Originally Posted by dugla

Hi,

I am trying to get a definitive, fact based answer to the question: what makes a modern steel frame road bike faster than my vintage - 20 years old - custom steel frame?

Some context. I ride a lovely custom frame built by Dave Moulton called a Fuso. Fits me like a glove. It’s old. How old? 7-speeds old. A few years ago a buddy of mine upgraded my shifters to entry-level Shimano brake/shifters. I recently had a new rear wheel built with a Shimano 105 hub, Mavic rim, and 11-28 cassette. I have Shimano Claris compact cranks: 50/34.

I am fit and - due to limited time - ride hills for about an hour every other day during the week. On weekends I do a longer (32mi.) ride. I occasionally try riding with a local group ride but I am routinely dropped early in the ride. Average pace is about 17mph. It drives me nuts! The other riders are not exactly studs and do not look super fit. What I do notice is everyone is on a modern bike. Carbon mostly. Some titanium. Some steel.

Is it time for me to join the modern world? I love steel. I love custom. Should I just bite to bullet and get a modern custom steel frame (Independent Fabrication looks cool)? What is the true speed advantage of these modern bikes?

Thanks,
Doug

Originally Posted by masi61

Also, one other question I would have is how is your position on the bike? On the group rides in my area, the “B+” group I ride with is pretty serious. It is pretty important to be able to ride in the drops for moderate intervals on flats and when drafting. Sitting up for even a few unnecessary seconds when the group is powering will make your work load much higher as they will gap you then drop you in no time. Sometimes on our rides you can sort of tell which riders are more novice level since their upright positioning is holding them back some. Once folks are ready to flip their stem or even increase their stem length, I have found that it gives you a planted, faster more assured descending position which, again can keep you from getting dropped.