I don't know, but any wife who tells you to get a new "summer bike" is somewhere in the top first percentile of wives.

The Vegan Cyclist in YouTube did a video on his climbing bike last year. He went with a Canyon that had rim brakes and mechanical shifting but I can’t recall any other specifics.

Truest statement on the internet.

I still have a climbing bike. It is a Moots, same as my other Moots but with a compact crank. As I age the compact cranks seem more and more like a good idea as the mountains don't age as fast as I do.

I wholeheartedly agree! I even vaguely protested that it was a bit much but she was set on the idea! I'm definitely not one of those that moans about his other half!!

If you dont race then it seems the answer would be whatever gets you excited.

I think of them as "Joy Bikes." My road bike is built for light weight. I called it a "climbing bike" when I was collecting the parts. But in its simplest form, it is a bike that maximizes the pleasure of riding. The thing I found about my light bike is that it feels very different, especially at lower speeds <20 MPH. Those small accelerations away from stops that are frequent in road and group riding feel like you have electric assistance. The cornering with a light, aggressive fame and light wheels feel rail-assisted. The bike delivers total joy through all aspects of riding. It is definitely not as fast as my friend's Venge with 60mm wheels, but his doesn't feel like mine, and when I am training on the road bike, I do not care as much as how fast it is.

I think you've summed it up perfectly! I still remember the first time I rode my R3, it felt exactly like you describe, that's what has me leaning towards the SLR at the moment. Just picking up a 6.5 kilo bike feels exciting!

Seems to me any higher-end, non-aero, rim-brake "performance" or "race" bike is a candidate. Sub-1000g frames, which used to be high end, are ordinary these days. Some of the super light stuff is knocking on the door of 700g. Even aero-bike frames have gotten under a kilo; the weight penalty for choosing to be slippery, as well as the "stiffness gap," has diminished. Much of the final weight outcome comes down to component selection. Long story short, find any rim-brake frame you like, and you can mostly likely build it out to be at least as light as, and probably lighter than, what you have now.

A few other options you might want to look at:

-Specialized Tarmac SL6 rim brake. The S-Works is out of your stated budget, but I've seen a sub-7kg build on the "Pro" frame with Ultegra. And while it's not a full-on "aero" bike, it has a bit more aero optimization than the typical stick-tube climber. (FWIW, in a test I recently saw that compared aero race bikes to their non-aero counterparts, the Emonda was the least aero bike in the test, while the Tarmac was the lowest drag "non-aero" bike.)

-Orbea Orca OMR. The Orca still has plenty of rim brake offerings. The highest-level frame (OMR) is sub 800g. The excellent MyO program allows you to customize the paint colors for no charge, and make some component substitutions. (Pro-tip: if you prefer a particular aftermarket wheel set, you can usually sub out the spec premium wheels on a high end Orbea build for a set of mid-range alloys for a fairly substantial discount). Or you can MyO just a frame and build to suit.

-Cannondale SuperSix Evo. The "Hi-mod" is pricey, but there are some nice, presumably pretty light builds (Dura Ace, Red eTap) in the second tier frame at reasonable prices.

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"They're made of latex, not nitroglycerin"

Yeah, I need to weigh mine. It is a very stiff frame marketed as a climbing frame, and it is also light. I think my bike is under 6.8kg, and it could be below 6.5kg.

I just upgraded my wheels from a very light ~1,400g set of wheels. I debated getting HED Jet 4 Black wheels because they look cool and are more aero. But, I went with the lighter Ardennes Black, because I loved how my original set felt at their feather weight.

Having a light bike is a lot of fun. Sourcing parts, building it, and especially riding it. I built a sub 5.7kg bike about 10 years ago. Planet X frame. I also have a 7k Colnago C59 that's right at 7kg. We have a roughly 7 mile hillclimb about an hour away from me. 7.1% average grade. The Colnago is faster up it. The Planet X wasn't a noodle, but it didn't ride like the Colnago. This was especially true on descents.

What I learned (at least anecdotally) was that for climbing, a stiffer frame was worth more that 1.3kg.

I am also looking for a light bike, favouring the rose x-lite rim brake at the moment with mechanical sram force

I built my current TCR SL up with SRAM Red etap, Fulcrum Racing 0 wheels and other “lightish” parts was around 6.1 kg! I actually ended up adding a heavier cassette and deeper rims to add a little meat to it!!! The Rear Fulcrum wheel started flexing a bit on longer sustained climbs.

There was an interesting GCN video on group weights. Basically electronic s as light or lighter than mechanical when you add up all the little bits. Now disc vs rim is another matter and you can get some really light rim brakes, but basic drivetrain weight is a wash.

Hi

Keep the bike get a stupid light Wheelset.
All Carbon, Latex tubs and top of the line tires.
Wheels make the bike
JB

Wanna say he went with the Ultimate CF SLX with rim brakes and mech shifting. That would be Canyon's climbing bike. He did mech to make it more reasonably priced if I remember right, and because the EVO is stupid expensive. Think that in the EU the SLX can be done for 5200 Euros at it's absolute entry level, but I don't think they offer it in anything less than Di2 anymore.

The difference between the CF and the CF SLX is roughly 0.8 kg, which for me wasn't enough to pay the extra sticker price. Plus I bought without Di2, and I'm gonna use the money savings to upgrade the wheelset.

Another climbing bike that is above that 5k range by a tad is the Factor O2 - wish I could have just blown my budget and gotten that bike.

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Chasing PB Podcast Latest interview with Eli Hemming on Targeting a US MTR spot in Tokyo

I have a 2016 X-lite team. Ultegra Di2 with Ksyrium exalith pro wheels. That bike in the hills is excellent, nothing short. Weighed 6.75kg out the box. You'd be under 6.5kg easily with SRAM Force I would imagine.

No chance I'd get all carbon wheels if was looking for something to ride regularly on 9% average hills.
Braking power, and reliability, matter a lot on steep hills. I'm assuming he descends them after climbing!

Hi

18% plus hills here thousands of miles.
Have ever owned Top end super light wheels?
Apparently not
JB

What do you weigh?

And I'm not especially interested in anecdotes. I'll stick with engineering when topic at hand.
Carbon is not a great material for rim brake tracks. It can be made work, but it's a compromise.
I'm well aware that the cycling community is obsessed with carbon and think it's got magical, universal superiority qualities. That doesn't make it true. If I was buying a set of wheels specifically for flat TTs I might consider carbon wheels IF I knew they were going to be more aerodynamic, but to be honest I can't see it ever being a terribly significant benefit. However, I do a mix of riding and don't want to own numerous several wheel-sets. As such, and especially when weighing over 80kg and doing a lot of fast descending, aluminium alloys are superior material for the job IMO. Alloy only rims are fine if you're not worried about aerodynamics or they can be paired with bonded carbon fairings at a fairly small weight penalty if you want a deeper rim section (e.g. HED Jet 6). Carbon wheels look pretty and can be lighter, especially if tubular, but as a mechanical engineer and an aerodynamicist, I don't think they are clearly superior. Certainly not enough to justify the cost. The choice of material is often a matter of marketing over good engineering IMO.

Hi

PB asked if he should get a new bike I suggested new wheels.
He has a great bike and Components but could use a wheel up grade.
And thanks for saving my life riding 10,000 to 15,000 miles a year on Carbon.
For sale
Light weight Standerd 3
Reynold RZR
Mavic Ultmates
Mad Fiber Clincher
Just kidding I like my unsafe wheels
JB

Most of your weight savings in a "climbing bike" is with the components. You can get an aluminum frame down to 13.5 pounds as a complete bike if you select all the components with weight in mind. Maybe even a lot lower if it's a small frame and you go real weight weenie with things like a carbon saddle and super light and narrow tubulars. The difference between the lightest carbon frame and something like a CAAD12 aluminum frame is maybe 600 grams max...or just over a pound.

But unless you're actually trying to compete in hill climbing races, I'd rather buy a bike that's more fun to ride. I'd much rather have a solid 16 pound bike that's plenty stiff for sprints and diving into corners while accommodating the newer trend in wider rims/tires. Having some aero properties built in doesn't hurt either.

I think that's where most of the road market is going these days. The "value" of lightweight has been debunked, so buyers are looking for more value in aerodynamics, comfort, and practicality. It's why people are also more open to pay for electronic shifting even though it weighs more...and disc brakes if that's you're thing.

I know what you are saying about carbon wheels, but as has been said by others I do prefer alloy braking. I'm really keen to get an additional bike to be honest. Im 6 foot and 65kg so I don't suppose carbon would be too bad for braking. Maybe you're right about components, I decided a while back that I wouldn't go full weight weenie with the cervelo, I prefer mechanical so went for the DA 9000 after having Ultegra di2 for a while. I think the idea of a joy bike is definitely the way to go. I'll swing a leg over a few later this week and see what gets me excited!

No idea why you're continuing with this adversarial attitude but whatever.
You've clearly no intention if havinf a constructive discussion.

Did you answer my question about your weight? No

Did I say your wheels were dangerous? No, but you pretended I did.

Did you address any of the points I actually made? No

Wife: oh your lovely summer bike looks tatty best use that in winter

You: sure no problem !

First world problems we'd all like to have !

Why not sell the R3, buy a winter back for 1500, put the surplus with your 4/5k and get something custom, Sarto, Colnago, Parlee etc ?

Yeah, I think Jason's advice is spot on.
Don't obsess about weight if you can help it. Get something light but get something you really like and that'll feel good. I wouldn't compromise tyres, saddle, bars, fit, or groupset for weight savings.

Don't put excessive stock in a test ride either. You're really just testing the tyres and tyre pressure and the shops quick approximation of your position!
I thunk they can be misleading

Something is not right here. Why does she want him out of the house?

My first (bike) love is my lightweight Felt F2 road bike. With 1500g aero wheels it is 6.1 kg (13.4lbs). 12.7lbs naked with no pedals. It got etap and some exotic carbon components. It was a used mid range frame so price is comparatively good. No proper weight weenie build is cheap however.

Bonus is that I can, and actually do ride the bike. Many of the lightest bikes out there are more of “trophy bikes” that flex when you look at them the wrong way.

For those preferring not to have carbon brake tracks, i can put on mavic r-sys slr wheels and save another 0.5lbs.

But i am 60kg. Everything on my bike is raited for at least 90kg... but The flex for a big moose of a rider might be scary.

The lighter you are as a rider, the more you have to gain from a light bike. Me and my bike weigh 130+13.5= 143.5lbs. Had i left my bike stock... add 3lbs. Hahaha. So we are looking at a ~2% weight reduction. So we are still in the realm of marginal gains. A good dump before a bike ride might give the same benefit.

A 90kg rider will see closer to 1.3% reduction on weight for the same bike. Marginal.

Light bikes are fun... but aero is faster and always a better return on investment for tour dollars spent (thus why i have “heavy” 1500g 56mm deep carbon wheels on my “climbing bike”).

Oh yeah, and i increased my ftp in the last 4 weeks of training by 6%. So training>aero>weight. But that is boring... so i like my light bike.

Well if it's my wife and her having a weekend side piece to "entertain" while I'm out riding is compensated with me getting a new bike every year.....I call that a "win-win." Show me where to sign.

I do not recommend an aero bike if you do any hard climbs on rides. It's only faster on flat terrain. I have a Venge VIAS and a Tarmac and I've done lots of comparisons with the exact same wheels and position on the two and I'm noticeably slower (for the same power output) on climbs on the Venge. In contrast the Venge is noticeably faster on the flats, especially when over 30mph. Keep in mind I'm a lighter rider (61kg) so perhaps the weight gain % and extra stiffness differential impede my climbing more than the aero gain.

In any case, it's always fun going fast on the flats, but I find most rides tend to get broken up on the climbs, so I'd rather not have any handicap on the climbs.

The Tarmac SL6 is kind of the best of both worlds. A great climbing bike, but not too shabby aero wise. I'd also recommend going for the pro model over the s-works. I've ridden both pro and s-works (SL5s and SL6s) and can't tell them apart.

We are the same weight. Light is good for us, especially in the wheels. The data from folks like swisside say aero wheels are faster up to about a 4% grade... but then rider weight and speed factor i to that calculation so it is really all handwaving.

I will admit i am going deep carbon because it also looks badassed. It is a training bike, who cares. My fitness is the big limiter anyway.

Cheers dudes, as a couple of you have said the weight does seem to make a big difference for us scrawny types! I've pulled the trigger on a Trek Emonda SLR with Ultegra R8000. Got a great deal on one of last years frames (the updated model so exactly the same as this years really) and went for a turbo upgrade too (Elite drivo version 1 - half price!) all in all I'm considering myself very lucky at the moment. The SLR comes in at 6.59kg stock, with a few tweaks it should get pretty close to 6. I think I might have to get stuck in to hill climb season later in the year now!

Why especially in the wheels?

Trust me

Nope
I don't do trust without a reason.

Killer choice... you will love it. When I was building my bike, I was shopping used frames, and the Emonda SLR was on my short list. It is feather light and yet still quite stiff. I just happened to find another frame first that I also liked a lot. My original goal was budget, but then I got carried away on some light carbon parts and light wheels. I'm so glad I did.

To trust, does your reason require evidence?

And why ask questions when you have already made up your mind on the answer? Why not just give your reasoning? The swisside data would support you.

The R5 has not gone away. I have a 2018 model and the frame is lighter than my 2016 R5 frame and both weigh close to 14lbs or around 6.4kg fully built up. The new R5 is brilliant and looks great too.

I would say, unless you race, there is really no reason to get a fully aero bike over a R5 or similar. They are aero optimised but offer better comfort and lighter weight.

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