twodownzero

I weighed it for the first time last week and with everything I normally ride on a longer ride, it's 36 pounds.

That includes seat bag, two tubes, multi tool, frame pump, aluminum fenders, dyno hub, lights f/r, a battery blinkie, and a fuel tank with a few snacks/electrolyte tablets in it, but no water.

I haven't taken it apart to weigh each individual component yet, but its groupset is essentially Shimano 5700 road stuff with a trekking triple crankset. The wheels are custom built with a Shimano Alfine dynamo hub and XT rear hub, 32 spoke straight gauge spokes, and unknown rims. The tires are Schwalbe Marathon Supreme 26x1.6.

It definitely doesn't have the absolute lightest of everything by any stretch of the imagination, but I really hope I can have a bike with dyno lights and a handlebar bag that weighs no more than about 28 pounds. I weigh 155 pounds; carrying around an additional 8-10 pounds of weight strikes me as excessive. I don't want to go all weight weenie, but like I said, this Surly needs a serious diet.

I LOVE the way it fits, though.

seajaye

My interest is super-piqued. Looks like a poor-man's NFE, but you get a complete instead of a frameset....

Chris Pringle

A 25-28 lb. custom randonneur bike is definitely doable. Close attention will need to be paid to the components that matter the most such as the wheelset and drivetrain, although I personally would avoid an IGH given the weight penalty. I don't compromise when it comes to comfort and safety, so I went with wider tires (tubeless to save a little weight), dyno lights, comfy handlebar (Salsa Cowbell), disc brakes and a comfy but heavier leather saddle (Brooks B17 in my case), front rack with bag. It's right at 28 lb. as described. But for an event like the PBP in 2015 (1,230 Km. total), it went up to 40 lb. with three 24 oz. water bottles, an extra handlebar bag to carry food, clothing, medicine, etc. Luckily I had trained for several months at around 35 lb. so the additional didn't affect me.

My custom Rodriguez touring randonneuse (26" wheels):
PA240295.jpg

joewein

I don't know your numbers, but for most people, shedding a kg around their hips would be a far better choice than shedding a kg off their bike. It certainly would come a lot cheaper

My Elephant Bikes NFE has been my main bike for the past 22 months, i.e. for close to 15,000 km. I've done all my brevets of the 2016 and 2017 seasons on it.

I would guess that most NFE riders are not weight weenies and that they configure their bikes in ways that work for them, where weight is not the first priority (as for most people it shouldn't be!).

Mostly the total weight of my bike is not due to the frame/fork and it is there for a reason:
- A dynamo hub so I can run at any time of day without worrying about remaining battery charge,
- a Brooks B17 so I can still bear sitting after 12 hours,
- disc brakes so I don't worry about being able to stop on a rainy descent,
- mudguards to keep me clean in the rain,
- wide 42 mm tires for safety, comfort and flat protection (one puncture in 22 months),
- a porteur rack and Ozette XL front bag to carry all my stuff in an easily accessible location

Experience with long distance rides has taught me that it's better to bring an extra layer to wear and then not use it than leaving it at home and really needing it. I also carry two tubes, tools, electrical tape, zip ties, a pump, a bike lock, a USB battery, multiple USB cables, a camera (compact or SLR), two phones, two water bottles, bananas, dried fruit, ...



My NFE frame weighs about 1,900 g (4 lb 2 oz) and the low trail, disc brake steel fork weighs about half of that again. You could possibly save 1 kg (2 lb) by going for a carbon fork and a custom steel frame with super thin walls (even though the Elephant is not exactly thick-skinned with .8/.5/.8 mm butted tubes, AFAIK), but what difference would that one kg make? Randonneuring is not racing. Perhaps that one kg will add up to a few minutes in extra time over the course of a brevet, which will rarely make the difference between completing and a DNF. On the other hand it might make the difference between still working or needing a replacement after a crash (carbon fiber vs. chromoly).

What really makes my bike relatively heavy is not the frame or fork, but everything that's on it, starting with the engine. Whether a bike weighs 10 kg or 11 or 12 is no more important than if its rider weighs 70 kg or 71 or 72, but people don't think of it that way. Many of the people who have commented on the weight of my bike were heavier than me by more kg than my bike was heavier than theirs. Of course the cycling industry (both bike manufacturers and the magazines that carry their ads) wants to brainwash us into thinking that lighter is always better, but only on the bike (which is where the money is)!

Since January I have done 25 Century rides (100 miles or more) and intend to up that to at least 27 by the end of the year. Each one of them has been fun. I'm at 63 consecutive months -- 5 years and 3 months -- of "A Century a Month". This bike is a great tool for the job. I bring what it takes to make sure I can complete the rides safely and in reasonable comfort, returning with pictures of the beautiful views I've seen while out there. The NFE is my ideal bike for "any road, any time of the day, any season" rides out there.

Joe

Spoonrobot 

That's a great post, thanks for taking the time to write that up. What front rack do you have on your elephant?

cormacf

Gorgeous bike. My ONLY issue with the NFE is that the standover on the medium is a little high for my short legs, but I could probably get a small and stem it out a bit. I do like the fact that thy're in WA. If I get one, I want to do it in the summer, so my wife can drop me off in Spokane to pick it up and I can ride home to Seattle.

joewein

It's the Haulin' Colin porteur rack, powder coated in the same NFE green (RAL 6021) the stock NFE comes in. It's the perfect base for the matched Ozette XL by Swift Industries.

Unfortunately the HC rack doesn't seem to be in production at the moment, but there are similar alternatives.