Scott_R

I've had the same bike for about the past 20+ years: a Cannondale Silk Path 300. It's served well; I haven't biked much in the last few years due to circumstances beyond my control, but I've been getting back into it.

Back when I bought the bike I'd done a combo of road and light off-road biking, thus the hybrid (it replaced a Bridgestone XO-3, a bike I *truly* loved, but was destroyed when a car hit me) but I've mainly been doing road or paved-path biking, so there's really no good reason to have a hybrid as my main bike. I'm looking to get an amateur's bike rather than something high end, but nevertheless a "real" (i.e., not from a box store) one, if you can work out what I mean from my previous purchases.

But my knowledge of both bike tech/design and brands/models is about two decades out of date. Are there any good FAQs or guides I can use to figure out what to get? I was at best an advanced amateur back when, so better to assume the lack rather than the presence of knowledge, even the outdated kind.

Flip Flop Rider

if there is a bike shop nearby that might be a good place to start

bcpriess

If you want to move away from hybrids, I'd recommend looking into "gravel" bikes for several reasons:

1) You say you are riding paved surfaces. Infrastructure in the US (if you're in the US) doesn't seem to be getting better, so having a bike that's designed to accept wider tires can give you a quality ride no matter how poorly maintained the roads in your area are. Rather than fighting vibration and potholes with 23c to 28c road tires you can fit in a typical road frame. There is a very wide range of quality rubber in the 40c to 50c range currently available.

2) Gravel bikes are essentially road bikes with longer wheelbases. 20 years ago maybe your body was happier with a snappier, shorter wheelbase ride. Perhaps now it isn't, and a longer wheelbase can help take up some additional road vibration. I own a Masi Giramondo - it's great on long rides.

3) Even though you are currently riding paved surfaces, the right gravel bike gives you the option to go pretty far afield should you choose to. They truly are an all-in-one solution for pavement, singletrack, gravel, getting groceries, etc.


Other considerations:

A) If you live in a place with winter precipitation and you ride rain, snow, sleet etc, consider hydraulic disc brakes. I've lost my brakes a few times in the winter due to ice freezing the cables.

B) If you do want to continue riding flat bars, and don't have bad winters or lots of wet weather to contend with, there's always the option of upgrading your current ride to reflect your current needs. The frame's probably fine, and if it fits you and it's comfortable, that's a huge bonus.

C) You can also upgrade a hybrid or old school rigid MTB with drop bars, better tires, group components etc - to reflect your current needs. You should check out the vintage MTB drop bar conversion thread in the C+V forums. It's an inspiring thread. I've built one. They're great - basically a gravel bike with a higher bottom bracket so you can roll over big debris and stuff without issue, and no limitation on tire sizes. It also extends the life of many an old hybrid or rigid MTB with pretty minimal effort/expense. My conversion was about $400 including the frame on and old '97 Trek 830.

Steelman54 

I would consider what I, er you, want to do with this bike. Ride paved roads/bike trails and take in sites or get a workout or something else. For paved roads/bike trails I have 3 road bikes, but set up with handlebars not much lower than saddle as I've gotten older, not younger. Many bikes you see will have a much more aggressive set up that old guys like me won't be comfortable on. If you have a decent shop in your area they should be able to help. Lots of info on bike fit, etc. online.

Ross520

This forum is an invaluable resource. Also, take a look at Shimano's and Sram's websites to get a look at the advances in drivetrain technology. I mean honestly, just spend a few weeks going on various manufacturer sites, forums, watching YouTube channels such as GCN, and you'll get a good idea of what's going on in the bike world now.

Scott_R

Wow! Thanks for the info. I'd never heard of a gravel bike (like I said, I'm out of date). Not *quite* sure how it's different than a hybrid, though. I saw one thread that said "Gravel bike = drop bar hybrid." True?

I'd have do do some additional work to my Cannondale to fix it up. The Headshok is 20+ years old; it seems to flex, but I can't imagine it's doing what it's supposed to. OEM replacement parts aren't available, but I found a third-party replacement (I'd bring it to a bike shop to be put in properly), and I'd need a new boot. But if I have the bike fixed up, would a gravel bike be all that different? One thing I had in mind is that the Silk Path was never great on the road, never great off-road, but adequate at both. I never loved the bike (like I did that Bridgestone) but I don't know if I want a basic bike that's basically duplicative of it, even if it works better.

General Geoff

If you liked the Bridgestone XO-3, check out Rivendell bicycles.

https://www.rivbike.com/collections/...-jr-h-complete

Cyclist753

Your experience is an argument for a 'classic' or 'vintage' build! Take what you know and build a bike with those parameters in mind. It's fun sourcing parts and seeing it all come together. A few 'upgrades' to more modern and efficient components can ease some of the burden and expense for truly C&V ride!!!

MikeyMK

Any bike worth having today is made entirely of aerogel, apart from the brakes which are still from the 1970s.

Ironfish653

I love Headshoks, but they’re probably the biggest obstacle to keeping an old Cannondale on the road. They went out of production 10 years ago, and were notorious for changing the design every year or two. Due to all the changes, replacement parts are hard to find, and you have to know the specific model and year, in order to even know how to work on it.
You will probably find that there’s only a handful of specialists who will work on one.

One of the biggest changes in the bike market in the last ten years is the amount of specialization between models. You can find almost any combination of tire sizes, handlebar shapes and drivetrains you can think of.
My advice would be to go to a bike shop and throw a leg over what looks interesting. You’ve had good bikes before, so you’ll know what does and doesn’t ‘feel’ right. Most of the major brands pull their components from the same suppliers, so frame geometry and finishing bits will be what sets different bikes apart.

bruce19

If I was riding road and trail and could have only one bike, I'd go with my cyclo-cross bike. Mine has 28 gravel tires that are decent on trail and road. But, ideally I'd have two wheel sets or change tires depending on season. In this pic the bike has the original 32 cross tires. Bought it 3 yrs ago for $1500. All Shimano 105 and disc brakes. As it sits in the pic I think it's about 23 lbs.

freeranger

I ride with a group that rides all pavement (I ride on and off-road). There are a variety of bikes used on the pavement--hybrids, drop bar road bikes, flat bar road bikes, a gravel bike, and a cyclocross bike. All do well, and the riders all like their bikes. Point being-try out new bikes in all genres to see which you like best. Things have changed a lot-geometry, components. My bikes are both "old" but I still like them and they are in very good shape. I have considered a hybrid or flat bar road bike lately, as I don't find longer rides on my road bike nearly as comfortable as when I was younger. So try a lot--as lots of things are very different from what you (we) rode in the past (tho I'm still using my older mtn.bike!)

rumrunn6

in the Boston area?

Bianchi Volpe 55cm - $350 (Danvers)



SPECIALIZED S-WORKS M4 CX CYCLOCROSS (MSRP NEW $2600) - $499 (Haverhill Massachusetts)

Scott_R

I contacted suspensionforkparts and emailed them pics of my bike, and they replied with a part number, so I have reasonable confidence in it being the right part. I plan on going to the shop with the printout and getting their opinion on the project.

I guess I'm going to have to go to a few shops to test things out--assuming each will tend to stock particular brands and not others--but I was hoping to do so with education in what features I ought to be looking for.

bcpriess

Features to look for:

Rigid fork
Hydraulic disc brakes if you ride in winter precepitation
Mechanical disc brakes if you ride in rain but not winter precepitation.
Ability to accept up to 40c tires, or 50c tires should you think you may want to ride on gravel or unpaved mup trails on wet days.
Cromoly frame if you want a great ride at a lower price and can accept a couple extra pounds.
Carbon or aluminum if you want a stiffer ride.
Longer chainstays if you plan to do long rides or go bike packing, to reduce vibration and allow more room for racks.
Ability to accept multiple bottle cages.
Gear inches range of 30ish to 100ish and a double chainring if you want to stick with pavement and good weather and have hills. 40ish to 110 if you are in a flat place, double chainring. 20 to 90 and triple gearing if you ride in all conditions with HILLs. If you ride in terrible stuff off road, packed with camping gear, major hills 1x gearing. Rolling hills and gravel, 1x.

Most gravel or adventure bikes, and many cyclocross bikes will check these boxes. The rest... gearing, geometry, aesthetics, type of handlebars,i up to you.

Scott_R

Thanks, I had to look up a bunch of those--like I said, I need to update my knowledge. I was looking into the chainring issue, and I suppose I need to get a better idea of what "hills" are to me.

I was also looking at the Rivendell bikes as mentioned by General Geoff, and they have a denunciation of disc brakes on the site:
https://www.rivbike.com/pages/disc-brakes

Any thoughts?

DaveSSS 

Disc brakes are great if you ride in wet/muddy conditions. Otherwise they add weight and cost. Gravel bikes have no suspension, so they are lighter and cheaper than suspended bikes. One new trend is a single chainring in the front, with 11 or 12 sprockets in the back. That might be OK for off road, but it would suck on the road, with large gaps between the rear sprockets and a lack of top end gearing.

bcpriess

That's why both of my disc recommendations mention water. Cantis and v's are fine in dry conditions. Like any rim brakes their tolerance for moisture may vary, but will definitely result in longer stopping distances when wet compared to discs. And also what I mentioned earlier about riding in winter precepitation re hydraulic brakes.

BTW, above you asked if a gravel bike was basically just a drop bar hybrid. That's one way of looking at it. If hybrids had been more based on road bikes or cross bikes and dropbar geometry, instead of taking their cues from mtbs, they'd basically be gravel bikes.

Gresp15C

I was in kind of a similar boat a couple years ago, as I had been getting around on old bikes that I had thrown together from parts. Some things have changed, other things have stayed the same. Improvements in things like shifting and the quality of wheels are pretty much uncontroversial.

Some things are different: Demand for bikes that accommodate wider tires. I believe it's a good thing for most of us. A lot has been written about this topic.

Some things are the same: The dilemma between upright and drop bars. You can convert a bike, but it's not cheap to do so, and you might not like the geometry that you end up with.

About geometry, don't believe generalizations about the geometry of different bike categories, unless you verify the dimensions that you care about with a tape measure. The reason is that it's easy for bike makers to give an old bike a new category by changing some of the components and updating the web page. A gravel bike might not be a drop bar hybrid, but it's a safe bet that if gravel bikes are popular, someone will put a drop bar on a hybrid and call it a gravel bike.

jpescatore

I've recommended this buyers guide to others, seems to do a good job - here.

A very cool site for comparing bikes is 99spokes.

bcpriess

One thing that's really changed for the better is the use of stack and reach measurements for sizing to the rider. Light years more useful than standover, top tube length etc.