off rotator cuff surgery. Trust me: Get that bike down now and leave it down, or your surgery is closer than you think.
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Old 03-21-17, 08:30 PM
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Tell me about a crowded garage.

7 bikes
3 pairs of spare wheels
1 car
1 spare engine and transmission
lawn equipment
workbench




Last edited by GlennR; 03-21-17 at 08:36 PM.
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Old 03-21-17, 08:44 PM
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Living in Tucson, our garage gets hot... Really hot. My wife never had a problem with my metal framed bikes living in the garage, but when I went carbon fiber on my new bike, she suggested that bike live inside the house due to the garage heat.

You may end up in a similar situation if you go light, and a solution to your shoulder.

Btw, my CF bike stays in the garage, by my choice. It seems CF isn't bothered by that level of heat.

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Old 03-21-17, 08:47 PM
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Originally Posted by Wileyrat
Living in Tucson, our garage gets hot... Really hot. My wife never had a problem with my metal framed bikes living in the garage, but when in went carbon fiber, she suggested that bike live inside the house.

You may end up in a similar situation if you go light, and a solution to your shoulder.

Btw, my CF bike stays in the garage, by my choice.
She was afraid it might ASSplode in the hot garage.
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Old 03-21-17, 08:50 PM
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Originally Posted by oldnslow2
She was afraid it might ASSplode in the hot garage.
That is exactly right. She didn't me to ASSplode over it happening.
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Old 03-21-17, 09:06 PM
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Considering the price of bikes these days, it might be better to buy a new shoulder instead.
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Old 03-21-17, 09:45 PM
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@DaveLeeNC First congrats on all your yearly mileage, that's great. Second, and just as importantly, at this point in your life you shouldn't need an excuse to buy a new bike. Just go and do it.

I too have a torn right rotator cuff. Hoisting my bikes above my shoulders can be painful. Instead of doing a single-motion lift, I use my left arm to get one half of the bike up in the hook, then I use the same arm to lift the other half up in the hook. It is a bit cumbersome, but it works.

Good luck with your new bike!
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Old 03-22-17, 03:50 AM
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upgrade your garage
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Old 03-22-17, 04:35 AM
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Buy one of those $500 plastic sheds. Set it up outside and mover garage crap into it, making room in your garage to store the bike on the floor.
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