Dropping weight on the Rush Hour
 

Hi

I just purchased an 08 Raleigh Rush Hour.

Does anyone know the cheapest and easiest way to drop some weight from the stock configuration?

I am running it single speed.

Thanks!

BTW, my forum name was a sort of a bad joke. I am definitely running both brakes!

take off your cog/lock ring. Or just ride it fixed and take off the brakes, freewheel, levers. That helped a lot for me initially.

If you ride it fixed, please do yourself a favor and keep the front brake. The miniscule increase in weight over not having it is worth the ability to stop quickly.

I've found it more rewarding to learn to ride without one. You definitely ride with a different mind state.

The only real thing you should make sure of is to have a backup plan in case your chain breaks or is thrown. foot on the back wheel is fine; enough to skid even.

Dropping weight on a fixed or single-speed bike is a great idea because it will let you be a *little* faster in a race that starts at the bottom of a mountain and finishes at the top. Some ways to drop the weight is to eliminate the extra cog and lockring, lose the rear brake, get rid of all reflectors, and change the seat post, stem and handlebar to those made of carbon fiber. Then you can change the stock pedals to eggbeaters by Crank Brothers or to the Speedplay Frog pedals. Dump the heavier stock bottom bracket and buy a top-of-the-line BB by either Campagnolo or Shimano. You'll save a good amount of weight with new wheelsets, preferably ones made with carbon fibers. Oh, and get the SLR 125 saddle.

This modification to your $500 bike should cost only south of $2,000, but you should be able to do well on that race up the mountain. Good luck. Please post pictures! :)

this is true. i rode brakeless for a few weeks. definitely an eye opening experience lol. you will ride MUCH more safe

lighter wheelset, stem, fork, and seatpost are things you will immediately notice.

your new age crap is just that. Go do yoga or something.

you are full of bs in the frankfurtian sense. worst advice ever.

your ideas intrigue me. I'd like to subscribe to your newsletter.

****, I laughed.

The great thing about the internet is that you get to see the "other" part of America without leaving your house.

It's true though. The first time I tried riding without a brake I was in a much different state of mind than with a front brake. I would describe it, in general terms as a sort of "OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD OH **** OH GOD" feeling.

In all seriousness though the amount of weight lost from removing a brake and brake lever is negligible. Your best bet is a new wheelset with low rotational mass. If you are just looking to improve your riding experience, don't worry so much about weight, focus on comfort. Look to upgrade the contact points: saddle, pedals, and handlebar (all the while ensuring that you have a good fit).

Edit: IMHO the single best value in performance enhancement is in going to a clipless setup.

The fork on that thing is massive. An upgrade to a carbon unit would save you a lot of weight. You can get one for $80 at Performance Bike. I also found the seatpost to be unnecessarily long; perhaps cutting it down would help a bit.

How is having no brakes SAFER? Indulge me with your it-makes-sense-if-you-ignore-the-laws-of-physics logic.

Thanks to all of those who provided solid advice such as changing the seat post, bottom bracket, wheelset, and removing the cog and lockring.

Honestly, this is my first real new bike. I only had about $400 to spend on a new bike and I test rode a couple and the Rush Hour fit the best. I am mostly happy with my purchase. I only inquired about reducing some of the weight on the frame because I have to carry my bike up and down 4 flights of stairs to my apt every day. That is all. Nothing about any deluded idea that I can get this bike light enough to win any races without proper conditioning.

I am running single speed. No plans to switch to fixed gear any time soon. I AM RUNNING BOTH BRAKES.

If anyone has any specific examples of inexpensive bottom brackets or wheelsets or seat posts, I would welcome them.

Thanks

Wheelsets are the most obvious, albeit not really cheap, way to shave pounds. Sadly, you didn't really buy a light frame to begin with, so I wouldn't obsess over it.

Regarding learning to ride fixed with no brakes... ********. Do what you want after you know what you're doing.

I have test rode a Rush Hour, perhaps an '06 in '06, it was a nice grey - it's a fine cycle in singlespeed mode. You should be fine. Do some curls with it or something to get that ground to shoulder pop down pat, mang.

"Do some curls with it..."

Best advice yet! Thanks, time to man up and just carry this friggin' thing

I have an '07 Rush Hour - why lose weight? You didn't mention the whyness for your question. Mine is so much lighter than my early 80's Kuwahara that I never thought I needed to shed weight on it.

He did not say having no brakes makes you safer. He said it makes you RIDE safer. And i do in fact agree with the statement. When he was brakeless he probable rode slower, did less weaving in and out traffic and was generally more observant of his surroundings. You should try it. Its amazing what you do when you know you might not be able to stop quickly enough.

Wouldn't a back up plan concievably be a front brake?

God, this mindless drivel again. Riding safer and being safer are two different things.

You should drive a car with no brakes, it's amazing how much safer you drive when you realize you can't stop quickly enough. Seriously. I had no choice a few years ago when driving my project '83 VW GTI across the neighborhood. I was in the middle of replacing my e-brake cables and thus had no e-brake. Lucky for me, my master cylinder failed half way there, brake pedal to the floor. Engine braking from 35 to a stop sucks, especially on a car you are trying to keep running. Not to mention the fact that I literally could do nothing short of drag my feet (which I obviously didn't) to scrub speed.

Did it ever occur to you to just NOT pull the lever? Use your head.

I love irony.

Like many new bike owners, you've been infected with upgradeitis. This deadly(to your wallet) disease distorts the perception of the victim into thinking that money will solve their problems and that a lighter bike should be the focus of their expenditures.

I myself was once afflicted with this malady but a bearded sage down at the Temple (LBS) advised me to simply ride what I had until it could go no more. At which time, I would be enlightened and would clearly see that I was no slower than the riders with $2,000 wheelsets and ceramic bearings and carbon fiber bottle cages.


Keep the Rush Hour as it is and only when parts start failing should you upgrade. By that time, you'll know your bike and your needs much better. Hauling that bike up and down the stairs will just make your arms and shoulders stronger to match your legs. You can use your other arm to haul beer and even the load.


Since inexpensive is a relative term you'll have to provide a dollar amount in order to receive quality responses. To upgrade significantly anything on your bike you'll be spending a good chunk of money so it's a good idea to be sure you know the effect of any such upgrade besides lightening the wallet.

i concur
ride the bike, invest in a good saddle at least but ride everything else until it breaks
the rush hour seems like a great ride...it was on my list when i was shopping around before deciding on a steamroller i was riding a 30 lb conversion around for about a yr or so threw the snow and all over the place...i feel spoiled riding the 20 lb steamer

Solid advice. I especially liked the part that urged me not to spend any money right now.
I've decided to remove the cog and lockring and buy a new saddle. I'm also in the process of removing all of the stickers on the frame. That should lighten the load considerably ;)

BTW, the 08 Rush Hour is indeed a nice smooth ride. I've only put about 30 miles on it so far but its been a lot of fun.

Loose the bar plugs,
remove grips go with 12" chopped aero carbon flatbar.
remove fork stem cap,
remove valve caps.
drill speed holes in the frame, seatpost, bars, cranks, chainring, hubs,
replace spokes with kevlar string,
remove seat and replace with carbon fiber and ti.
remove pedal cages and ride on the spindles,
ride naked,
shave everything.
Sunburn + peel = lost weight.
Plus...
Make sure you go to the bathroom before you ride.