Saving weight....lateral thinking

[Lewn777]

I was thinking about other ways to save weight rather than the bike itself.

Example 1:

Regular multi-tool = 138.8g


Paired-down multi-tool = 70.2g
Saving = 68.6g
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Example 2:

Shimano cleat bolt = 3.1 x 6 = 18.6g


Titanium cleat bolt = 1.2 x 6 = 7.2g
Saving = 11g

Anyone got any more? Particularly ones that are free or cheap, as all weight reduced means faster climbing!

[vejnemojnen]

the cleat screws are good idea: after all, you are constantly rotating your feet, therefore it's worth to invest in lighter shoes-cleat bolts or pedals.

generally, shoes without ratchet, but with laces or velcro straps can be a bit lighter. Shorts with less padding-thinner material. There you go

[DamonRinard]

Lighter clothing.

[morrisond]

Who wears clothes?

[alcatraz]

I found light shoes that are comfy without the insoles.

369gr for the pair. Titanium bolts and washers for the cleats.

I'm on time knockoff pedals at 160gr/pair. Cleats are a bit heavy at around 60-65gr for the pair but they work adequately at least.

Here is a hysterical thing to save weight on that I sometimes do. Phone! I have a big phone @220gr and I never use it when I do the common training rides. I don't want to be stranded without a phone if I have a problem so I have one of those mini phones that only calls/texts/mp3. 50-60gr. If my carrier wouldn't use cdma I could get a 20gr gsm phone.

Helmet 180gr

Pump 45gr

Inner tube 50gr (like a conti supersonic or maxxis flyweight).

No tools apart from one plastic tire lever and 2 tire patches, abrasive piece of metal, vulcanizing agent. All my bolts are torqued before I leave the house so I never had to adjust anything. On rare occasion I ask a stranger if they have a hex key. My rd wire slipped once so I couldn't change gear. Also it's good for finding a good seat position while on the ride. When I have new gear that influences fit I just put 4+5 mm hex keys in my pocket.

Bottle + no bottle cage. I use lightweight bottles. 40gr 850ml and 60gr 1L, or drink bag under the jersey 120gr for 2L including tube. The drink bag is a pain to put in but a dream to have on long rides without stops. I don't have any bottle cages. Always a bottle in the jersey pocket. It also saves a few aero watts. Less clutter on the bike. If I do ride mostly long flat roads I take the aero bike and use a 1L heavy bottle with a straw between the aero bars. No need to bother with lightweight on flat roads.

/a

[Marin]

Ritchey CPR-9 tool

Minimal number of house/garage keys, held together with gutted paracord.

No bottle on rides under 1.5h, just drink before & after (except on very hot days of course)

[Digger90]

But all the above is still focused on reducing the weight of the bike, or bike-related items.

If you really think laterally you can come up with lots of other ideas, such as....


- Wear shorter socks.

- Don't wear gloves.

- Don't wear sunglasses.

- Eat 1 less take-away meal each week.

- Get a haircut.

- Cut your fingernails/toenails.

- Make sure you've gone to the loo before a ride.

[JackRussellRacing]

Here is a hysterical thing to save weight on that I sometimes do. Phone! I have a big phone @220gr and I never use it when I do the common training rides. I don't want to be stranded without a phone if I have a problem so I have one of those mini phones that only calls/texts/mp3. 50-60gr. If my carrier wouldn't use cdma I could get a 20gr gsm phone.

I do this. I have a super cheap AT&T pay-as-you-go "flip phone" for cycling. No texts, or anything -- just plain old phone. It's tiny and light. Honestly, its a better "phone" than my expensive Android anyway. It was about $15 on Amazon, and if it gets trashed, I don't really care.

[northwestern]

Funny. I had the same thought. I decided to shave the extra 40 lbs off my belly before investing another cent into my bike

[pdlpsher1]

Titanium should be half the weight of steel. Those clear bolt weights don’t add up. Also are the Shimano bolts the hollow kind? That’s what I have currently.

I don’t even carry a phone. I do have two tubes and two CO2 cartridge, as well as quick patches and a very light carbon pump. So I’m as self sufficient as you can get.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[alcatraz]

Can't see clearly but it looks like the bolt head integrated washer is of a smaller diameter and maybe a bit thinner.

I would issue a warning of using inadequate washer area directly on plastic cleats. Plastic deforms with time and you will end up pulling the bolt heads through the cleats and possibly have an accident. I saw pictures on the internet from a guy that did this. He broke his frame and everything. Knee all messed up.

Time cleats have this problem. You need to fit as large of a washer (bolt) as you can fit into the two lower bolt holes. Even original bolts are dangerous. I get knockoff cleats and the bolts were only 8-9mm at the widest point with 12mm of space available in the cleat channel. I popped a pair of titanium 11mm diameter bolts there and the thing has been very solid.

/a

[Lewn777]

Mine are Shimano cleats with the metal insert things so this isn't a concern. But yeah, if you have bolts directly onto plastic getting a smaller titanium bolt could be a worry.

[Attermann]

Can't see clearly but it looks like the bolt head integrated washer is of a smaller diameter and maybe a bit thinner.

I would issue a warning of using inadequate washer area directly on plastic cleats. Plastic deforms with time and you will end up pulling the bolt heads through the cleats and possibly have an accident. I saw pictures on the internet from a guy that did this. He broke his frame and everything. Knee all messed up.

Time cleats have this problem. You need to fit as large of a washer (bolt) as you can fit into the two lower bolt holes. Even original bolts are dangerous. I get knockoff cleats and the bolts were only 8-9mm at the widest point with 12mm of space available in the cleat channel. I popped a pair of titanium 11mm diameter bolts there and the thing has been very solid.

/a

never seen that before, been using time pedals for the last 5 years, both the xpresso and rxs, my father has used the rxs from when they came out to when they were replaced by the xpresso, the change the cleats about once a year, that's about 10000 km on the cleat, they are usually worn by that time.

[alcatraz]

Maybe you always got very hard plastic cleats.

Just be careful you keep using the hard ones because if you get the softer knockoff kind by mistake (looks very real) then narrow diameter bolt heads can be pulled through.

/a

[Attermann]

I always by the original time from bike-components or a shop like that, that’s why it’s always a bad idea to buy any knock off product,