New here. My aluminium weenie (not)

Who are you (no off-topic talk please)

Moderators: MrCurrieinahurry, maxim809, Moderator Team

euph
Posts: 161
Joined: Wed May 13, 2015 10:35 pm

by euph

I'm currently studying for a degree in Mechanical Engineering and have been interested in cycling all my life but only really got seriously interested in road bikes and building them last year. I knocked together a steel framed, Sora equipped beater last summer and absolutely loved riding such a comparatively light bike. I decided I wanted to get a better frame for my next build however I'm on a relatively low budget in comparison to you guys. I initially chose a Kinesis Racelight T2 but saw a TK2 on ebay for £150 so snapped it up immediately and put my Sora groupset on it. I rode this for a little bit throughout the winter until I felt it was time for a summer upgrade and managed to pull together a set of 10 Speed 105. After 8 speed Sora 10 speed was quite a step up. So my current build is as follows:

Frame: Kinesis Racelight TK2 ~ 1500g?
Forks: Merida Ride - 396g cut
Stem: Deda Zero 1 80mm ~ 135g
Handlebars: Easton EA50 Ergo 40cm ~ 300g
Handlebar Tape: Lizard Skins DSP Race ~ 50g
Pedals: Either Shimano SPD-SL or SPD both about 300g
Saddle: Brooks Cambium C17 ~ 400g :oops:
Wheelset: Don't even go there ~ 1000000g
Cassette: Shimano 12-27 10 Speed - No idea

Image
Image
Image
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-jILB ... G_0008.jpg

I don't have a good set of scales so I can't say the total weight which is good because its probably embarrassing. It's the lightest bike I've ever had though and I'm quite proud of it. I have lots of plans for it but right now I have a summer of riding planned which can't be interrupted because I feel that I have to fiddle with it. Fairly obviously my main priority is a new wheelset. After that I am going to look into knocking together some SRAM parts and maybe hitting 7Kg on an aluminium frame?

Thanks for looking

Edit: Resized one of the images. Is that a bit better? The screen on my PC is huge so it doesn't occur to me when images are huge, sorry.
Last edited by euph on Mon May 25, 2015 5:46 pm, edited 3 times in total.

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com



User avatar
LouisN
Posts: 3510
Joined: Mon Feb 19, 2007 3:44 am
Location: Canada

by LouisN

:welcome:

Very nice frame :beerchug: !!

Hope you have a lot of fun with the bike.
You probably could use a few more links on your chain ;) ....
And, save for wheels (my 2cents).

Louis :)

iamalex
Posts: 234
Joined: Sun Oct 30, 2011 5:25 pm
Location: London, UK

by iamalex

Welcome!
Looks like a good mile-eater. If you're not rushing to upgrade, 'saved searches' on eBay can be a great way of finding bargain bits.

User avatar
Samuel Sanchez Gonzalez
Posts: 2147
Joined: Sun Sep 19, 2004 6:21 pm
Location: around Paris

by Samuel Sanchez Gonzalez

I'd get some black housing for your cables. Blue and red look cheap. Housing should be the most stealth/hidden possible.

euph
Posts: 161
Joined: Wed May 13, 2015 10:35 pm

by euph

Thanks for the tips.

With the chain I was told that I should take a link out to make it a bit shorter to reduce chain slap? I will see how it goes but if it is totally inadvisable I will change it.

I never even considered black cables as I instantly decided to "bling" it up :lol:

I'm very unsure about all these chinese components but I think to save myself some money its probably worth looking into. Not the thread to ask questions on though, I will use the search :wink:

Second hand wheelsets though are definitely on my list as I have seen quite a few sets I would like. Mavic Aksiums maybe? Or Fulcrum Racing Zero Nites but I might be aiming a little high. I intend to try and strip the frame and forks and repaint it this winter.

Thanks again.

P.S. Some of the "drillium-esque" tuning that some of the guys on here are doing looks really cool. Is it worth doing it to my 105s? I already have a Dremel and a good set of files.

euph
Posts: 161
Joined: Wed May 13, 2015 10:35 pm

by euph

Hello everyone. I have been riding my bike all summer. I got some serious miles down while I was in France. I have managed to make a few upgrades to the bike:

Image

Second hand Mavic Ksyrium Equipe S

I got these wheels with a Campagnolo hub on and swapped it. Total cost was about £110 for ~ 350g savings over my previous wheels. They also feel a lot better. The front hub might need servicing soon though.

Deda Zero 100 Seatpost

This now matches the stem. I got it because the unbranded one that was previously on there fell apart.

Saddle

I have gone back to the Charge Spoon as it saves me about 200-250g :shock: I think now that I am getting my position dialled in more I am more comfortable with the Charge saddle.

Skewers

I figured that I have no use for quick releases and the ones that I had were ugly and heavy so I bought some Allen key skewers. They aren't ridiculously light but they are nearly half the weight of the previous set. Either way, I like them.

Image

Image

Future Plans

Get a hanging scale so I can find out how much this actually weighs :D
When the cables need replacing I will probably go all black or at least all one colour.
I am very tempted to strip the frame to bare aluminium and polish it. Thoughts?

I am looking forward to my first winter of riding.

Sorry for the humongous saddle bag.

briantumma
Posts: 39
Joined: Tue Sep 15, 2015 8:27 am
Location: Bristol,UK

by briantumma

Nice ride. I was contemplating the same yesterday about stripping and polishing. I think it would look rad but personally, I think I'd get a little fed up of it fairly quick and just want to go back to black.

User avatar
prendrefeu
Posts: 8580
Joined: Wed Oct 31, 2007 10:32 pm
Location: Glendale / Los Angeles, California
Contact:

by prendrefeu

:welcome:

Looking forward to the addiction to weight reduction (on the bike) start to show on this build.
Exp001 || Other projects in the works.

Marin
Posts: 4035
Joined: Wed Jan 22, 2014 11:48 am
Location: Vienna Austria

by Marin

Very nice & clean build!

User avatar
vejnemojnen
Posts: 406
Joined: Fri Nov 08, 2013 7:11 pm

by vejnemojnen

I'd suggest to get a crabon chinese SP: smoothens the road, absorbs the vibration quite well, even in 31.6mm diametre. (25 USD approx.)
Uno stem with decal removal (25 USD approx.)
Zero100 Deda handlebars, because RHM is very-very comfy and gives you a good grip and comfort. (hmm this one is a bit more expensive, around 70 euros)
Fulcrum RS chainset, as it costs less than ultegra, and looks nice. :) oh, and weighs below 700 grs with cups (around 140-150 euros with cups)
other than that? Not much. :)

Very tasty so far. :welcome: :thumbup:

euph
Posts: 161
Joined: Wed May 13, 2015 10:35 pm

by euph

Thanks for all the replies. I think I will be patient with the stripping and if I decide to do it I will do it right.

vejnemojnen

Your suggestions are great. Uno stem is on my list. Fantastic value. I was looking at the RHM handlebars,its nice to hear that they are comfortable from someone. I am not sure about the exagerrated "ergo" shape which my current bars (Easton EA50) have. They aren't too heavy though. The Fulcrum RS looks great, a really good suggestion. I assume that they are all Ultra Torque? If so I will need a new BB and my Shimano drivetrain will cooperate?

Once I get some hanging scales I will see about taking this close to 7Kg.

Thanks again everyone.

User avatar
vejnemojnen
Posts: 406
Joined: Fri Nov 08, 2013 7:11 pm

by vejnemojnen

Jeah, RS cranks use UT axle and BB.

Torq-R costs 105euros, whereas the RS is a bit more expensive (130-140 euros) but has HOLLOW arms and alloy chainring bolts. The RRS is around 200 euros and has CULT ceramic bearings with anodized-ceramic coated chainrings..

The UT cups cost around 20 euros. I'd opt for RS, because the RRS does not worth the extra price imho.

http://www.akerekparbolt.hu/index.php/t ... kar-detail

this one looks sweet
http://apro.bikemag.hu/browse/orszaguti ... 11518.html

or just a plain torq-r:

http://www.ecobike.hu/2_tanyeros/fulcru ... eb_hajtomu

will save you a lot of grams.

User avatar
vejnemojnen
Posts: 406
Joined: Fri Nov 08, 2013 7:11 pm

by vejnemojnen

Few weeks ago they had every one of these in stock:

http://www.merlincycles.com/campagnolo- ... 85376.html

now unfortunately they are out from 172.5.

HIghly recommended, essentially the same as fulcrum RS. Please, keep in mind, that 10spd record chainset does not feature USB ceramic bearings, but uses regular steel bearings. No problem with those, I have my steel-bearing Mirage UT since 4 years with more than 20k km-s, and spins without résistance when you spin the cranks without chain. Very reliable and long lasting stuff.

:welcome:

and get some compact bend bars, like DedaZero100 or Pro PLT or Ritchey Logic Curve WCS.

https://www.bike-components.de/en/Handl ... ce-31-8mm/

for the comfort and handling

euph
Posts: 161
Joined: Wed May 13, 2015 10:35 pm

by euph

I managed to get hold of a Fulcrum RS Chainset. It gives me a chance to change from my compact chainset up to a standard as I irregularly use the little ring on the compact. I will see how it goes. The weight saving is fantastic though......

Image

Image

105 Chainset WITHOUT bearings

Image

Fulcrum RS WITH bearings but no Cups

Image

Old 105 BB for reference

I can confidently say that has lost me about 200g maybe a tad more. I'm really happy with the suggestion and ready to try out a standard chainset. I also replaced my KMC 10 speed chain with an "extra light" KMC chain as my other chain would have been too short....

Image

Old Chain

Image

New Chain

The new one has more links so I expected it to be heavier but the extra lgiht chain has balanced that out. In all honesty 3g is within the margin of error for my crappy scales anyway :D

Also wrapped my bars in some new Lizard skins and replaced all the cables with black Jagwire stuff. I will get outdoor pictures soon. Noisy indoor pictures aren't fun.

On another note I finally tried an idea I have had about my pump....

Image

Image

I will see how it holds up. It might need something more substantial than mechanical retention to keep it there.

I have a spare 105 right shifter that I have been fiddling with. Would anybody like to see more???

Image

Sorry for the long post. I had a long evening of tinkering with the bike.

User avatar
prendrefeu
Posts: 8580
Joined: Wed Oct 31, 2007 10:32 pm
Location: Glendale / Los Angeles, California
Contact:

by prendrefeu

More tuning, please!
No matter what the part you are tuning - even if it isn't the high end of a drivetrain - tuning is MORE THAN WELCOME!! :twisted:
Exp001 || Other projects in the works.

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com



Post Reply