log in
register

Upgrades

  • Creator
    Topic
  • January 14, 2015 at 8:22 pm #23011
    MrPrice

    Evening all. Im new here and would like some thoughts about upgrades. Basically I got into road biking about this time last year and was lucky enough to get a place in Ride London.

    Basically the biking bug bit me, pretty hard too. Being of fairly modest means my machine was selected within a certain price point. I went for a Felt F95, not bad for a first ‘proper’ bike. Now that I’ve been riding it a year and hope to do a couple of sportives as well as some long weekend rides, I’m looking to upgrade. I’d love to buy a new bike but simply can’t afford to spend more than £500ish, at least not for a good few years.

    I like the frame of the Felt but think that the components attached to it could be improved. After doing quite a bit of reading up on Wheelsets I had a short list that included Mavic Ksryium (either Elite or Equipe) or something from the Fulcrum Racing range. I’m pretty sure they would be an improvement on the Alex R500 rims in Felt hubs.

    Whilst looking at wheelsets I started wondering if I should take a look at groupsets too – something like the Shimano 105 set. I then started thinking; triggers broom or mutton dressed as lamb.

    So, the question is (I’ll get there in the end). Should I just plump for a wheelset (I think that’s where I’ll notice the biggest difference) or should I look at the groupset too (not sure how much of a difference that will make).

    Note that I’ll be doing quite a bit of cycling too so will be getting fitter and stronger – I don’t expect component changes to give me benefits without putting work in!

    Any thoughts much appreciated. Hope to be on here reasonably often, I promise not to post such long threads in future!

  • Creator
    Topic
Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 21 total)
1 2
  • Author
    Replies
  • January 21, 2015 at 6:48 am #827203
    0
    pedro1213

    check here to see if anything
    check here to see if anything suitable

    http://www.carbonbikemanufacture.com/

    January 18, 2015 at 3:05 pm #827201
    0
    Man of Lard

    Dual post error
    Dual post error

    January 18, 2015 at 3:04 pm #827199
    0
    Man of Lard

    joeegg wrote:A friend of mine

    joeegg wrote:
    A friend of mine ” upgraded ” his new carbon bike with new wheels,seat ,seatpost,stem,handlebars,chain,cassette and crankset.He could have bought the higher spec model for half of what he spent on it !

    Perhaps it’s an ‘opportunity cost’ thing? His CFO allowed £x amount to be spent on a bike – and he had a stash extra to spend on an upgrade splurge but had to separate the transactions? Or maybe he didn’t want the standard suite of components that come as standard on the upgraded model? (Then again, in that case why not just buy the frame…)

    January 18, 2015 at 12:15 pm #827197
    0
    matthewn5

    I mean the ‘shoe’, the thing
    I mean the ‘shoe’, the thing that holds the pads, and the pads. This:>

    http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/shimano-ultegra-brake-shoes-6700/rp-prod61807

    Go with the Fulcrum R3s, you won’t regret it, and you can easily swap the freehub for Campag when you win the lottery 😉

    January 18, 2015 at 12:11 pm #827195
    0
    joeegg

    A friend of mine ” upgraded “
    A friend of mine ” upgraded ” his new carbon bike with new wheels,seat ,seatpost,stem,handlebars,chain,cassette and crankset.He could have bought the higher spec model for half of what he spent on it !

    January 18, 2015 at 10:43 am #827193
    0
    StraelGuy

    My two best upgrades were a
    My two best upgrades were a set of Mavic Aksiums to replace the awful Chinese wheels it came with (so bad the hubs actually felt graunchy from new) and replacing the bottom of the range FSA crankset and square taper bottom bracket with 105 cranks and outboard bottom bracket.

    Both well, well within your budget and hugely better than the originals 🙂 . MrPrice means the bit that holds the pad, not the caliper itself. Once fitted you can just slide out worn pads out and slip new ones in without having to readjust them. Btw, if your calipers are cheapy Tektros, you’ll get a big improvement from replacing them with Shimano I know I did! Just bare in mind that if your bike is designed for mudguards, you may need long-drop calipers.

    January 17, 2015 at 6:54 pm #827191
    0
    MrPrice

    drmatthewhardy wrote:Pair of

    drmatthewhardy wrote:
    Pair of Fulcrum Racing 3s and you’ll feel like you have a new bike! Stiff, light, reactive. Hunt on Ebay, you can find them around the £200 mark in perfect condition.

    Next step, replace the standard brake pads with Ultegra pads in an alloy carrier. That will enormously improve braking. Should cost about £20.

    Next, replace the crankset, it’s the heaviest part of the groupset, if you go for a 105 or up with outboard bearing cups you’ll feel the difference. The old 6600 Ultegra series are good value now, about £65ish on Ebay new.

    You can gradually replace the whole groupset with second hand Ultegra 10s, wont break the bank.

    You posted as I was posting! I’ll be buying my stuff from Evans (got some vouchers to spend) so eBay is not really an option.

    The wheelset is a toss up between Fulcrum Racing 3 and Mavic Krsyium. Think I’ll go for the former.

    When you say ‘alloy carrier’ do you mean a new caliper or just the thing that holds the pads? Newbie question!

    January 17, 2015 at 6:40 pm #827189
    0
    MrPrice

    I did consider a groupset
    I did consider a groupset change for a while but then thought better of it. The Sora is perfectly fine IMO and I’m not really wanting to change the bike at all. I love the frame and think it is a good one for well selected upgrades.

    Wheelset and brakes and I’ll stop there. I might consider a different cassette but will stick to the 11-25 for now, interested in seeing how much of a difference the wheelset will make.

    January 17, 2015 at 6:40 pm #827187
    0
    matthewn5

    Pair of Fulcrum Racing 3s and
    Pair of Fulcrum Racing 3s and you’ll feel like you have a new bike! Stiff, light, reactive. Hunt on Ebay, you can find them around the £200 mark in perfect condition.

    Next step, replace the standard brake pads with Ultegra pads in an alloy carrier. That will enormously improve braking. Should cost about £20.

    Next, replace the crankset, it’s the heaviest part of the groupset, if you go for a 105 or up with outboard bearing cups you’ll feel the difference. The old 6600 Ultegra series are good value now, about £65ish on Ebay new.

    You can gradually replace the whole groupset with second hand Ultegra 10s, wont break the bank.

    January 17, 2015 at 12:00 pm #827185
    0
    RebornBumbler

    bashthebox wrote:Meh, if

    bashthebox wrote:
    Meh, if you’ve got 500 quid to be spent I’d be looking at getting a whole new bike second hand. Reckon you could get something like a carbon fibre Planet X or Ribble, with a 105 groupset. Problem with your Felt is that for serious riding, pretty much everything could do with being upgraded. Over the course of the next 18 months you’ll spend more on random components than yo would have on a new, higher specced bike.
    So, second hand. There’s such bargains to be found.

    I disagree – no components are particularly likely to fail over the next 18 months (unless it’s crashed) other than tyres/tubes, brake pads and chain.

    Arguably the only remotely-necessary replacements are the tyres (and then mainly because it’s now winter). The wheels need to be checked (particularly from new) for taut spokes, but are otherwise reasonable.

    I’d done many hundred miles on mine before I crashed it, and will undoubtedly do many thousand more. It’s currently awaiting nicer weather as I have a Felt F85 with guards and tougher rubber on to ride at present.

    January 16, 2015 at 10:32 am #827183
    0
    bashthebox

    Meh, if you’ve got 500 quid
    Meh, if you’ve got 500 quid to be spent I’d be looking at getting a whole new bike second hand. Reckon you could get something like a carbon fibre Planet X or Ribble, with a 105 groupset. Problem with your Felt is that for serious riding, pretty much everything could do with being upgraded. Over the course of the next 18 months you’ll spend more on random components than yo would have on a new, higher specced bike.
    So, second hand. There’s such bargains to be found.

    January 15, 2015 at 10:03 pm #827181
    0
    robert.brady

    If you can push your budget
    If you can push your budget to £550ish, you can get an 11 speed 105 5800 groupset…

    http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/shimano-105-5800-11-speed-groupset/rp-prod116477

    …and a pair of Campagnolo Zondas:

    http://www.wiggle.co.uk/campagnolo-zonda-clincher-wheelset/

    Shouldn’t need to change anything there until it wears out. Finishing kit can be replaced as and when you can afford it, then start saving for a better frameset.

    Then start the process all over again…

    January 15, 2015 at 9:14 pm #827179
    0
    RebornBumbler

    MrPrice wrote:Cheers! Did you

    MrPrice wrote:
    Cheers! Did you need to fit a new rear derailleur when you went to 11-27? I’m assuming a longer cage will be needed on 11-32, not too sure about 11-27.

    I actually like the seat and bar tape! Got my eyes on some sora brakes now. Relative newbie question but do the calipers need to be matched to the levers or can you mix’n’match with Shimano?

    No – the short cage Sora mech. is certainly fine up to 27/28 – perhaps more.
    I fitted a new chain at the time, and tweaked the ‘B screw’ a tad.

    Some caliper/lever incompatibilities exist, but Sora will obviously be OK – I suspect Tiagra would be fine too.

    January 15, 2015 at 8:02 pm #827177
    0
    sincadena

    Sram do a 9spd 12-26 cassette
    Sram do a 9spd 12-26 cassette that could be a happy medium if you don’t need the 11… and just about most standard short cage rear gears will do up to 27(campag) or 28(sram /shimano) by adjusting the gear hight screw… you can even manage a 30t by swapping the screw around with some shimano gears

    January 15, 2015 at 7:33 pm #827175
    0
    MrPrice

    Cheers! Did you need to fit a
    Cheers! Did you need to fit a new rear derailleur when you went to 11-27? I’m assuming a longer cage will be needed on 11-32, not too sure about 11-27.

    I actually like the seat and bar tape! Got my eyes on some sora brakes now. Relative newbie question but do the calipers need to be matched to the levers or can you mix’n’match with Shimano?

  • Author
    Replies
Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 21 total)
1 2
  • You must be logged in to reply to this topic.