$/gr average?

[benolium]

I just finished weighing in my Scott Addict. I was a bit dissapointed when it came in at 15.0 lbs exactly. I then remembered that I only have $3,050 total in it so I don't feel so bad.

I thought it would be interesting how much we are spending per gram to get our bikes where they are Today. Light bikes rule, being smart / dollar is even better. I thought we could list our cost per gram. I'll be first.


6803 grams with pedals and cages (453.592gs/ pound)
$3,050.00 ($3,050.00 / 6803 g)
= .441 c per gram
or $203.33 per pound



I got creative on the build and on parts. Everything was brand new except for the wheels (500 miles on them)

[gumgardner]

Dont know about the $/g topic, but I really like your bike.

[kenfucius]

Wow, you can build a bike that inexpensive! I feel like a goon spending almost twice as much on my ride. What's your secrete? I'll have to try your dollar versus gram idea. So much for the theory of "Nothing beats cubic dollars" motto.

[benolium]

Hey, thanks. It's really no big deal. I just shopped around until the good deals magically appeared. Yeaaaasssssss

[benolium]

Dont know about the $/g topic, but I really like your bike.

Thanks, glad you like it.
I rode 165 miles my first week. Nothing like some seat time to break in the saddle.

[Juanmoretime]

At 12.76 lbs I'm sure its a bunch. I don't keep track but I bet my wife can tell you the cost per gram.

BTW A very sweet build at a reasonable cost. I love the white bikes.

[kinky_cowboy]

My spreadsheet calculates cost per gram saved for potential upgrades to my light bike, rather than a total cost per gram for the whole thing; after all, a $2400 12lb bike would 'cost' the same as a $4000 20lb bike by the calculaton suggested above!

The best value weight weenie bike could be given by

(15 - total weight) / total cost

with higher values being better. If your bike weighs exactly 15lb, it would have a weight weenie value of 0 regardless of cost, while any bike over 15lb would have a negative value.

E.g. a stock Focus Izalco Extreme with Ritchey Pro Micro pedals is $6266 and 14.1lb giving a value of

(15-14.1)/6.266 = 0.143

It's a bit easier to get high numbers for a track bike, mine is currently 14.5lb and $3433 giving a weenie index of 0.146 with the positively lardy Mavic Ellipse wheels

[benolium]

[quote="kinky_cowboy"] If your bike weighs exactly 15lb, it would have a weight weenie value of 0 regardless of cost, while any bike over 15lb would have a negative value.

If a Scott Addict R4 is a 0 and it costs me 3050.00, I'll take that anyday.

[cdeeks]

I know this is weight weenies...but you guys sure have too much time on your hands!

[elviento]

I still remember the days when the general wisdom for bike weight saving was $1/gram, i.e., a rule of thumb is to be able to shave 1 gram at the cost of one US dollar.

It seems $10/g is more like the rule today... any thoughts?

[tranzformer]

Depends how much disposable income you have. Djconnel posts quite a bit about this, so it might be worth getting his opinion. Ultimately it depends on a lot of things; the most important is whether you are trying to go from 7500g to 7200g or from 5500g to 5300g. Ultimately the later will cost $$$$$ compared to the former due to the situation. So I think it really depends on how much weight you are planning to drop and where (frame, wheels, components...etc.).

[range]

I think that Dj's $3.5/gram is a good benchmark. I don't think it's worth thousands of dollars to go lighter for just a few grams. By being smart, you can cut down a lot of weight.

[strobbekoen]

Highly subjective. You just spend what you want and that's different for each person.
Personally, I am not obsessed with weight, as long the bike feels solid and durable and is under 7.5kg, i am happy.

[Johnny Rad]

I like and use the $/gram analysis as a starting point, but there's additional equally important criteria in my opinion:

* "Gotta have it" components aren't cheap, but sometimes you just gotta have it and there's only one vendor that sells it. To hell with the self-imposed budget!

* Like tranzformer wrote above, it gets increasingly expensive to cut weight. In my case, once I upgraded everything I could on the cheap and decided that I wanted to continue, I had to consider raising my $/gram benchmark. This also includes upgrading from one semi-WW component that you bought previously to an uber-WW component (try to avoid this to save your $).

[dadoflam08]

$4 AUD is my benchmark - don't always stick to it but I do always do a quick mental check using it when deciding.