DaveLeeNC

I have been riding my upgraded El/OS steel (late 90's) Bianchi frame (upgraded wheels, saddle, handlebars, seatpost, and 2014 Campy Chorus drive train) to the tune of 5-10K miles per year since 2015. I like the bike and have zero complaints about it. But I have LITERALLY (and I am not kidding) NEVER/EVER been on another true road bike of any kind. NEVER (just the way it has turned out for me). I have ridden a low end Trek hybrid a few times and other than the Western Flyer I owned as a kid, that is it.

I mostly just ride alone (by choice) and I might set a performance goal on occasion (e.g., in 2016 I set out to ride a true 5 hour, solo century and pulled that one off). But mostly I just ride. DOB is 1949, BTW. And like many of us, I am not getting any younger :-)

I don't need a new bike. I like the one I ride and there isn't a ton of performance to be gained (even if it mattered) from a new one. But there is one area where I can imagine 'getting a return' from a new bike, and that is the comfort of the bike on chipseal-type pavement (lots of that where I ride).

I live in a small area and we have one LBS. I know, like, and respect the owner and what he is doing in local bike land. So I am unlikely to go looking for a deal on some bike from where-ever and would naturally buy from him. I would not expect the best price ever recorded, but it would be fair to both of us. He is a Trek dealer and that (obviously) leads one to consider the Trek Domane (probably SL 6 level - not inclined to be much past $3k for this purchase).

Obviously I would need to try one out. But I am curious as to what others think about what I might gain in comfort going from my Bianchi steel to the Domane. 150 to 200 miles would be a typical week for me. Well - used to be. Probably closer to 150 these days.

Thanks.

dave

ps. While I am not a weight weenie exactly, my Bianchi stripped to showroom weight, with Vittoria Corsa tires and latex tubes weighed a smidge over 18 pounds. I really don't like the thought of having a heavier bike, even though I understand the insignificance of another 400 grams (stock SL6 is advertised about 19 pounds). If I equalized the tires/tubes and Bontrager RXL wheels (how I weighed the Bianchi), it probably comes out pretty close. Still bothers me a bit. My enthusiasm for disk brakes is low, but what can you do.

HTupolev

Chipseal comfort issues?

How big of a tire are you running in the Bianchi, how big of a tire can you safely fit, what pressures are you running, and what do you weigh?

DaveLeeNC

23mm is the biggest that fit with manageable clearance. 160 lbs and tire pressures in the low to mid 90's.

Dave

WhyFi

I'll say this (and others that have never ridden a Domane will surely tell me that I'm wrong, as they have before) - particularly up front, my Domane takes the edge off of jolts better than my gravel bike that has larger tires and which is running 30+ psi lower.

Just go test ride one, though.

Dean V

You could get a rim brake Domane. Probably more likely to get a deal, be lighter, and still take a 28mm tyre which should be fine for what you want to do.

DaveLeeNC

Is the Domane available at the SL6 level with rim brakes?

Thanks.

dave

WhyFi

You could always do the frameset and build it out yourself.

DaveLeeNC

That is true, giving me more flexibility.

Then there is the fact that the Trek Emonda just seems like 'more fun to own' somehow (maybe not more fun to ride). So then maybe the answer to the well known cycling question is "N + 2"

dave

guachi

I recently purchased a Domane SL5 disc. It really does work well over poor road conditions. My first two rides were two 30 mile rides on packed dirt trails. Held up great. I probably will need to change seats as my butt hurts even on a turbo trainer.

I think you'll really like the Domane for long rides over poor roads.

DaveLeeNC

I probably should clarify something here that MIGHT make a difference. The 'bad roads' that I ride on are not (typically) 'bad' because they are in poor repair. They are 'bad' because of the surface (chip-seal kind of stuff) that was used. Rather than jarring impact being a problem, the problem is more like a 'constant chatter' kind of thing. More constant vibration rather than frequent 'impact'.

dave

Dean V

Trek website just shows SL5, but the current 105 is very good. Use the extra money to put a nice set of wheels on it.

gnome

I'm used to chip seal. The answer is the widest, most supple tyres you can fit in the frame. If you can currently only can fit 23s then go for the most supple pair you can. You may be able to lower the pressure on them and still avoid pinch flats. You may be slightly more susceptible to the p***ture fairy with extra supple tyres.

Of course the correct answer is N+1, or the maximum amount of bikes your spouse will let you own which ever is lower.

Noctilux.95

I would wait for the 2020 model which is rumored to be completely redesigned.

WhyFi

Ah. In that case, I'd echo @gnome with his comments w/r/t tires. Before getting the Domane, I used to run the same wheels/tires (Assaults/30mm Schwalbe G-One Speed) on my aluminum gravel bike. That combo muted that persistent buzz pretty well. The Domane is still better, but the tires did the lion's share.

matt92037

This. If the redesign isn’t a deal maker get a 2019 on close out.

[qqQUOTE=Noctilux.95;20966245]I would wait for the 2020 model which is rumored to be completely redesigned.[/QUOTE]
Q

DaveLeeNC

Is there a 'point of diminishing returns' WRT to tire width and chipseal? I would guess that it is above 28mm, but wasn't sure about that.

dave

Sy Reene

Just buying an SL frameset might make sense, with transfer of group that's on your Bianchi over to it? + a new set of wider tires. Would save a bundle.

WhyFi

I'm sure there is, but I'd be looking at pressure to then dictate tire width, rather than the other way around. For me, running 30mm tires at 65f/70r offers a great balance of comfort and performance; I'm sure that you could get away with lower pressures on 28s.

Then again, this is coming from a 190lb guy that was used to ~100psi on 25s, so while 70psi may feel like riding on a cloud to me, a lighter person that regularly runs 85psi might be less impressed and want to go lower. IOW, personal experience will shape preferences and it's hard for others to guess your sweet spot might be - I would think that the pressures afforded by 28s would do it, but until you try it, who knows?

cliffp

I went into the Trek store in Manchester (UK) last month and they told me to wait for the new Domane as they understand that it will be a major re-design. I want one too!

Dean V

Maybe it will "change cycling forever", ............again

grayrest

Rolling resistance is basically dependent on tire construction and not so much on the width. Here's a Bicycle Rolling Resistance comparison of the range of GP5ks. The difference between a pair of 23mm at 100 psi and 32mm at 60 psi is under 5 watts and 200 grams or so. There's going to be an aero loss as well due to the width but unless you're in competition and pushing the limits for every watt there isn't a lot of performance difference.

Jan Heine says width doesn't matter much at all and runs/sells really wide road tires but I find his testing less controlled than BRR. What I do like about his writing is that it got me to understand that tires aren't fast just because I can feel the road buzz so I drop the pressure on all my tires way down because I enjoy it.

DaveLeeNC

Thanks again for all the interesting and useful discussion. When all is said and done I don't see any reasonable answer here other than "I just have to get my butt onto one or more of these and make my own decision". For a variety of reasons this will probably be (or not be) a year end decision point.

dave

DaveLeeNC

A quick update on where this all stands.

In a nutshell I have mostly 'fixed' my chipseal issues on my existing bike without having to spend much $ (and I do like my current bike, BTW)

1) I got rid of the Gatorskins going to Conti GP 4/5000's. This actually happened a few months back, but the Gatorskin ride is what was prominent in my mind

2) My Conti's measure 25mm width (they are are marked as 23's - I don't think this is usual). So I dropped the air pressure down to 75F/80R which does not seem to be a big flat risk. I weigh around 160, although 150 is my 'racing weight' (as if I race) and my lay around the house weight is more like 165.

3) I changed to some cycling gloves with very significant padding. This pretty much instantly fixed the wrist pain issue I was dealing with.

JUST those changes are a big difference in how chipseal feels. There are a number of area roads that I used to avoid that I am now riding again. And I have not (yet) done any of the following

1) Change to Latex tubes

2) Change to more supple tires

3) Change to wider tires on the rear (where I have a bit of room, although not as much as I thought when looking at a glance). The actual 25's on the front are about it on the front.

So I really don't see a reason for me to go down the Domane path. And if I were to do an n+1 thing, it probably would not be the Domane (at least the 2019 model).

FWIW.

dave

rayooo

Sounds like you're good-to-go as is!
I've got a 2015 Domane that I love.. and I've updated the living daylights out of it. Always nice to do a bit of tweaking on the existing ride before plunking down $$ on a new one.
..and you can always get a new bike if/when the urge hits!

Rons

I bought a Domane sl6 last year and it is the most comfortable bike I've ever ridden. Have conti 4000 28c with latex tubes on it.