johngwheeler

I've just received my new Roubaix Expert UDi2 and after a lot of hassle in fitting the seat post (UDi2 cables were a nightmare!), I've finally got it road-worthy, and had a short test ride, and am very impressed!

A couple of things I wasn't expecting were:

1) the factory fitted Future Shock spring was the yellow one (hardest, 40lbs) - even thought the sotre I bought it from told me that the lightest spring is the default. The ride is OK, but I can imagine the lighter springs might be better for "normal" road surfaces.

Which spring strength have you settled on, and what kind of surfaces do you ride on?

2) The SWAT box is empty - I had (maybe optimisitically) assumed that at this price, the bike would include at least the multi-tool. What is the standard Specialized offering for the Expert grade Roubaix?

I've also found it impossible to fit a Panrace (700c 25/35) or Schwalbe S17 inner tube. It's just too thick to fit in the space and be able to close the SWAT box top. What inner tubes have you found will fit? I suspect that only fairly thin 25mm specific tubes will fit. Anything designed for larger tires in the 28-32mm range, may be too large.

Apart from these niggles, I'm happy with the bike. I'll need to fine tune the fit, and I'm not sure about the saddle comfort for a long ride, but I would expect this on any bike. The Ultegra Di2 gear changes are just phenominal compared to the Sora groupset on my old bike.

Masque

John, congratulations on your new bike. I have this same model.

1) Your shop is incorrect; the factory installs the yellow spring. The Roubaix page says, "Roubaix comes equipped with a 40lbs spring installed (color: yellow, weight: firm), and also includes both 13lbs (color: blue, weight: soft), and 25lbs (color: black, weight: medium) springs. Ruby comes equipped with a 25lbs spring installed, and also includes both 13lbs and 40lbs springs. Springs can be installed to match the terrain you're riding."

I've attached the matrix Specialized provides with suggestions of which spring to use. I have found, however, that rider weight and tire choice both factor in significantly. My choice has been to stay with the yellow spring, and I like the responsiveness of the bike this way. Wide tires soaking up wiggly bumps and the Future Shock absorbing anything the tires send through. If I weighed 150 lbs I'm sure I would think differently.

2) Specialized ships the box empty, unfortunately. The multi-tool is a great choice, though. It's too convenient not to buy. I used a Dremel tool to enlarge the CO2 inflator space enough to accommodate this: [link]https://ridepdw.com/collections/inflation/products/tiny-object?variant=24673979905[/link]

As for tubes, may I suggest the Michelin Aircomp? It fits very nicely in the SWAT box and the 18-23mm size worked very well in the stock 470db wheels with Conti GP 4000 S II 28c tires (which measured 32mm across on those wheels.)

If you want a little more puncture resistance, the Michelin Airstop 18-25mm size is a bit heavier, but holds air forever and is pretty stab-resistant.

But also remember your wheels are tubeless-ready. The SWAT box can be for emergencies only, if you like!

Dean V

Congrats on the new bike. I thought your previous bike was TCX Advanced Pro? Don't think they come with a Sora groupset.

johngwheeler

Many thanks for such a complete answer! I found the user guide mentions that the yellow spring is the factory default, so my LBS was wrong. The bike still rides very well with the 40lb spring, but I only weigh about 155lbs, so maybe a lighter one would suit me better.

Good suggestion on the inner tubes - thanks! I tried some fairly thick Panracer tubes and I just could get the SWAT box door to close with these, so it looks like I need something more lightweight. Are the Michelin 18-23mm tubes not a bit over-stretched in a 28mm Conti GP4000, particularly if it expands to 32mm? (I have these on another bike with Fulcrum rims at they measure over 31mm too).

Pity to hear that the SWAT box ships empty - I had really hoped for the tools to be complementary on a bike of this price. It would have been good to know this from my LBS, so I could have ordered the contents at the same time as the bike.

Thanks!

John

johngwheeler

That's right - I also have a Trek Crossrip, with a Sora groupset. This is now up for sale, to make space in my garage and offset some of the cost of the new bike. It was a great starter bike, but part of the deal with my wife was to get rid of one bike if I want to buy a new one!

My Giant TCX will now be promoted to daily commuter / wet weather / rough-surface bike. It's actually a pretty nice bike to ride for urban streets with poor surfaces and will easily fit 40-45mm tires for off-road use.

OldTryGuy

John, thanks for the thread. Masque, thanks for your reply.

LBS owner insisted I ride the 2017 Expert mechanical he had and did a 151 miler on it. Found the seat fine, 5' 8.5" @ an overweight 142lbs. right now, Futureshock was great but didn't ride any cobble, handling compared to my Propel Advanced SL was outstanding, tracking better and corners just too easy.

I have a 2018 Expert mechanical coming in hopefully by October just missing Six Gap but in time for Horrible Hundred, Hampster Wheel 12hr 200, then Bike Sebring 12/24 Hour 400 mile attempt and then Cross Florida so some nice breaking in rides. A short section in X-FL has a very bad surface that almost everyone slows down for but this year I nailed it on my Paramount having a grand time and expect even more fun on the Roubaix.

John, ride the bike like you were being chased by a hungry bear and ENJOY!!!

johngwheeler

Thanks and enjoy your new 2018 Expert when it arrives! One question: overweight @ 5'8.5 / 142lbs? That's a healthy mid-low range Body Mass Index of about 21.

OldTryGuy

Yuppers, expecting to bald the tires in no time.

November 2013 I was at 136lbs for my first IRONMAN triathlon at age 63. Felt great despite looking like I was sick and emaciated. Almost 4 years later I'm working through the minor inconveniences of my prostate cancer and other issues causing the unwanted weight gain and the difficulty with getting rid of it. 3 days a week at 100+ miles per ride is barely maintaining the weight so after the Roubaix comes in I am planning to up the mileage to 450+ per week. Will be shooting for the 136lb mark by the time Bike Sebring 12/24 Hour arrives.

johngwheeler

Sounds fairly "hard core"! I'm a bit surprised that you have difficulty losing weight riding 300 miles per week though. I rode a Century a couple of weeks ago (I would struggle to even contemplate doing it 3 times a week!), and my heart rate monitor estimated over 5000 calories burned, so you would burn about 15,000 calories for 300 miles. You would probably struggle to consume more than about 2000 calories during a ride (assuming maximum 250 calories per hour digested over 8 hours), so your're still burning 9000 calories a week (15,000 expended minus 6,000 consumed) with your cycling (which is quite a lot). If you ate a moderate 2000 calories per day (apart from cycling nutrition) then you would still have a huge calorie deficit to remove fat (daily average is (14,000 (food) - 9000 (exercise)) / 7 = 714 calories per day, i.e. too little! I can only assume you consume considerably more than 2000 calories a day on non-ride days, or have a massive feed after riding!

I eat about 2000-2500 calories per day (I stopped counting once my weight stabilized), and with only about 150km per week, I will lose a bit of weight. If I watched my diet and cycled more, it would be easy to lose 0.5-1.0kg per week.

But I realize our bodies are all different, and many cyclists tend to have pretty low body weight for their height. I'm a moderatley skinny ectomorph so am OK at 68kg/150lb and 177cm (5'9.5"), but could still replace some body fat with lean muscle, which would probably increase my weight a little.

At the end of the day it's about you general health, and then your power-to-weight ratio on the bike. As long as those two are balanced, then all is good. But I understand what you mean when say you felt fine and looked "emaciated"; I get the same comments from family - I'll tell them I've never felt healthier!

[EDIT: Apologies for hi-jacking my own thread with a completely different topics!]

dynawolf

I have the 2017 Roubaix Comp and run the medium spring even though I weigh 240 pounds. My partially torn up shoulder is very appreciative. Standing and sprinting is the only time I can tell its there.

johngwheeler

That's good to know. Sounds like I should be OK with the light or medium spring @150lbs body weight.

Masque

It's very, very easy to swap these out as well. Get a 4nm torque wrench (or adjustable) and have at it!

Gr00v3

I'm 235lbs in Southern California. Mixed bag of good roads, bad roads, and flats and climbs/descents. My LBS had the blue spring installed out of the gates, and I haven't had the thought of changing it yet. Granted, I've only put 100 miles on my bike.

My question is, will the future shock springs eventually fatigue over time? If so, would it be prudent to stock up on spares?

johngwheeler

That's a good question, and I expect we'll need to see some long-term reviews over the next year or two. Hopefully, Specialized will continue to support the Future Shock for many years to come, particularly as they now have two bikes that use it (Roubaix/Ruby & Diverge).

Masque

There are two springs involved; the first is the spring you and I can change, and the other is the "mainspring", but that one requires (as I've been told by Specialized) a special tool for access, and that tool (and the mainsprings themselves) are marked as "service center only" in Specialized's system.

It is the mainspring which differs between the Diverge and the Roubaix Future Shock systems. The Diverge gets a progressive spring, which is reportedly the same spring that was given to the pros at Paris-Roubaix this year, and the Roubaix's is linear. See https://www.bikerumor.com/2017/06/15...t-ton-options/, where this photo comes from:


The white-wrapped spring is the Diverge's mainspring.

Unfortunately, swapping -that- spring requires opening the Future Shock entirely, which requires that special tool.

If you're in the Pacific Northwest and want this done, message me.

Masque

Oh. Right. Forgot to mention the answer to the actually-asked question:

The Future Shock will need servicing, eventually. I haven't gotten a straight answer from Specialized on when.

But the springs are beefy, and are under very, very light loads for their size. I would be very surprised if the springs were the element that needed servicing. The boot may eventually deteriorate, or it may not be completely impervious to dust over the years. The bearings may be the maintenance point.

Harold43

Does anyone know where I can on-line purchase the yellow spring for the future shock?