hansel

have about 400 to play with, im going to college next year and am going to be cycling. ive been alright with dt and threaded headset and mismatch rims. but now i feel like now that im about to move up to cat3 next season i need to get with it. witch would be more beneficial?

new set of neuvation aero rims.
or
convert to cane creek thread less with aero fork
or
get a set of brifters, probably campys?

gkelley

need to know what your working with first, pics?

Raiden

I would skip the headset/fork idea. Someday you might swap to a new frame, and it'll have all of that included. Does anyone sell a carbon fork with a 1" steerer anyway?

If you go wheels, consider tossing on some bar-end shifters. You can find them online for well under $100 (for 9-speed). I've never raced, but I assume if you're badass enough to race cat 3 with DTs, you might like bar-ends.

hansel

well i was running a custom steel frame. but it sadly is almost in 2 pieces. now ive been using a caad3 witch has been sitting in my room for 3 years. ill try to get some pics, cause i just built it up this season for cat 4's. are you allowed to use bar ends for racing? ive never seen anybody use them. do they make light carbon threaded forks?


edit- photo. green saddle has been swapped for viscount aero white saddle

ridethecliche

Wait, you say that you're going to be a 3 next season, and then you say you're going to be a 4? Which is it?

Keep the bike as is, and save up for a good bike. If you're on a team, check if they have good discounts on any kind of bike. That might be a much better idea.

You're not going to see any real improvement on an outdated frame with a new fork since threaded carbon forks are still heavy, old brifters (7 speed?) are hard to find and hard to replace.

hansel

im going to be a cat 3 next year. and i built it for cat 4's this past season.

i was going to get a new pair of campy record 10's. i have a 8 speed on it now. but have a Regina cluster that im going to use. im not on a team, and have no "deals". im a student and cant afford a new frame. as it was in the photo it weighs only 19 pounds. witch for what it is, is not to shabby i think

Raiden

7-speed brifters are hard to find, but 8-speed (Shimano 2200; I don't know Campy hardware) brifters are pretty common, and he'd just need a new freewheel. That said, I'd rather have his old downtube setup over either of those options. (but again, I've never raced).

Hansel, Is that 7 or 8-speed?

gkelley

I would do brifters but don't get bar end shifters, you'll hit them with your knees when your out of the saddle and that's the last time you want to change gears without expecting it. New wheels could drop the weight a bit too. All depends how big of a hassle it is for you to change gears quickly with the DT shifters.

ridethecliche

Get bar ends for it and call it a day. You'll be able to shift from the drops that way.

Save up for a new bike. Find a team you like and ride for them. You'll probably end up with a good deal on something either through a shop or through a teammate with a used bike.

hansel

its currently a 8 speed. after looking up forks and headsets online, cane creek makes a 1in headset and i found a bunch of thread less forks for all in all about $250. and a total of about 500g. its not bad shifting, ive kind of learned to do it ahead of time, like at the sprint. but i think im definitely going to get of neuvation aero wheels, and some race tires.

JTGraphics

My old Cannondale


More photos of it and upgrades here if you like
https://www.jtgraphics.net/cannondale_sr500.htm

Triguy

I currently run 10 speed campy ergos on an otherwise Shimano 8 speed setup and it works really well. I miss the Shimano shape but the performance of shifts is spot on.

I think going with brifters is probably a good call for increased performance.

hansel

yeah, everything that ive ever had campy i liked. even if i want to eventually get a new frame ill still need brifters, and other components. so ill just upgrade most of this now. i still think the cannondale has a lot left in it. i rode a le champion a few days ago and i still think the can'dale was still better.


jt- where did you get that slice fork?

Flatballer

I like Alfa Romeos. My dad had quite a few of them, both sedans and Spiders. I owned an '86 Spider for a little while, but I needed a real car, not a toy. I'll probably own one again later in life.

hansel

haha yeah its like a religion with my family, my father likes them also. he has a
alfa romeo 164, gtv6, alfetta. over the years he has gotten and sold well over 30 cars
also has a
TVR vixen
Lotus esprit (86)

and now im starting with my "obsession" i just got a milano verde,

yeah the spiders are fun little cars, i drove a duetto, witch is probibly the most fun ive ever had driving

Bianchigirll 

save your money. if you have 8spd now and you get nice wheels they will be either 10 or 11spd so you will need shifters too. put the money away until you can aford a nice new bike. I used to know Cat2 riders who rode Campi cranks DiaCompe brakes and suntour cyclone friction shifters (1990) back in those days the moto was always "if it is free it is form me'

Velo Dog

What nearly everybody else said: Wait. The fork swap is a particularly useless idea. There's no advantage to a threadless headset over an old-style one, and the aero fork blades will make no difference at all.

Meanwhile, work on your spelling, grammar, vocabulary and syntax. There are at least eight glaring mistakes in your short post, a dozen if the reader is picky. If I were one of your profs, I'd shoot it back ungraded and tell you to rewrite it in English.

daxr

Having raced with downtube shifters back in the 80's, I can say that I would absolutely pity anyone trying to race nowadays with downtube shifters.

Get brifters, but if you can't pick up a package for $400 (brifters, cassette, derailleur, whatever else) just save your money and keep an eye on Craig's list. You can usually find something that works in that range if you're patient.

Basil Moss

Downtube gears are, alas, a disadvantage. Nobody in the UK races on them anymore. There was a transition period where everybody with downtube gears lost ground on the way out of corners etc, now everyone uses them. I'd get some "brifters" if I was you. Otherwise that's a totally functional bike, don't sweat.

Metzinger

I did everything on your list within your budget.
Ebay brifters (8sp RX100) $110
Craigslist wheels (new Dura Ace hubs Velocity rims) $200
Ebay fork/headset/stem (Quintana Roo Carbon 1"/CaneCreek/Kore) $35/$15/$12

Total with shipping well under $400.
Admittedly, the steerer on the QR fork was crap. Crown race improperly milled. Al steerer kept flexing, requiring frequent headset adjustment.
Replaced with Prestige steel. Which is awesome. €63 shipped.

bernside

FWIW I vote for the Neuvations. I bought a pair of M28 SLs a month ago for my old steel frame and am really pleased with them. Unlike the fork or barend shifter upgrade, you will be able to swap them to a new frame when you are ready.

botto 

math?

did you replace it with one that fits?

patentcad

I nominate this thread for the

first annual botto it's not about the bike award