Cycledoc

The new 2006 Trek Madone 5.5 in candy apple red is now available in my local area bike shops. It uses OCLV 120 construction and the "shark fin" seat tube and sculpted downtube. It is full DuraAce 10 speed. For $3500, Trek scrimped on the wheels, including the Race Lites. I decided to test ride the machine with the Race X Lite Aero wheels tomorrow. My first and only road bike, a 2004 Trek 5000 OCLV 120, now has over 2000 miles after 8 months, but obviously is still in excellent condition. I am now in a better position to evaluate another road bike since I have something to go by. I am also going to try a 56 cm instead of my current 58 cm. I'm 5' 9 3/4" , 155 lbs.

I have read where wheelsets have a great deal to do with the quality of a bike's ride. I want a bike that is comfortable on long recreational rides (40-50 miles), but I also do a fair number of 50 minute "power rides (intervals)" on urban streets with rolling hills and scattered cracks and potholes. A really nice wheelset can run near the cost of my Trek 5000. Despite the upgrade to DuraAce 10 from Ultegra 9, would I be better served to put a high quality wheelset on my current bike or going with the new bike?

I am not a wheelset afficionado, so any advice is appreciated.

toomyus

i only know the 05 models, but the best bang for the buck is the 5.2 sl, which has the 110 carbon instead of the 120 carbon,and it has a full ultegra whiich is good stuff. i rather get the better frame, then upgrade on the components. either way sir, thats one hell of a nice ride, and i wish i bought the 5.2sl instead of the tarmac pro. ahh well,ill keep pedaling. take care

krazyderek

The frames are almost the same if they're both 120, (the shark fin and minor shape in the down tube, although cool looking, ain't going to do enough to warrant replacing a bike that's already CF) the dura ace is nice, but again, not something that would push me to buy a whole new bike. And if you don't even like the wheels coming on it, why wouldn't you just buy new wheel's for your tried and true 5000?
I'm not a big wheel person myself either, if they spin smooth then they're good enough for me. Where as if i got into it i'm sure i could easily drop a grand or so getting some new ones that would ALMOST make a noticable difference in ride quality. The only exception being maybe getting a set of aero wheels, but i might as well wait till i get a frame that is a bit more aero efficient aswell, like a Soloist Carbon

On the other hand this would be the ideal time to sell your 5000 to get the best money back, "worn in" but not "worn down" since it's got a fair amount of distance on it.

I'd suggest you get a new set of wheels for your existing bike if you've got money to burn, or look at a bike with a bit more contrast to what you're ridding now. Such as the Madone SSL, or Pilot 5.9. I myself will probably look at the Cervelo soloist Carbon in a year or two once their out and get some real world reviews from non-racers, and once the price comes down.

55/Rad

I have the Race Lites and the X-Lite Aeros. While both are excellent wheels, the Aeros are not worth the extra money since they aren't super aero and they weigh virtually the same. I'd look at some other wheels - regular X-Lites or a custom set from Oddsandendos or similar - in the neighborhood of 1500 grams. Then you will notice a difference.

55/Rad

Avalanche325

I think you should get it. That shark fin will save you 3 seconds over the next 5000 miles.

Serpico

what's wrong with your 8 month old 5x00 bike?

You do know that if you get a new year madone, they'll still come out with a "newer" one in 2007, right?

pimp those wheels, doc

nitropowered

Its only got 2000 miles on it too.

zac

Man unless you are doing some serious climbing then the X Lites have no real practical advatage over the Race Lites. I, in fact have a SL 5.2 with the Race Lites, and they are a pretty decent wheel. They will be accompanying me on a dual climb 120 mile ride Saturday. I feel no real need to up those wheels.

Edit: I precisely chose the SL 5.2 because it has the exact same frame/fork as the SL 5.9. (Trek's top of the line road frame, except for the SSL) And until someone starts paying me to ride DA, the Ultegra is plenty for me.

Zac

ivan_yulaev

If you've got a 5000, I don't see a reason to upgrade.

If you're going to get wheels, might as well go handbuilt custom...www.oddsandendos.com has great handbuilt wheels that will probably outperform those factory wheels.

Cycledoc

Thanks for the replies. I wanted some objective feedback and I feel like I got it (including some of the "stars" of Bike Forum, whose advice I've been reading for months). Really nothing 'wrong' with my 5000. I'm somewhere between the 56 and 58 cm, so I wouldn't mind a several mile test ride on the smaller frame to see how it fits (which they have arranged for me to do, if I like.) I'm not unhappy with the 58cm although the LBS guys seem to think it is too big for me. I really don't believe that DuraAce or "shark fins" will make a significant difference, but when you begin to price wheelsets into the range of a new bike, you naturally start to think about getting one.

I'll see how the bike fits and rides tomorrow, but if I don't see an appreciable difference, I'll look at the wheelsets instead.

Thanks.

krazyderek

you should put a new chain on your 5000, or take off your chain, clean and grease it up to get that smooth factory new feel before you go for the test ride on the other bike. I started the "two chain system" a little while ago, and put my second chain on last week, and it felt like a new bike. Just my opinion though, or if you're smarter then me, just keep that in mind and pay no attention to the new chain on the new bike lol..

DigitalRJH

As far as upgrading wheels, to go from Race Lites to Race X Lites is not a bad option. The Race X Lites are around $700-800, depending upon whether you get the black or titanium finish, and on what your LBS prices them. The X lite aeros are a bit cheaper. I went from Race Lites to Race X Lites, have some hills where I ride, and they are 250 grams lighter (over the 04 race lites, 200 gr lighter than the 05 Race Lites). Also, they are faster, on downhills coasting I'm about 1 to 1.5MPH faster. The x light aero's would be faster than that probably, but they are heavier 1710grams as opposed to 1490grams for the regular X lites. Both are solid sturdy wheelsets. That is not that expensive an option as you originally thought.

Cycledoc

Update:

I test rode the '06 Madone 5.5 on Friday. I went in with the mindset NOT to buy it. The bike would have to perform much better than my 58 cm 5000 to convince me to buy it. I decided just to try the regular Race Lites and not bother with an upgrade at this point.

First, the bike shop associate put me through the Body Scanning CRM machine. Already, it was a big improvement from the previous fitting, which consisted of an associate guessing my frame size and seeing me on the bike on a trainer (I was a newbie, so forgive this major oversight. ) The process took about 10 minutes, then he applied the measurements to the 56cm Madone. He had me make several passes by him in the parking lot, each time adjusting my position on the bike. We got it right, then I was off on about a 10 mile trial ride.

I didn't want to buy it, but it was obvious the fit was so much better that I was convinced to do it anyway. It had nothing to do with the shark fin (which I don't think adds any appreciable aerodynamic improvement), the DuraAce (which didn't really feel any different from my Ultegra 9, except for the more comfortable hoods), or the candy apple red paint job. Of course, I don't miss the cheap decals from my 5000, which has turned into the 500 thanks to my Yakima trunk rack peeling the '0' off. The fit was everything. Here is what I noticed on my 40 miler today:

1) The Madone soaks up the buzz on slag roads better, which was about 16 miles of my ride today.
2) Over larger bumps and the wooden bridges on some of the bike paths, the Madone provides a gentle bump, where the 5000 gives a sharp kick.
3) Hands felt better on the DuraAce hoods
4) No neck and shoulder tightness (due to the much better fit)

All told, I am still impressed with how good the 5000 is for the money. The Madone 5.5 is a better bike, but only subtly, not dramatically.

The moral of this story for the newbie is get a professional fitting on a lower cost bike, then buy the more expensive bike after you have put in some serious miles. I am doing an about-face from what I said on this forum several months ago.

If I get bored in a few months, I'll look at the Oddsandendos.

Edit: Unfortunately the picture does not do the paint job justice. It is actually a metallic red paint and looks much better in the sunlight than on a snapshot.

Serpico

nice looking bike!

they've really scaled back on the amount of "Trek" logos on the frame, looks much cleaner

congrats

Spin_Dr_Tio

I have to echo Zigg's evaluation, it is certainly one of the better looking Trek's I have ever seen (sans a couple of the Project One schemes, you might have taken the cake in my completely irrelevant book).

Now its time to get out and pedal like you stole it!!!

55/Rad

Beautiful bike. Does Trek call that color "candy apple red?" Cause they use to call this candy apple red and they aren't that close.

55/Rad

sunninho

Wow, nice bike. Yeah, 58cm does sound a bit large for your size. Are those buzzkiller plugs in the bar ends? I wonder if they work as advertised and aided in the road feel you reported on your 40 miler. Any chance you'll do a test run with them on the 5000?

Cycledoc

Trek hasn't posted any specs on their web site. I just did a search and found a dealer who listed the color as "Candy Red." An older post on RoadBikeReview had called it candy apple red. If I get a chance, I'll try to snap a close-up tomorrow in the sunlight.

BTW, nice bike. I assume that those are the aero wheels you were alluding to.

Cycledoc

Yes, those are buzzkiller plugs, or I suppose they're called buzz-kill handlebar dampers. While I would like to credit them with the major difference, I really think the upgraded Race X Lite fork probably deserves most of the credit. Of course, the shark fin helped me travel 3 mph faster lol
I think I might try them on a shorter ride on the 5000 some time just to see what they do. I'll post if I can get around to doing it.

krazyderek

do you have a picture of your old bike?

Cycledoc

Page 78, Reply #1934 of the What Road Bike Do You Have? sticky. A completely stock 2004 5000.

ViperZ

Very nice, I was looking at one in the LBS today but in Silver Nude carbon 56 cm. Just slightly larger than I would like.

Congrats!

krazyderek

a link would have been nice..... like this https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...500#post992500 since page varries acording to what people have set for their default replies per page, and you can't search by reply #. I meant a picture to compare it directly to your new bike, in terms of where the saddle and handle bars are.
I have to ask, why didn't you just have them do another fitting on your 5000, unless something was outside of the adjustment range? Don't get me wrong, i love the 5.5, and it's your butt on the seat, but what was so drastically wrong with the 5000 that warranted a 3000$+ purchase to fix it? I really don't want to come off harsh, maybe i'll be in the same boat a year or two from now, i just can't understand.

Cycledoc

krazyderek:

Here are 3 pictures I snapped just a moment ago. I placed the seats and seatposts in alignment with each other. It is apparent that the 5000's top tube appears longer than the 5.5 (58 vs 56 cm frame). Also the 5000 is noticeably taller than the 5.5. I know there is some parallax error in these photos.

I probably could have tried several things, like install a shorter stem, and I probably could have made it work. I didn't get the fitting that I should have gotten at the other LBS, although neither of the 2 major LBS had BodyScanning CRM at the time I bought the 5000 in Nov 2004. Ultimately, I guess I just wanted a new bike!

nitropowered

I think obviously now, fit is an issue. But you can get away +/- 1 size and adjust with different stems and seat posts.