Disc brakes are now the default on road bikes and no one cares
03-01-20, 10:10 AM
#451
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How much does the new, average, off the shelf $1500 disc road bike weigh now?
03-01-20, 01:31 PM
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03-01-20, 01:36 PM
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I have a slightly different interpretation, which is that a certain demographic wants the "fastest" bike in the shop, but doesn't like the way it fits. Amounts to the same thing a lot of the time, I guess.
03-01-20, 03:44 PM
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It is time to buy my dream retirement bike after coming into some money. Walk into a shop and they invariably ask: "what is your budget?" I respond with: "14.00 pounds max including pedals". I have a couple of 16 pound bikes, and they are sweet indeed. But lighter is always better.
I can't help it if that reads as sarcasm. It isn't. With that one question, you'll increase the likelihood of making that sale. If I were still running bike shops, I'd institute that policy tomorrow.
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03-01-20, 08:53 PM
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I would be much less likely to buy from a shop whose first question was what I want a bike to weigh instead of how I plan to ride it or just what kind I want. Focused on the wrong thing.
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03-01-20, 09:04 PM
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Wait - you mean that the presumptuous assumption that one factor is the primary motivator is a bad sales technique? No way, I don't believe it.
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03-01-20, 09:27 PM
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This is a pearl beyond price. No kidding. All of you reading this who sell bikes in a shop should immediately suggest the following change to store policy: when a potential high-end-bike purchaser (or maybe any potential bike purchaser) comes in the shop, instead of asking about budget, ask what target weight the customer has in mind.
I usually ask people about the riding that they do, and what they intend on doing,
I can see why you aren't running a successful bike shop.
Last edited by noodle soup; 03-02-20 at 09:33 AM.
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03-02-20, 09:29 AM
#459
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03-02-20, 09:40 AM
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This thread has gone off the rails.. the topic was every new road bike has discs.
BTW: I've ridden the Defy Advanced. Carbon frame, discs and 105 components. 32mm (fat) tires. Anyway, the bike was around 20 pounds with porky heavy wheels, and it all rode like a farm tractor. I thought that the wide tires would make this bike super stable, but it was still sketchy above 20mph on the gravel in the Yukon. The crappy chip-seal roads were almost as jarring as riding on my other bike with 25s. And this performance coming from a $3k bike.
Anyway, here is the point: current road bikes are sluggish pigs due to weight burden of discs, and especially the heavy rims and tires. Plus the high-Q of the current cranksets are biomechanically inefficient, as are wide 142mm chainstays. But if you have to shove 13 cogs plus discs in the rear stays, then I guess you have to go wide in the rear. Plus thru-axles are an unnecessary PITA.
My $1,500 Allez with rim brakes allowed me to travel everywhere that the Defy did. It was also lighter and felt much more responsive.
BTW: I've ridden the Defy Advanced. Carbon frame, discs and 105 components. 32mm (fat) tires. Anyway, the bike was around 20 pounds with porky heavy wheels, and it all rode like a farm tractor. I thought that the wide tires would make this bike super stable, but it was still sketchy above 20mph on the gravel in the Yukon. The crappy chip-seal roads were almost as jarring as riding on my other bike with 25s. And this performance coming from a $3k bike.
Anyway, here is the point: current road bikes are sluggish pigs due to weight burden of discs, and especially the heavy rims and tires. Plus the high-Q of the current cranksets are biomechanically inefficient, as are wide 142mm chainstays. But if you have to shove 13 cogs plus discs in the rear stays, then I guess you have to go wide in the rear. Plus thru-axles are an unnecessary PITA.
My $1,500 Allez with rim brakes allowed me to travel everywhere that the Defy did. It was also lighter and felt much more responsive.
I will grant you that the stock tires on the Defy, even at 32mm, are horrible, heavy and not comfortable at all, even setup tubeless. I dropped 380g switching to 28mm GP5000s and latex tubes, and the ride is much smoother and more comfortable. Getting ready to drop another 400g in wheel weight. But the bike is hardly sluggish imo, in fact I would say it feels just as fast and nimble as the SL6 Tarmac it replaced.
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03-02-20, 10:02 AM
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03-02-20, 10:49 AM
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My Defy had no problem beating plenty of lightweight bikes at my first road race a week ago (82 of them to be exact, altho I can't guarantee they were all lighter, but with a bike weight of 8.5kg, it's probably a safe bet that most of them were lighter than mine, especially given the number of S-Works and other high end bikes in the field). But maybe it's not the bike.
I will grant you that the stock tires on the Defy, even at 32mm, are horrible, heavy and not comfortable at all, even setup tubeless. I dropped 380g switching to 28mm GP5000s and latex tubes, and the ride is much smoother and more comfortable. Getting ready to drop another 400g in wheel weight. But the bike is hardly sluggish imo, in fact I would say it feels just as fast and nimble as the SL6 Tarmac it replaced.
I will grant you that the stock tires on the Defy, even at 32mm, are horrible, heavy and not comfortable at all, even setup tubeless. I dropped 380g switching to 28mm GP5000s and latex tubes, and the ride is much smoother and more comfortable. Getting ready to drop another 400g in wheel weight. But the bike is hardly sluggish imo, in fact I would say it feels just as fast and nimble as the SL6 Tarmac it replaced.
03-02-20, 10:57 AM
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And it's the smart thing to do. Just throw some place-keeper wheels in there and keep the rest of the spec favorable - I'd be much happier with my own choice of $250 wheels than most bike manufacturer's idea of a $500 wheelset.
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03-02-20, 11:30 AM
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03-02-20, 12:17 PM
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03-02-20, 01:16 PM
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Giant recommends ML for riders between 5'10'' to 6'2'' and I'm right in the middle! Guess I'll have to keep on getting judged by people who dislikes my stack of spacers. It's OK, I also judge rim brake users that are saying it's better than discs 
.
.
03-02-20, 03:32 PM
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Guess I'll have to keep on getting judged by people who dislikes my stack of spacers. It's OK, I also judge rim brake users that are saying it's better than discs .
.
03-02-20, 11:07 PM
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I agree. I am 6 1 and ride a 60 cm frame with a13-14 cm stem. According to height bases charts, I should be able to ride a 58 cm frame. A 58 is way too small for me. Long legs and arms make a 58 not usable.
03-02-20, 11:24 PM
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I'm 6'1" and ride a 58 with a 90 mm stem. There's you go, height doesn't tell you your frame size.
03-03-20, 10:35 AM
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here is the point: current road bikes are sluggish pigs due to weight burden of discs, and especially the heavy rims and tires. Plus the high-Q of the current cranksets are biomechanically inefficient, as are wide 142mm chainstays. But if you have to shove 13 cogs plus discs in the rear stays, then I guess you have to go wide in the rear. Plus thru-axles are an unnecessary PITA.
This is a pearl beyond price. No kidding. All of you reading this who sell bikes in a shop should immediately suggest the following change to store policy: when a potential high-end-bike purchaser (or maybe any potential bike purchaser) comes in the shop, instead of asking about budget, ask what target weight the customer has in mind. All the sellers in other shops will still be asking about the target price range, so you'll make them seem like money-grubbers and yourself the like-minded pro, on the same wavelength as the customer. And if you ride a lightweight high-end bike yourself, be sure to mention its weight.