First thing to upgrade?
 

Just wondering for those who bought their bikes stock, what was the first thing they upgraded. Other than the pedals if the bike didn't come with them.

Saddle (Fizik Pave) for me. I've got a new stem on the way.

Hopefully the rider.

G'day,

depends on how good the 'stock' bike was in the first place & why you wanna upgrade. Sometimes doing upgrades to an 'el cheapo' frame might be relatively pointless. You looking for weight savings?, comfort?, better shifting? etc, etc....you probably need to quantify in your own mind what you are trying to achieve from your upgrade before you spend any money. For mine though, in general, I always whack my favourite seat on straight away!...my bum thanks me!

Hitchy

Wheels.

Brooks B17 saddle. The best bike purchase I've made.

First thing was to remove the dork disk. :)

I'm gradually building up to an engine upgrade

"All factors being equal," the saddle.

How do you like that saddle? I just snagged one on Ebay.

There are a few different versions out there and to be honest, I'm not sure of exactly which model I have other than it's black (kinda textured looking where you sit) and has titanium rails. I like it: better than my stock saddle, much better than a Sella Italia Flite Gel I tried, and not so much that I wouldn't consider something else (still debating on a Brooks). It all seems to depend on the day. Somedays, I feel nothing. Other days, it gets uncomfortable after 25-30 miles, but not so much that it has kept me from riding up to 80 miles straight on it. With that said, the numbness I used to get with my stock Specialized BG saddle is all but gone which is a big plus.

I ditto that!

re-ditto wheels. costly, but most agree its the single quickest way to improve performance through equipment.

Oh, right. I replaced/upgraded my wheels to Mavic Cosmos about a month ago. I guess I'm buying too much stuff when I start forgetting things like that.

When I saw the thread's title, that was my first thought, too. However, bikes now come with very fine wheelsets, quite unlike times past. To upgrade the wheels on a lot of today's bikes, you're looking at a thousand dollars, and simply no need to do so.

1. Wheels
2. Bottom bracket
3. Whole bike

I should have listened to my cycling friends who advised me to start with a better bike in the first place.
Tom

I upgrade the saddle first. As long as my rear isn't in too much pain other small problems can be tolerated.

1. Pedals
2. Wheels
3. Fork
Next: Saddle, cranks, bottom bracket, seatpost?, brakes?

Brakes, on advice from my LBS????, from cannondale OEM black taiwan thingies to ultegra, then came seatpost, saddle, BB & Crankset, F&R Derailleurs, now the shifters in that order. Biggest improvement, definitely the saddle Fizik Airone, & Cransket/BB.

I've always found wheels to be the first "real" upgrade, ie performance, I consider saddles and handlebars and such "comfort" upgrades, unless of course you're going carbon or aero.

1) Saddle (Brooks Swift)
2) Wheels (Mavic Cosmos)
3) Pedals (Speedplay Zero)

- RJ

What do better wheels do to help you in cycling?

well, i first "upgraged" i dont know if it is even really that, but i added (gasp) weight to my bike with a set of aero bars because, well i love the speed, i never race, or even do tri's (altho my bike would lead you to other thoughts) i have throughly enjoyed the added positon and when riding with my friends its like i have an extra leg to spin with once i lay down into these things, my riding partners are all amazed by my suden bursts of speed, i also love the addition of my computer it definitlykeeps me riding longer, faster and a bit stronger i think because i have a trackable system tp psh from. I suppose the only danger i have is trying to go faster on each downhill then the last.... perhaps a good helemt is a usefull upgrade too


*the 20 second later edit! lighter wheels = less rotational mass... quicker easier to spin to full speed (if you think why big heavy wheels are not used in race cars too its for the same reason, heavy weighet that is farther from the center of the rim (hub) is harder to turn or spin

New wheelset, for sure. I first bought a Univerga, which was good value for money in terms of frame and shifters, unfortunately, they skimped on the wheels, and I had some problems with the bike remaining in true.

When I upgraded the wheelset, everything has been fine ---it's also helped that I've lost about 30 lbs (halfway there to 170, yeah! :) )


2nd thing: pedals!!

Lighter or stronger or both. Lighter helps you climb and accelerate. Stronger is pretty self explanitory. My Marins both came with Xero wheel sets. I have the XR3 and XR4 neither of which is all that light and the XR3s are down right flimsey. They are gone ASAP especially since they are on my commuter. The XR4s are only a little better but weigh nearly 2000g for the pair so they are on the outs too. Mavic Open Pros with Ultegras are between 1800-1900 grams when set up with 32 spokes and alloy nipples, much stronger than the XR3s for sure.

Anyone have the ALEX ALX400s? There are no reviews on RoadBikeReview.com Price is similar to the Cosmos and the weight is a little less.