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Death of the winter bike / frame

by ashy_2002
Mon, May 23, 2011 23:12
7

I personally see the death of the winter frame/bike in the near future years... Theres no need for them anymore... use an/your old racing frame and cheap groupset with use of the NEW close "full" fitting mudguard products .. you will have a more responsive and lighter winter hack and you aren't bothered if its got wet/dirty and dropped.... save money upgrade to a new summer frame, use the old one for your winter bike.. it makes sense

Ok do you want luggage then there is the P clips for the rack mountings or a seatpost mounted rack ... (light touring ?)

I cannot see that a multi braze on, rack mount, featured traditional steel+alloy frames being required for a typical club winter bike. They would only be required for specific long distance cycling....

I know there are a number of clubs which state : you cannot come out on a winter ride without full mud guards and front and rear flaps.... The new crud products adhere to "this rule" with a little thought and product enhancement. Eventually the snug fitting mudguards will take over, with other manufacturers on the band wagon in the future... (sks etc) Heck they will be selling them in different colours soon???

I've sold my winter bikes (cougar+dolan) and used my old summer best and training frame as my new winter bikes ....

So if common sense prevails you don't need a specific winter bike, only in certain conditions. Its always been an unwritten club rule : two bikes or three if you can afford a "Sunday best bike" as well as one summer one winter.I predict that this will no longer be the case ...

The new products eg: crud MK2 do away with the need for separate bikes... winter and summer.... heck if you want to only have one bike to cover both winter and summer the new products can cover it...

RIP the winter bike/frame...

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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7 comments

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mad_scot_rider | 12 years ago
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I think the discussion *was* more around the general use/commuting aspects (unless I missed my mark) - and coming from that side myself I find myself heartily agreeing with your comment.

Quote:

People that commute in the winter (like me) might have a bike with cyclocross tyre clearances and stuff like an Alfine hub gear.

I live in Scotland (up a bit into the hills) and I find a road bike frame generally doesn't have the versatility I require in the winter.

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vorsprung | 12 years ago
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I sort of agree with the comments about Crud Roadracers. They are a good design, fit well and provide great coverage. But after only 3000km a bit fell off mine

I'm not sure what you mean by the "death of the winter frame/bike". People that commute in the winter (like me) might have a bike with cyclocross tyre clearances and stuff like an Alfine hub gear. People that want a winter training bike just use the old bike. Is there a market for special winter training bikes? I would guess no. Do people ride bikes with mudguards? Yes. If you are training for riding a race bike you need to ride...a race bike

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james-o | 12 years ago
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No chance imo.

The Crud's are a good addition to a race bike for wet rides but they don't replace a proper set of guards like SKS P35s for a committed winter / wet use bike. Have you tried using Cruds and other similar products, removing and re-fitting on a regular basis? They're a great product, but they're not something i'd want to be fitting and removing almost weekly. No major faff but not my choice.

I'd always want to have a comfier, probably heavier, more solid and cheaper to run version of my 'best' bike for wet / winter riding, and it'd need to have deep-drop brakes and 25 or even 28c tyres. 23s are ok but i'd prefer the bigger tyres over rough roads if you're out for 4hrs + regularly.

New short-drop brakes work incredibly well, but for 90% of riders a good set of deep-drops with the right pads are perfectly good brakes, so i'd say almost the opposite about 'winter' bikes - if you're not a racer, why buy a bike with shallow-drop brakes and no eyelets and hence limit your options?

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TheHatter | 12 years ago
1 like

But isn't half the point of a winter bike the fact that the summer one feels like a new bike every spring? 1

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ashy_2002 | 12 years ago
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I think its early days for the cruds... Over the next couple of years they will become more refined in terms of strength / adaptions..

I've adapted mine to the my old summer frames with no problems , used them all winter... I ride them with 23's fitted and there's plenty of room . I've tested them on my current summer training bike a Prorace which has 25's on and they fit great..

Their performance depends on the donor frame used. For example many "sportive" frames seem to have a lot more wheel clearance especially behind the B/B ... They would not be perfect for all frames .... The trick is you've got to be patient when fitting them. Make sure the position on the frame and angles of the arms are correct to provide the maximum clearance. Take your time and have a few brews...Watch the installation video on the crud website !!!..

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1961BikiE | 12 years ago
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I have to say I have yet to try Cruds but see them more for use in Autumn/Spring on maybe your 2nd best bike. The roads that my group use in winter often give even full guard users problems with clagging up. Maybe if you are a dual carriage way rider you can get away with Cruds year round. But for the sort of riding I do, the sooner I can afford a light tourer/winter bike the better IMHO. Which is why I left the comments about the Ragley road bike. As said, neither fish nor fowl in my book. 4

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Fishy | 12 years ago
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Crud's are pieces of crud for long term use, I've gone through 3 pairs in two winters. Give me proper mudguard mountings on a racey aluminum frame any day of the week

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