OMG - Am I Really Going to Buy Another Bike?
 

I have a darn nice bicycle. It is a 1996'ish EL-OS Nivacrom steel frame (Bianchi) upgraded with 11sp (2014) Chorus groupset, new seat/seatpost (more on that coming), new handlebars, some everyday wheels and a pair of Bontrager RXL's for when it really matters (not that often in my case). Stripped down with the RXL's it weighs in right at 18 pounds.

I hit 70 this year and have decided to give the Six Gap Century a try (before I get any older). Surprisingly my arthritic knees are currently doing better than any time since maybe 2016. My hard training rides (rolling terrain) tend to run around 19 mph (I just don't do any group riding). To do the 6Gap I was going to change out the cassette on the RXL's to a 11/32 (currently an 11/27 and where I normally ride I RARELY use the 27). That would also require a new RD.

I currently have a 'training problem' in that I am developing enough chaffing (left side only) that, even with Chamois Butter, rides much over 2 hours get quite uncomfortable. My seat is SLIGHTLY pointed left (1/16" maybe) but I suspect that is the issue. And my seatpost is unmoveable. It is currently at my LBS (after I failed trying most of the normal stuff) and I am anticipating having to destroy this $200 seatpost to fix this problem.

So with all this expense you just have to ask about a new bike. The obvious choice for me would be an Emonda SL6 (rim brakes). This would allow me to interchange wheels with my Bianchi (Campy and Shimano 11sp cassettes are pretty much the same thing as far as the RD is concerned, from what I have been told). And where I ride heavy braking is just not the norm (although emergency braking is not avoidable anywhere, I guess). I won't cut short a ride due to rain in warm weather, but even in the summer I will ride indoors if rain is imminent. So the far superior braking of disk brakes is of only some importance in my case. And I really like the idea of interchanging wheels between the 2 bikes (my only bikes, BTW).

The bike would be a stretch but affordable. OTOH, it really would not be that much different than what I currently ride. It would mostly be whatever the difference is in ride between steel and Trek's lower end carbon fiber and (assuming equal wheels/tires) about another 2 pounds (not trivial). But I am still considering this.

From a functional perspective a Madone is probably a superior choice, but they are a bit out of my price range.

Thoughts or comments on this? Thanks.

dave

Pics or it didn't happen.

I have a first generation Emonda SL 5 with rim brakes. While I was shopping, I asked Leon at Hialeah Schwinn about the differences between rim & disc. His reply, get discs if you plan on riding in wet weather. (Who wants to do that?) Now I see many bikes are disc only, what a shame. :(

Here it is (prior to an upgrade from the original handlebars shown in the picture).

dave
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...8b9449e04e.jpg

Nice one! Though, uh, it's the wrong colour for a Bianchi, but still, there's nothing like taking a classic steel frame from Italy and putting modern components on it.

That’s exactly how I feel. :thumb:

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...8b207f66c.jpeg
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...658e29bea.jpeg

That’s a very nice red Bianchi. :thumb:

Good choice of upgrades.

Ride safely!

You will want to fix the seized seat post anyway so that doesn't really count as an expense that would be saved.
Have you considered compact (50-34) cranks?

I am running a 50/34 right now.


dave

FWIW, I picked up a 58cm Domane in 2015, at 68, and sold my "right-color" 61cm Bianchi at 70. I love the fit/geometry of the Domane, especially.

BTW, on rim brakes: while I also recognize the superiority of disc brakes, and truly value them on my other bikes, I am not likely to upgrade road bikes simply because I do NOT like the looks of hydraulics on road bikes, and that's become the norm these days. That 16.1-lb Emonda looks Very nice, although 18 lbs. is plenty nice: remarkable, for a steel bike.

Although disc brakes are not my preference, they have one additional advantage. And that is that you don't have to ask any brake questions when choosing various carbon disk wheels. Carbon and rim brakes seem a bit marginal to my uninformed mind.

dave

That's a pretty good point. And if you get another bike, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense for it to suit the exact same purpose... I have three bikes with similar position and gearing, and it's kind of dumb.

Well said. I finally sold a touring frame earlier this year because as a bike it matched my touring bike. I have 3 road bikes with almost identical geometry all made in the same time period and all with similar drivetrains.

It is kind of dumb, agreed.

In my defense, one of them is a bike I've had since last century, that was incrementally upgraded to full pimpin status, and is really only a wall hanger these days due to the brutal ride of the ally frame with level top tube and 31.6 post... and if I wanted a 25 on the rear, I'd have to take a file to the brake bridge.

Share your sense of this, Sunday, on this Sunday. I like Leon's advise: thanks for sharing this. One thing is that rim brakes have gotten much better, and riding/braking in the rain is nowhere as risky as it was decades ago. I've gotten caught in the rain several times, but I still adjust my riding as I always have, and as I do even with hydraulics. I recall going into a Giant shop in Detroit four years ago and learning that they were no longer offering or producing non-disc road bikes. Trek in the US is offering rim brakes only on selected road bikes, mostly on their aluminum ones. I've wondered whether Europeans and Asians have experienced, accepted this revoltin' development. ;)

I was confident that both of you had smart, full-understandable explanations. :thumb:

Nothing to add here, except Leon has been in business for more than 50 years. In Hialeah, that's almost unheard of. His opinion, I'm sure, is based on the amount of rain we get here in the summer, virtually every day.

Quick look at NC craigslist says pretty nice carbon bikes at ~$1000. Availability like tomorrow. Always have at least 2 bikes. I'm seriously impecunious, yet have 3 singles and a tandem, boxes full of spares. Except for the tandem rear, all wheels compatible. I just rode RAMROD on a '99 carbon Trek. Worked just fine.

If I was going to head up to the RTP area, I'd probably just rent a bike for a week. I could probably find something reasonably rideable up there. I am a pretty average sized guy. I'm just not inclined to rush into a used bike purchase. There are actually 2 for sale in the county that I live in.

dave

Should you get a new bike...Depends on what the wife thinks usually.

Interestingly, at least at the Emonda SL6 level (lower level carbon, no disc's-OK w/me, and mostly mechanical ultegra) my wife is OK here. That same level bike in a Madone frame has a definite appeal and logic to it. But it exceeds my wife's limits - and pushes REAL hard on mine.

dave

Well she is a very understanding woman. I don’t think any of us can push these bikes to it’s limits. Maybe you can at the young buck age of 70 😂.

I do not think a Madone is worth the expense and complexity unless you are really desperate for one.
I actually have a Emonda ALR5 (105 mechanical) and Madone (DA di2), both rim brake.
I ride the Emonda more.

Two things help here.

First earlier this year we did a kitchen remodel that was basically 'as necessary' to our lives as is a new bike for me. And affordability compromises were made (like no new lower cabinets) - similar to me probably choosing a Emonda over the Madone.

Second when you are retired and much of your 'income' is derived from savings, the question 'can I afford it' is relatively ambiguous. Given an anticipated required income stream, 'how much is enough savings' is basically not knowable. Things are typically a bit more obvious when you are living strictly off an income (in the traditional sense).

And this brings up a related question. How would the readers out there trade-off the utility of similarly equipped Madone's vs Emonda's. Assume the rider routinely rides in the 18-20 mph range (solo) but isn't a racer type, other than occasionally setting out on some kind of solo effort with some kind of personal performance goal. Typically the answer is that aero almost always trumps weight, although a teeney bit of aero is unlikely to trump 10 pounds of weight. Additionally the Madone is a sexier bike. I honestly don't know if I prefer that or not. I am not the kind of rider that likes to draw attention to himself (I almost always buy plain jersey's, for example).

dave

You must be prescient - you answered my question before I asked it. Do you do lottery numbers :-)

dave