dtrain

threaded english

Sufferage

Like I said, cables have a huge affect on the performance because they stretch over time. Also, on shifting performance, if your rear derailleur is not adjusted correctly it will make for bad shifts.


My two cents: Start with the general maintenance like cables, pads, and derailleur adjustment. If you get the cables worked on at your LBS they should also adjust your rear derailleur while they are replacing the cables. Adjusting the rear derailleur is huge.

Side note: I ride a 2013 Trek Madone 2.1 with 105 components on it (not sure which version) and it is amazing how my shift performance is affected if my rear derailleur is not indexed correctly. If your rear derailleur is not indexed correctly you will notice it when you shift that the chain doesn't shift in a timely manner, doesnt shift at all, or jumps past your targeted gear. And indexing your gears is as simple as turning the barrel adjuster to add or reduce tension so the derailleur goes to the right spot.

Dont give up on your bike just yet!

mbw

I know that my cables are old and probably need replaced, but I don't think I have this out of tune. Shifting is about as good as it always has been. Can't really shift under much power. I've been reading reviews of newer systems and people saying that they can shift smoothly under power. I may be to big to do that, but I can't do that on my current setup without some bad noises coming from the mechanism. Maybe this forums is also a bad influence because i've been reading reviews and learning so much about what is out there. Like I said before I haven't bought really any gear in 9 years, so its not like its been a bad investment so far. It's really not a money issue for me.

I was thinking a little more about the psychology of this. I think part of my desire to get a new setup has to do with my past in biking. I had a fairly nice GT mountain bike when I was younger. We happened to be camping and I set out from camp to go find some trails. I had a little incident with a chain hopping of its gears while in a standing acceleration... boom ...went down on gravel at high speed. I still to this day have a nice chainring scar in my leg where the big cog when into my leg. Had to go to the ER which was very far away to get fixed up and have all the gravel removed from my body. I'm not really afraid of my current setup, but when things improve over 9 years and I have the means, im starting to think why not. The better wheels would be nice also. I am not sure why I didnt put more thought into the wheels when I replaced them. I think it was just mid season and I just wanted to ride and wasn't worried about the gear.

I've got $745 in parts, plus whatever labor, to do this. Plus I might go wireless on the computer so I dont have as many wires on my cables... which also bugs me. That would be ~$1745 in parts for 10 years of riding, not including shop labor, maintenance, and wear items... and I would essentially have a new bike and be ready for several more years.


Anyone know what I select for front derailleur? Braze On vs Band on 31.8mm vs 34.9mm??

Alias530

You can totally shift under load with the new systems. I try not to do it often but I have been full on standing mashing up a hill and changed gears plenty of times. Flat or downhill you can mash as hard as you want and shift without even thinking about it. As long as your cadence isn't too low it's fine under any situation. I'm 240lbs for what it's worth.

dtrain

If clamp, I'm sure it's 31.8mm.
Look at your current FD and compare to pic below. Does it match the left (clamp) or right (braze)?

BoJaffa

416.00 bucks for that groupset is a great deal.. Buy it and start fresh. You won't be disappointed. Just bring the box of new parts to your shop and they will handle everything from there. I gave my old stuff to the shop for there parts bin.

Stucky

Dude?! $1745 + labor + little odds and ends = ~$2000.... I get that you like your old steed, but do you know what you can get used, just a year or two old for that kind of money? I paid less than that for my Venge, with upgraded carbon bars; Praxis chainrings; Toupe Pro saddle, etc.

The way I look at it, I'd give the old bike a tune-up, and put that money into a great used bike, which would give you a whole new experience...

mbw

My point was that was spent over 10 years. The first $1k was buying the bike. I will either do the basic maintenance as suggested, which will still cost me a few hundred to fix it up, or ill spring for the full refresh and spend under $1k again.

I will keep an eye out for used bikes though, just to make sure I don't miss something as you suggest.

Sheik24

New 11 speed 5800 105 from ribble: $360
New Ultegra 6800 11 speed wheels from ribble: $316
Falling in looooove with your old bike all over again: priceless

Do it already.

rideBjj

Spend the money on an Ultegra group from Merlin and 11 speed wheels (and really, you could just get the rear) from wherever you can get them for a reasonable price.

Buy the tools you need and teach yourself to teardown / rebuild your bike. It's not that hard. I can do a complete swap down to the bar tape in under 2 hours.

You can probably get it all done for $900 - $1000 if you shop judiciously for wheels.

Install everything on your current frame and ride. Eventually down the road (a year, maybe two), I guarantee, after you've put more money back into your wallet, and as your riding time and fitness increse, you will become interested in trying a new frame. When you do, you can buy one (some amazing deals out there on everything from brand new no name carbons to used but perfectly good for years to come) and then swap all your parts to that one.

Then you can rebuild your original bike and now you have 2!

So, don't think of it as "sinking money into a $200 bike". You are spending money on a hobby that is good for you (plenty of people go into debt for much stupider reasons) for your future bicycles / happiness. That money is not gone forever should you again change course down the road. It is merely being tied up temporarily.

Trust me when I say this, it is so much more gratifying to ride nice equipment that you chose and built yourself than it is to ride something that came from mass production / someone else, that makes you go "meh".

I live a pretty simple lifestyle and don't care much about money or keeping up with the Jonses / consumerism. I drive a 15 year old beat to **** car, my tv is 7 years old, etc etc. The only exception is for my outdoor sports / hobbies. They are my only vice.

You can always make more money. Don't feel guilty about spending it on something that's good for your soul / well being.

dtrain

^ I'd give this a +1 as far as wheel upgrades go. They are super easy to transfer to a new bike (just buy 11sp.), and it's easy to buy something nicer than whatever would be stock on your next bike.

Groupsets are a bit more of a challenge. While the price of 5800/6800 from the UK is pretty darn impressive, installing it all - and then moving it to a new frame and re-installing stock parts - is a little beyond many posters here (and not real cheap to hire out).

rideBjj

True. Only go this route if you think you'll be doing all your own work / labor in order to save money (and time). Anyone who rides at all seriously should invest in this, because over time, you will SAVE money, and quite a lot of it. Plus it gives you enormous freedom and you're not at the mercy of the LBS and the possibly objectionable employees / sales pressure therin.

Seriously though, with the wealth of info at your fingertips, only BoBo the Chimp Boy should end up flummoxed at the prospect of swapping a bicycle grouppo. And I think even he could figure it out eventually. I was a mechanic for years in the early 90's when you had to teach everything to yourself, or actually go get books. It wasn't even that hard then.

dtrain

I guess that makes me a Chimp Boy. Should have spend some of that time racking up so many posts to actually learn to work on my bike!

(Actually - I do most of my own basic maintenance and could do maybe 90% of a build, but a few things still feel beyond me.)

Stucky

Oh, sorry- my mistake- I thought that you meant that you were going to spend $1700 on new parts!

But, yes, you can really get some awesome deals on late-model used bikes- especially in the winter...and if you're not in a hurry- and just keeping your eyes open, as you say. (I was amazed when I saw the Venge on my local CL- You never see ANY decent road bikes for sale around here!)

rideBjj

But you could if you really wanted to, or needed to due to budget concerns. That's really my point. Given the motivation, pretty much anyone can learn to do it. But, I get that other people have the income to pay someone else and lack the free time / space to DIY. Nothing wrong with that. I work on my own car, but certainly don't expect everyone else to follow suit.

mbw

I have the same paradox with my Land Rover. They aren't exactly cheap to work on. An oil change for it (15k intervals, 8QTs of 'special' synthetic oil... $200). I can easily do most of the work on it myself, and some I do. You should see what they charge for a brake job.

Same with my boat. I've got a 26' Sea Ray. It has a 60gal fuel tank. I'm happy to see fuel is cheaper now, this summer should be fun.. but still. You can't say that I spend too much on my old bike (< $1k) when I have a damn boat... haha!

Bottom line is... sometimes its just nicer to let someone else do the work. My time is worth enough to out source some things. Then again, I do enjoy mechanical things. I wouldn't mind doing it myself either.

mbw

Owner of the LBS said he doesn't quite know why the prices from places like Merlin are so cheap. Below his at cost price.

Anyway. He said to go ahead and order the parts and that he would have an upper limit on the install costs of $100. He also said he would consider some trade in value for my Bontrager Race wheels (I think they are low end, I only paid $275 for them at his shop a few months ago).

I apologized for even bringing up website prices and such. I do like to support his shop and always try to buy odds and ends there, and have them do most all of my maintenance. He said that as a consumer he understands and wishes they would figure out the mess on the US distributor side.

I am now looking into a wireless computer, sensor, HR monitor for it also. (which ill buy from him)

I did look around at new bikes and a few last season models. The Domane is a nice bike. Very light. Maybe next year as a reward if I really achieve what I want this year on the old bike.

So here is the before shot.

dtrain

^ also be aware: you can run '10 out of 11' on those current wheels (at least for now) if you are otherwise happy with them. $100 is a good deal for install of parts not sourced there.

geluzj

Definitely understanding of the LBS to do the install for you. I try to shop local if the price is close, but when there's significant savings involved, it's only responsible to pay less.
Your bike looks to be in nice shape. I'm guessing you're going with 5800?

mbw

Yes. Ordered a few things after hanging out at the LBS today for awhile.

Ordered the Shimano 105 5800, 175mm crank, 35/50 chainset, 11/32 11 speed cassette, band on 34.9mm front derailleur (i measured), Medium Cage (GS) rear derailleur (required for that 11/32 cassette). Also ordered the Ultegra 5800 wheelset (1640g for the pair).

Doing some research on the computer stuff now. Current planned config is Bontrager Node 2.1 with 438482 speed and cadence sensor (ant+ and bluetooth), and the Viiiiva heartrate monitor (also ant+ and bluetooth). Ill use the hrt monitor with the node computer, but also have my phone connected to speed/cadence/heart and handle the gps as I ride. The node 2.1 also does % grade, temp, total climb, etc etc.

I don't have a power meter in the plans. I am not sure ill do that now, but when I do ill want it to work on ant+ and talk to my phone if thats possible, haven't researched that yet. I know the Viiiiva can act as a ANT+ bridge and send all of those signals to the bluetooth, but its flakey with strava at the moment.

Alias530

Medium cage derailleur is NOT required for 11-32 cassette.

I'm running the short cage 5800 105 derailleur and 11-32 Ultegra cassette on my cross bike. The b-tension screw is maxed out but it works absolutely flawlessly.

In the small chainring and 32T cassette cog it baaaarely rumbles when backpedaling, but not when forward pedaling, which is what matters.

Stucky

How does it work in the small chainring when on the smallest cog?

Alias530

Not a combo you should be using but it works fine. I never ride in it, but in the work stand I tried every conceivable combination and the worst that happened was a slight rumble when back pedaling in the small ring and big cassette cog. Otherwise all is perfect.

Stucky

Excellent! Sounds like it's good to go.

tronnyjenkins 

Still a nice looking bike! How is it riding with the upgrades??

Also- post #60 !! Yes. Maybe I'll do something similar with my bike.