I'm fairly new to cycling and just recently (about 6 months ago) bought a Specialized Allez Sport ($800) and I have how many types of different upgrades there are for bikes. And they all range anywhere from a couple hundred to a couple thousand. Obviously I'm not going to buy a crank for a couple thousand for my bike that isn't even worth a thousand. So how much would be the limit I should set on upgrades before I decide to buy a new bike? Or how do I know what the limit would be to spend on certain parts like a crank or rims or new gears, that are the more expensive parts.

Do you actually NEED anything or do you just have a bunch of money that is burning a hole in your pockets? I wouldn't upgrade simply for the act of upgrading. If something breaks, then upgrade the replacement. I guess that is hypocritical of me since I just bought new wheels...but that was because I like the way they look.

I've got to agree. What do you need? I've only been at this since last May myself and have only a little over 3000 miles under my belt. My bikes are all stock right now with the exception of things like computers and tires. No component upgrades yet. I am currently planning on my first wheelset though replace the really heavy stock ones. The reason, this year I want to work on my climbing. Something I hardly did last year but with a 209 mile one day race with 10,000 Ft. of climbing planned for the fall I need to get better at climbing. On top of that the wheelset I'm looking at replacing took some abuse when my RD failed last fall. Not sure I trust them for high speed descents down the mountain.

you could buy stuff when things break. or just buy a better bike.

I can't speak to why you want to upgrade, but I can give you my experience in upgrading my bike.

I have a 2009 CAAD9 6, which I bought for $1,000. It's my first road bike. I decided that I'd upgrade it, knowing that it wouldn't be cost effective, but rather using it as a testbed for what I'd like for my next bike.

As it is, the only original parts remaining are the frame, forks and handlebars. I've spent about another grand in the process, and that's getting the most expensive upgrade (the drivetrain) either used or on eBay. I now know what I want for my next bike, and expect to be happier with it, though I'm far from unhappy with the CAAD9.

I'm guessing that you've got a Sora drivetrain. I'd check around and try to score a used, serviceable 105 drivetrain. Your LBS might have one from a bike they upgraded, or might know of a customer whose bike they upgraded and has the drivetrain sitting in a box in the garage collecting dust. That's how I went from Tiagra to mostly Ultegra - a friend upgraded his bike to Dura Ace, and had the Ultegra stuff in a box in his garage. I got everything except the crankset for $100, and found a NOS FSA Gossamer compact crankset in my size on eBay for another $100. My LBS installed everything, including a new chain and all cables and sheathes, for $180 more; total was $380. Note that the upgrade from Tiagra to 105 on the bike new would've been $250, and would've included slightly better wheels.

Wheels are another place to look. I went from the stock Shimano R500s to the "old standard" setup of Ultegra hubs with Mavic Open Pro rims, with resulting smoother ride and increased lateral stiffness. I got a really good deal on these at $241; they usually go for about $100-$200 more. This was a more beneficial upgrade, IMO, than the drivetrain. Note that they weigh about the same as the wheels they replaced, they just work better.

Less expensive upgrades that will impact your riding would be tires and a seat. Both can make your riding much more comfortable. A set of 700x25 Conti 4000s should ride smoother than the stock tires, and will set you back about $85 from ProBikeKit. A seat that fits you well will do the same, from about $50 up.

IMO, I'd go in the order of seat, tires, wheels, drivetrain. Anything more would entail a new bike.

FWIW, my next bike will be a Cannondale Synapse Carbon 5, and I'll swap the stock wheels with the ones on the CAAD9.

Don't think about upgrading unless your frame can justify it. Save your money to buy a better frame. An upgrade frame will serve you much better than upgraded components.

"Don't buy upgrades, ride up grades"

how? i would rather ride my record/eurus equipped $250 scattante frameset than a sora/2100g wheelset equipped tarmac

cheaper frames suffer from extra weight and some flex. (or not enough)

cheaper components suffer from extra weight, flexible wheels, poor bearings, imprecise performance, flexible calipers, garbage pads...

components fail and/or wear out much quicker than frames.

Simple math,
Let’s take Scattante for example:
If you move from SSR to CFR you’ll be paying $850 more while you are saving 1070 gr.
While moving from Shimano 105 to Dura Ace saves you less than 500gr for about more than a $1000 difference.

The ssr is a steel track frame (with no fork) and last i checked a tarmac or other "bf approved" carbon cost more than a cfr... you also made no mention of wheel weight and performance, and total weight is not everything.

It doesn't sound like the op is racing. Better wheels and shifters will serve them better than a light frame.

I enjoy my steel bike more than my "light" one

105 to dura ace is also irrelevant. It sounds like the op has sora.

In my opinion an aluminum bike with 105 is way better than a carbon bike with sora. I don't care if the carbon is lighter.

The only thing I'd upgrade is fit and contact points: bars and tape; saddle and shorts; pedals and shoes. Get fitted and get comfortable. When you're comfortable, you'll be able to go longer and harder.

Keep in mind that all those contact points are very personal to the rider. Some folks need to shell out hundreds of dollars for the right saddle, others might find the $50 version to be the best.

This.

Ride what you have, ride it again, then some more. The better fitness and experience on the bike you attain will help you decide what needs to be upgraded, if anything needs to be upgraded at all.

personally on my latest bike i spent $750 on the bike (retail $1,500) and so far have spent right at $1k so far on upgrades (seat, brakes, tires, wheels, pedals). I plan to upgrade a few more things including componens, bars, stem, and seatpost and that should run me close to another $1k. The only reason i can justify spending so much on this bike is that i plan to move the parts over to a new frameset later. Plus i really like the frame anyways. I also enjoy making a bike my own and not just something off the shelf.

IMO the most cost effective solution is a used bike from eBay or your local Craigslist. Then use the Allez as a commuter, or sell it.

What I did was move the mid-range parts from my bike to my daughter's bottom-of-the-line Trek 1.2. So every time I'd upgrade a component (wheels, drivetrain, etc.), she'd get an upgrade, too. Most of the junk off her bike went onto her college beater bike. Now we've both got nice bikes and we enjoy riding and maintaining them together. And the beater bike ain't bad, either. It's got a crap steel MTB frame, but a Sora RD, etc., so it looks like junk but rides really nice.

i recently bought a new carbon bike, this is my second road bike. But when i started upgrading my last bike, i thought what can upgrade, but can be moved onto a new bike when i take the plunge, i knew i was going to need more, as i am in love with cycling and a sora aluminium with heavey wheels wasnt going to cut my addiction. therefore i didnt bother with buying wheels and new cranks, no matter how bad i thought sora was. im glad i didnt as now i am the proud owner or a carbon with 105 and light wheels. save your pennies and ride what you have, bacause if you catch the cycling bug your going to be looking for a better bike before too long. also someone told me that you will spend on average 40% more on upgrades than you will buyin those upgrades as part of a bike, hope this makes sense. although one upgrade that can useful, is a set of wheels for racing. train on your heavey wheels and keep the racing wheels for raceday, they will last a reasonable ammount of time, possible the life of two bikes (dependant on how long you have a bike for). hope this helps

im jealous, i rode a trek 1.2 for a year and was sick of the gearing, i only wish i got hand-down components lol

Yeah, it's a pretty nice bike when you get a decent drivetrain and wheelset on it. She's got the 105 groupset and Xero wheels off my 2008 Giant OCR-1.