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Upgrade or New Bike?
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tuwood
Nov 29, 19 13:24
Post #1 of 14 (1950 views)
I'm getting back into Triathlon after a 7 year break and I still have my old tri bike. It's a stock 2011 Speed Concept 7.2 that I bought new in early 2011 and it's still in near new condition. It has the stock aluminum rims and the aluminum/tube bars. Standard cheap SRAM 10s cassette and SRAM Rival groupset.

Anyways, I'm in a much stronger financial position now than I was in 2011 so I want to upgrade my bike this time around.
I really like the SRAM Red eTap AXS and the Quarq crank power meter and of course need to upgrade the wheels. I'd also upgrade the handlebars/aerobars to a carbon fiber aero setup.

Am I throwing good money after bad dumping it into an older bike like this, or should I just sell it and start new? Looking at new, it looks like Trek has fallen back in the pack compared to 2011. It also looks like a lot of the newer ones don't have the eTap groupset installed, so I'd likely have to buy the crank power meter and groupset.

Curious what you guys think? upgrade or just go new?
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Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [tuwood] [ In reply to ]
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lightheir
Nov 29, 19 13:41
Post #2 of 14 (1931 views)
I'd say if you can readily afford the new one and can readily sell the old one, go big and get the new one. You'll just want the new one all the time if you don't get it.

That said, nothing's holding you back on your 2011 bike. I'm still rocking my 2008 Cervelo P2C and have no plans to replace it. And it STILL gets 'wow that's a hot bike!" comments regularly from the spectators, even though I don't have anything crazy on it.
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Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [tuwood] [ In reply to ]
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exxxviii
Nov 29, 19 13:58
Post #3 of 14 (1910 views)
Folks who know the Gen 1 & Gen 2 Speed Concept think the Gen 2 is way better. That said, it is usually way more cost-effective to upgrade your existing frame versus buying a new bike. That said, if you can afford a new bike, I would go for it. The world is your oyster. Much has changed since 2011 and some of the goods (like wide wheels & tires) may not fit on your old bike.
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Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [tuwood] [ In reply to ]
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Shambolic
Nov 29, 19 15:18
Post #4 of 14 (1867 views)
My thoughts are why would you put all the best gear on an 8 year old bike. The sealer to me is I am sure with most old bikes you can't run the new wider tyres or wheels that have less rolling resistance. Then in a few years time who is going pay descent money for a 10+ year old frame with latest running gear?
Last edited by: Shambolic: Nov 29, 19 16:47
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Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [tuwood] [ In reply to ]
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DFW_Tri
Nov 29, 19 15:44
Post #5 of 14 (1847 views)
I’d buy a 2018 or 2019 frameset on sale and build up from there-you can get all the parts you want and will be much cheaper than buying the stock bike with many parts you don’t want.
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Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [Shambolic] [ In reply to ]
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tuwood
Nov 29, 19 16:01
Post #6 of 14 (1830 views)
What’s funny, is I’m so far removed from the gear world that I didn’t even realize the newer wheels/tires were wider.
With that new knowledge, I tend to agree with you on going new. I don’t necessarily care about resale, but you’re exactly right on that as well.
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Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [DFW_Tri] [ In reply to ]
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tuwood
Nov 29, 19 16:05
Post #7 of 14 (1827 views)
DFW_Tri wrote:
I’d buy a 2018 or 2019 frameset on sale and build up from there-you can get all the parts you want and will be much cheaper than buying the stock bike with many parts you don’t want.

I noticed that the top of the line Trek didn’t have most of the stuff I want, so agree that a new frameset seems to be the smarter move. Not to mention the matte black speed concept looks insanely cool to me.

I’ve never built a bike, so this will be fun.
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Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [tuwood] [ In reply to ]
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exxxviii
Nov 29, 19 17:12
Post #8 of 14 (1809 views)
tuwood wrote:
I’ve never built a bike, so this will be fun.
A parts-up build is incredibly gratifying. I have done it 2-1/2 times, and it is my preferred method for achieving bike awesomeness.
Last edited by: exxxviii: Nov 29, 19 17:13
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Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [tuwood] [ In reply to ]
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HeartRN
Nov 29, 19 19:07
Post #9 of 14 (1771 views)
If you decide to part with it..I'm interested in the frame, depending on the size of course. My husband's fell off his bike rack a few years ago when he was driving and he accidentally backed over it. It's been sitting in our spare room all cracked up ever since. He can't bear to get rid of it, he wants to rebuild it, just hasn't found the right frame. I think his is either a 52 or 54.
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Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [Shambolic] [ In reply to ]
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jimatbeyond
Nov 29, 19 20:46
Post #10 of 14 (1741 views)
What about the fast 23mm tires?
Quote Reply
Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [tuwood] [ In reply to ]
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Slug
Nov 30, 19 3:42
Post #11 of 14 (1694 views)
tuwood wrote:
DFW_Tri wrote:
I’d buy a 2018 or 2019 frameset on sale and build up from there-you can get all the parts you want and will be much cheaper than buying the stock bike with many parts you don’t want.


I noticed that the top of the line Trek didn’t have most of the stuff I want, so agree that a new frameset seems to be the smarter move. Not to mention the matte black speed concept looks insanely cool to me.

I’ve never built a bike, so this will be fun.
Like others have written, building your own bike is not only easier than it seems, but also very gratifying. It's not difficult to accidentally buy parts that don't fit your specific bike, but with a little bit of research you can do it without fuss or extra parts laying around. There are many videos on Youtube to help you get through the process. I have plans to build my next two bikes since my first one was done on a whim and I learned a lot more about my bike doing so than buying it already assembled.
The more people I encounter the more I love my cats.
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Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [HeartRN] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
tuwood
Nov 30, 19 7:46
Post #12 of 14 (1656 views)
HeartRN wrote:
If you decide to part with it..I'm interested in the frame, depending on the size of course. My husband's fell off his bike rack a few years ago when he was driving and he accidentally backed over it. It's been sitting in our spare room all cracked up ever since. He can't bear to get rid of it, he wants to rebuild it, just hasn't found the right frame. I think his is either a 52 or 54.

That sucks. I'm in Nebraska so I'll likely start this process in late winter so I'll be using the old one on the trainer for a few months before selling it.
Quote Reply
Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [Slug] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
tuwood
Nov 30, 19 7:53
Post #13 of 14 (1648 views)
Slug wrote:
tuwood wrote:
DFW_Tri wrote:
I’d buy a 2018 or 2019 frameset on sale and build up from there-you can get all the parts you want and will be much cheaper than buying the stock bike with many parts you don’t want.


I noticed that the top of the line Trek didn’t have most of the stuff I want, so agree that a new frameset seems to be the smarter move. Not to mention the matte black speed concept looks insanely cool to me.

I’ve never built a bike, so this will be fun.

Like others have written, building your own bike is not only easier than it seems, but also very gratifying. It's not difficult to accidentally buy parts that don't fit your specific bike, but with a little bit of research you can do it without fuss or extra parts laying around. There are many videos on Youtube to help you get through the process. I have plans to build my next two bikes since my first one was done on a whim and I learned a lot more about my bike doing so than buying it already assembled.

I'm kind of looking forward to it now. I definitely have a lot of research to do, but have already looked at a couple build videos. Admittedly I'll be cheating a little if I go with wireless derailleurs out of the gate.
I'm sure I'll start another thread or two before I start ordering parts.

Thanks for all the help everyone.
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Re: Upgrade or New Bike? [lightheir] [ In reply to ]
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Jonathan22
Dec 1, 19 8:22
Post #14 of 14 (1594 views)
lightheir wrote:

That said, nothing's holding you back on your 2011 bike. I'm still rocking my 2008 Cervelo P2C and have no plans to replace it. And it STILL gets 'wow that's a hot bike!" comments regularly from the spectators, even though I don't have anything crazy on it.

Same here. Other than upgrading the drive train, I still get nice comments on my 2008 P2C. I'm still chasing Chrissie Wellington's Kona bike time on the same frame. If that frame is good enough for a 5:08 in Kona, it's more than good enough for me.
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