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Why We Should STOP Our Obsession With Bike Weight

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Why We Should STOP Our Obsession With Bike Weight

Old 06-30-21, 02:29 PM
  #101  
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Originally Posted by kahn
Or ONE seat stay becomes common!
You could combine it with Cannondale's "Lefty" fork, but you probably want them on opposite sides.

Or not!!
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Old 06-30-21, 03:23 PM
  #102  
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lets see, eliminate one leg of the fork, a seat stay extension, lower left frame stay, & then the top tube or the downtube? It now weighs 3.45kg!
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Old 06-30-21, 04:27 PM
  #103  
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Originally Posted by Troul
lets see, eliminate one leg of the fork, a seat stay extension, lower left frame stay, & then the top tube or the downtube? It now weighs 3.45kg!
Or buy a couch and then you don't care what the bike weighs.
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Old 06-30-21, 05:28 PM
  #104  
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Originally Posted by genejockey
You could combine it with Cannondale's "Lefty" fork, but you probably want them on opposite sides.

Or not!!
You know… you could have brought this up during the more than one way to steer a bike thread.

John
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Old 06-30-21, 05:36 PM
  #105  
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Originally Posted by 70sSanO
You know… you could have brought this up during the more than one way to steer a bike thread.

John
Rear wheel steering! It's all the rage with expensive sports cars!
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Old 06-30-21, 05:41 PM
  #106  
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Originally Posted by genejockey
Rear wheel steering! It's all the rage with expensive sports cars!
Now that is something to obsess over…

….but maybe with a bit of trepidation.

John
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Old 06-30-21, 06:12 PM
  #107  
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Originally Posted by genejockey
Rear wheel steering! It's all the rage with expensive sports cars!
Why not both wheels? Jimmy Osmond endorsed it, so it must be good!

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Old 06-30-21, 06:32 PM
  #108  
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Originally Posted by JohnDThompson
Why not both wheels? Jimmy Osmond endorsed it, so it must be good!

This reminded me that flares and drivetrains were never a good combination.
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Old 06-30-21, 07:09 PM
  #109  
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I watched the first couple minutes.

First time I ever saw a power meter.

So I think I learned that a power meter is a small load cell that fits inside a crank arm.

huh, kind of interesting.
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Old 06-30-21, 07:11 PM
  #110  
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Originally Posted by kahn
Who makes your bike or did you build it yourself? How far can you go one a single charge, since you mention touring?
It is made by Riese and Müller, it is the Supercharger2 Rohloff HS. With the dual 625wh batteries in my eco mode I am looking at 120+ miles per charge depending on conditions probably if I stayed in eco mode with a good cadence I am looking 150+. However I haven't had a chance to test the limits, I typically charge after a few full commutes just in case my plans change after work. Though I do plan on doing some touring in the near future.
It is this bike but with Ergon GC1 BioCork grips and Kinekt seatpost and soon to have other upgrades:
https://www.r-m.de/en-us/bikes/super...466_0804022629
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Old 06-30-21, 07:12 PM
  #111  
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Originally Posted by JohnDThompson
Why not both wheels? Jimmy Osmond endorsed it, so it must be good!

I saw someone riding one of those in Long Beach a few months ago.

At first, “Somethings wrong.” Then a second later understanding what it was.
Not for me.
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Old 06-30-21, 08:49 PM
  #112  
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Originally Posted by veganbikes
It is made by Riese and Müller, it is the Supercharger2 Rohloff HS. With the dual 625wh batteries in my eco mode I am looking at 120+ miles per charge depending on conditions probably if I stayed in eco mode with a good cadence I am looking 150+. However I haven't had a chance to test the limits, I typically charge after a few full commutes just in case my plans change after work. Though I do plan on doing some touring in the near future.
It is this bike but with Ergon GC1 BioCork grips and Kinekt seatpost and soon to have other upgrades:
https://www.r-m.de/en-us/bikes/super...466_0804022629
That is certainly a machine. That may be what I saw about a week ago. Continue to enjoy.
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Old 06-30-21, 09:52 PM
  #113  
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Originally Posted by kahn
That is certainly a machine. That may be what I saw about a week ago. Continue to enjoy.
Will do, so far so great so I hope nothing changes.
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Old 07-05-21, 12:17 PM
  #114  
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Just lose five pounds. Problem solved.
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Old 07-05-21, 12:22 PM
  #115  
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Sorry I did not read all the comments. However, the video totally misses the point for me... if I could put out 200W all day everyday with 25kg, I wouldn't worry about bike weight. However, I have much less power that is also very affected by heat. Saving base bike weight can be the difference is suffering levels up hills, to being able to keep up with friends and to even attempt a ride. It can also mean the ability to carry more food, water or extra individual component weight for greater comfort.
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Old 07-05-21, 12:36 PM
  #116  
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The physical (physics) models for bicycles make gross assumptions about mass and motion in order to offer simple explanations according to simple rules or laws. The dynamics of riding a bicycle in reality present the rider with a much more complicated experience not reflected in the simple models of motion. One example is assuming riding along a flat surface at constant velocity. A nice simplification, but in fact no road or trail surface is perfectly flat and a rider is constantly accelerating and decelerating along the path of motion. These "micro-accelerations" accumulate and sap the rider of energy and power. Anyone who has ridden a 5kg bicycle will tell you it is easier to ride than a 7kg bike. Another example is the difference in tire performance. The physics of tires is pretty simple, but the reality is far from simple. Just ask Verstappen how much 1psi difference in tire pressure can make in Baku...
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Old 07-05-21, 12:47 PM
  #117  
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Weight weenieism can become truly bizarre and self-defeating, especially once you start getting into bad ideas like carbon chainrings. I will say I can appreciate the feel of a light, snappy bike. My cross race bike is the lightest bike I own (16.3 lbs with pedals/cages/computer) and I can feel the lightness while riding. My road bike is right around 17 lbs out the door and it's the same. Also, both bikes have been very durable to date. Engineering is pretty good these days.
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Old 07-05-21, 01:59 PM
  #118  
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Originally Posted by genejockey
I wonder what the bike felt like to ride? I suspect a little 'springy'.

Disqualified because the bike is now below the weight limit?
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Old 07-05-21, 04:01 PM
  #119  
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Originally Posted by TheRealDrPhil
The physical (physics) models for bicycles make gross assumptions about mass and motion in order to offer simple explanations according to simple rules or laws. The dynamics of riding a bicycle in reality present the rider with a much more complicated experience not reflected in the simple models of motion.
Sadly, the data don't support this. If the model, https://www.recumbents.com/wisil/Mart...%20cycling.pdf were truly lacking, the agreement between model predictions and measurements would show it. To date, no such discrepancies have been found.The success of the virtual elevation method, https://wallace78tria.files.wordpres...direct-cda.pdf is further proof of the accuracy of the model.
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Old 07-05-21, 08:38 PM
  #120  
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Perhaps humans are more sensitive than the models.
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Old 07-06-21, 05:35 AM
  #121  
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Originally Posted by TheRealDrPhil
Perhaps humans are more sensitive than the models.
That makes no sense.
If that was correct, it would show up in the results--the model would fail to predict.

Perhaps you're confusing placebo effect with sensitivity. These "microaccellerations" might easily be largely counteracted by the heavier bike's carrying slightly more momentum and therefore decelerating less.
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Old 07-06-21, 06:00 AM
  #122  
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Bike weight affects the "feel" and handling of a bike to a degree, but usually the differences in bike weight discussed (like maybe 2-3kg between super-light and fairly heavy road bikes) are not that significant in this respect. Riding on nominally flat terrain I wouldn't expect to pick up any time on a lighter bike. Only climbing is a real advantage and time gains are easily predictable by simple Newtonian physics over any course. For example I'm doing a 100 mile ride this weekend with around 4k elevation change. Predicted finishing time at my average endurance power is 7 hrs 35 mins. If I drop my bike weight by 2 kg the model predicts a saving of 4 mins. That's with 4k of vertical climbing! Running the same calculation on a much flatter 100 mile course, I would gain just over 30 seconds with the 2kg lighter bike. Basically nothing worth spending any money on.
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Old 07-06-21, 07:23 AM
  #123  
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Originally Posted by PeteHski
Riding on nominally flat terrain I wouldn't expect to pick up any time on a lighter bike.
You need to adjust your mental model. Rolling resistance depends linearly on weight so even on flat ground, a lighter bike will be faster due to the decrease in rolling resistance. (Yes, the difference may be small, but conceptually, weight matters even on flat terrain.)
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Old 07-06-21, 07:31 AM
  #124  
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Originally Posted by Eric F
If not weight, what else should we obsess with on our bike?
Cable crimp colors...
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Old 07-06-21, 07:34 AM
  #125  
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All other things being equal, wouldn't you prefer a lighter bike than a heavier bike?
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