Hype around bike parts. Lets hear some truth

Triathlon Forum
1

Hype around bike parts.

I am in the process of upgrading my road and tri bike. Stems, bars, cranks and seat posts.

Why should I go to a 31.8 vs. 26.0 stem and bar? What is actually wrong with the smaller diameter bar and stem. Will I really notice the difference in stiffness?

Why should I go with Carbon cranks vs. aluminum cranks? Will I really know the difference? I am going to compact for sure. Only question is external bearings or internal. Price for the different materials is huge between the two. Not so with most other carbon parts.

Carbon vs. Aluminum parts. If you can buy carbon for near the same price as aluminum, why should I not buy the carbon seat post and bars? They are lighter (most of the time), more compliant (most of the time), just as safe (tested to the same standards I would hope).

How much of bike parts is hype over actual fact and function.

Last question - Why not buy the lightest, best components you can afford. Why is there a bit of a backlash on weight savings when it comes to bikes especially tri bikes. If you can go light and focus on your position to be more aero why do people get shit on for wanting to go light.

2

Sounds like you’ve got it figured out. I still use the smaller diameter bar, aluminium compact cranks but carbon seat post, etc.

My only suggestion is don’t bother with carbon drop bars. I have them but see no difference.

3

Failure mode. An aluminum part that fails tends to do so by developing small cracks, which get steadily bigger as the metal gets weaker. Composite parts tend to look and act compltely fine, then fail suddenly and catastrophically. Carbon parts, espcially now near the beginning of mass proliferation, are sometimes overbuilt in response to this risk. If the carbon part is not any lighter, why have it? To be sure, composites do have some structural advantages, and costs will fall in response to market forces.

I think the backlash is because the most important place to improve strength and reduce weight is in the motor. Carbon components for the purpose of style (or even weight) is seen as the antithesis of this.

4

Hype around bike parts.
I am in the process of upgrading my road and tri bike. Stems, bars, cranks and seat posts.

The parts you describe will not make you any faster. Upgrade for purposes of comfort or utility, but don’t have any illusions that they will make a noticeable difference in performance.

Why should I go with Carbon cranks vs. aluminum cranks?

The proliferation of Carbon fibre parts is pure marketing. In many cases the performance is totally indiscernible. We all like to be different (else why are there so many types of cars) and so we buy things to make our bikes different. When one guy made something with carbon, they all had to follow suit to keep up with the demand, whether it was performance enhancing or not.

Will I really know the difference? I am going to compact for sure.

For most people compact is probably a good idea if they live and race anywhere with hills. Except you probably don’t even need a 50 in many cases. Devashish Paul rode 2:15 on a 48/34 set up for Half-IM, so it was plenty of gear inches to go fast, though I question the wisdom of spending a lot of time in the 11- or 12-tooth cog.

How much of bike parts is hype over actual fact and function.

Most of it is hype. Twenty years ago there were not that many people making bike components. Now there are hundreds of little companies. Some specialize in specific items and that allows them to compete or even exceed the performance of components from Shimano or Campagnolo. Carbon in frames is good. Carbon in wheels is very good. Carbon anywhere else if of dubious value in my opinion.

Last question - Why not buy the lightest, best components you can afford.

There is no reason as long as you are secure in your manhood or womanhood, because you can bet there will be a lot of bitter jealous people who will envy your components if you ride faster than them. Whenever you ride past someone on a nicer bike than yours you secretly laugh to yourself at their silliness. The people you pass will be bitter they were beaten by a faster bike. Thus begins the “quest to buy speed” that ends fruitlessly back where it began when you realize the only way to be fast is to train more, better, or smarter.

Some people never figure this out and thus we have bikes like the P3C that are wildly popular examples of people who think they will finally break through when they too have the fastest bike.

Not accusing everyone of this, but I suspect there are quite a few who fit in this category.

Buy what you want. I have a bike that cost a ridiculous amount when you add up the various power meter, PowerCranks, ect., but people still laugh when they see it because the aerobars are all circa 1990 scott, the read derailleur is a shimano 600 and the handlebar tape came off a bike I used in 1992 and is starting to shred.

Oh, and the only things made of carbon are the rims.

Have fun.

Chad

5

Some of the parts you have mentioned are better parts and some are just surpurpulous(spelling). Changing to a 31.8mm stem is purely for those that find the 26mm to flexy. Carbon cranks verses aluminum are purely for the weight saving as shimano created a very good crankset with the dura-ace 10. However if you do a lot of hill climbing or nearly never get into your bigger gears 53-13 -53-11 then a compact crankset could provide you with better ratios. Making your ride lighter will make you slightly faster but the money it may cost may be much better spent on a coaching program. In some cases it may cost $500+ to cut 1lb off a ride, consider if they lost 5 lbs in body weight it will actually save them money and they will end up being faster for it. Sometimes a new part or bike can motivate some people to get out and ride. Ultimately you want to have a reliable ride that doesn’t cost a fortune. Whatever gets you out there, its all cool.

6

I love how talking about bike parts, light bike parts, carbon and other bike upgrade topics always leads to comments about working the engine. I did not ask if the parts would make me faster.

Just for the record, I have been working on losing the body weight and with great success. Have lost 12 pounds in the last 2 months. Goal weight is close at hand. Obviously you have to work the engine. That is a constantly evolving part of training and doing triathlon.

I do live in a very hilly area on the west coast so no matter where I ride I have to go up a hill. I have some amazing hills where I live. Some being 24% and some there is just no way to even get up it. Anyone living in Vancouver would know the hills down to White Rock. Just a ton of climbing here.

Was just more curious what people thought about Carbon vs Aluminum parts and whether people thought that it was a lot of hype.

Right now the only carbon on the bikes is the seatposts, both bikes came with that and my race wheels. Also went with the GOSSAMER COMPACT MEGAEXO on both bikes.

7

Personaly i find carbon to be great as long as someone else i paying for it…but when i buy it’s for strictly function. I worry more about breaking the component then the weight or look…a 1000.$ carbon crank is no good to me or make me faster if it ends my race in 2 pieces…

The biggest plus i find with carbon is they can be made to almost any shape, so you get away from that square bulky look but for example, a P3SL is not as smooth looking as a P3C…does it make it any less of a competitive ride?? I don’t think so…

8

you buy a crank named the “GOSSAMER COMPACT MEGAEXO”, and then you ask about hype ? :wink:

9

Here is my dime.

Cranks- Carbon looks cool, Alum works just as good. Square holes on BB have been around for going on 100 years and work just fine. Shimano comes up with a “better” Octalink system won’t share patents so we get another “standard” Isis, then abandons it 6 years later for a newer and greater system they bought or stole from the Sweet people. Only being out in the weather seems to get dirty quicker and the new BB seem to fail with some frequency. They may be a tad stiffer, but most tri guys/gals don’t field sprint much anyway. I have a Phil Wood BB that has to be 20 plus years old that is still as smooth as the day I got it. Buy a Centaur level crank in Alum (compact in 06) with a Phil Wood bb and forget about it. You will be sick of the bike before that thing wears out.

Deraiileurs - I don’t think you really need more than 8 speeds but buy 10s at an Ultegra or Centuar level. I have both and have Dura 10 and Record as well on one of my rides and with eyes closed I can’t tell the difference. Unless you crash, with some cleaning and use of oil your derailleur should be good for 8-10 years. Again carbon has the bling bling, but no real advantage. ( you may save a half pound with the whole group).

Bars- If you plan to buy a couple new bikes in the next 5 years or so go with OS 31.7 as that seems to be the new standard. I got my first 31.7 in my cross bike and they are plenty stiff. The carbon road bars I have used do seem very comfortable and might be worth a go. Not that much weight saving but adds a couple hundred dollars to your cost. Costs about as much as Cocaine in weight savings.

Wheels- I am a sucker for wheels. I have some Ultegra and Chorus level training wheels that are as smooth as Dura Ace or Record, but for my money Carbon disc, deep rims and sewups are really really nice if you can afford them. I am a big advocate of 32 or 36 hole box rim training wheels. The less exotic the better as any bike shop can get you a spoke. Why not train on a $350 set of really nice wheels that won’t break vs a $1000 set that may be too light for the rough roads we all seem to find?

Aerobars- Again carbon is trick, but come on those $700 carbon ones are not a lick faster than the $70 Visiontech base bar and clipons.

My last note is I think internal/integrated HS suck. Chris King is like Phil Wood, expensive but lasts forever. I may need to make a will for my over $1000 investment in CK headsets on all my rides. I believe most of us are really over spending on equipment. (like I am one to talk). Having a road bike and tribike with either Campy or Shimano mid range group and an extra set of racing wheels can cost around $5 grand, and other than rubber you shouldn’t need to get anything else for at least 5-8 years. But what fun would that be?

10

CDW mentioned a few points:

"For most people compact is probably a good idea if they live and race anywhere with hills. Except you probably don’t even need a 50 in many cases. Devashish Paul rode 2:15 on a 48/34 set up for Half-IM, so it was plenty of gear inches to go fast, though I question the wisdom of spending a lot of time in the 11- or 12-tooth cog.

…Thus begins the “quest to buy speed” that ends fruitlessly back where it began when you realize the only way to be fast is to train more, better, or smarter."

For the record, it was a pretty bullet fast course on an F1 track in Montreal, but I did spend most of the time in the 13, 14 and 15 tooth cogs. I only have a 12 (ie no 11) on the 48x34 set up. I also raced several sub 2:30 half Ironmans this past summer on very hilly courses, and the 48 tooth is great as it forces me to rest and coast on downhills where I exceed 48 kph. It is amazing how little distance you lose coasting at that speed and how much it helps your legs for later in the bike and the run.

The bike is a P3SL, but I “downgraded” it to AL compact cranks and from Dura Ace to Ultegra as I did not feel right spending that much money on a bike (it was always expensive enough). Rather, I will spend the delta on a ticket to France so that I can ride my tail off for 7 days in May doing Tour de France stage preview rides in the Alps, which addresses CDW’s point that buying speed is somewhat futile and the only way to actually get fast it to train well, eat well, rest and race smart.

Oh yeah, I totally agree with the poster about tapered square BB’s. They totally rock. All this new fangled ISIS and Octalink stuff is just a royal pain in the ass.

Dev

11

I love how talking about bike parts, light bike parts, carbon and other bike upgrade topics always leads to comments about working the engine. I did not ask if the parts would make me faster.
Hmm, you are absolutely correct, you did not ask. My mistake. I guess I just assumed because to me there is absolutely no point in upgrading unless a) a part is becoming worn out or b) there may be some performance advantage of a new part over the old. I have some pretty old stuff hanging on a bike that cost a lot of money because I just didn’t see the point in replacing those components.

I only pointed it out because I was totally guilty of thinking that the three or four minute difference between me as a 1:03 40K O-distance guy and the one hour and under riders was their superior equipment. A few thousand dollars later I was rudely disabuse of this theory and stopped making excuses. Now I just try to train more.

Chad