It's NOT About The Bike! | Cheap Performance Bike Upgrade Ep. 1
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 8 ก.พ. 2025
- With some brands top spec bikes costing well over £10,000 pounds or dollars, is it really necessary to buy speed?! For 10% of the price can Alex buy and upgrade a cheap bike, and turn it into a performance beast? It's time for a new cheap bike to super-bike challenge!
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Hey @gcntech viewers! Great to see so many people sharing their thoughts on the series and build so far (even some of the negative comments 😉) The bike is shaping up well and i am excited to share Ep2 with everyone. What would be the first parts you would look to upgrade?
wheelset!?
Tyres for sure!! hahah
I am truly geeked about this build (see my comment in this thread). I have the same bike, and it rides pretty well as is, but it is a bit chunky compared to new bikes.
What you have there is a frame and fork worthy of upgrading. Everything else has to go.
First, of course, is wheels, tires, cassette. Second is the remaining drivetrain, from shifters/levers to derailleurs and especially replacing that weighty crankset and BB it a proper forged aluminum double and lighter BB.
Last is headset, seat post, saddle, stem, and bars.
In short, your bike needs a new bike.
Do you know what year the bike is? Have a giant Defy from 2011 - already upgraded to 105 groups set and some new ali wheels. Probably could do with some super new tyres ?
Cool idea, as long as you don’t “find” or “borrow” a bunch of things around GCN Megabase, as is the usual pattern with these types of videos
You don't have a dura-ace crank set lying around somewhere?
“we saved up from the budget cause we have some spare dura-ace di2 groupset”
ABSOLUTELY THIS
Dang..that’s the truth though, I wish they’d just quit this stuff
“Our sponsors threw us some upgrades”
I got a chuckle when Alex seemed confused about the pedals. Mountain bike pedals on road bikes are almost the norm when cycling with my non-roadie crowd - folks don't want to clip in and the pedals have the pins that cause normal shoes to stick better!
They're the pedals I have on my bikes. I don't want to have to take a second pair of shoes to run in.
Absolutely. I don’t race, my bike has flat pedals because it’s comfortable for me.
@@RobDickson69I wouldn't run on mtb shoes lol
Same. I’ve still got strap-in style pedals on my road bike. They’re comfortable, and let me use light joggers, instead of spending hundreds on cleats and single-use shoes.
@@thecatofnineswords I don't want to admit it but spending atleast 150$ on a pair of road cycling shoes from shimano or sidi is the biggest game changer for cycling. The only problem is, even after knowing it's effects, I don't want to have to spend money on it again. I'm getting a Shimano RC7 shoe and after that I'm not gonna go any more expensive unless my sponsors provide it.
Edit: it may make some people cringe, but when going to the store I use flipflops on Shimano 105 pedals lol can't be bothered to use cycling shoes for trips under 10km
My favorite road bike is built up from a 50 year old Magneet steel frame, very similar to a Raleigh Record from the same era. I got it for free after it did not sell at a moving sale five years ago. Nothing special but it is a fully lugged steel frame in just my size, and I like the frame geometry and ride. The light alloy wheels and crankset came from a 12 speed Miyata from around 1990, which was left behind by a previous tenant at my apartment. I also used the square taper BB, seat, seatpost, and center pull brakes from the Miyata. The Shimano Alivio derails and six speed index shifter on the stem came from my parts bin. New parts included Dimension 40mm short reach drop bars, threadless stem and adapter from Nashbar, along with Panaracer Pasela 27 inch tires. I rode the bike like this for two years before upgrading to a new Shimano Tourney 7 spd drop bar shifter and new Tektro dual pivot front brake. So my total cost for the first five years was around $200.
This year I’m upgrading to a 14-34 freewheel and Shimano Hollowtech II BB and crankset, plus another pair of Paanaracer Pasela tires, for roughly $200 additional cost, and I expect to ride this bike for many more years.
I got myself a Canyon ultimate al with 11 speed Campagnolo and high end Ritchey components for €350. Upgraded with a 38mm alu wheelset with Hope pro hubs for €75. Had to do a bit of cleaning and maintenance, but it came out really nice.
Well done
That sounds like an absolute steal 🙌
Bike looks heavy! I would say 10.4kg! Can't wait to see the final result
CLOSE!
Great series. Looking forward to this, as it’ll be useful for so many of the GCN viewers, since most of us a don’t have huge amounts of money to spend on bikes. Weight is generally the least important thing to improve. Just because weight is the metric that’s the most easy to measure, it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking weight is the more important than rolling resistance and aerodynamic (which it isn’t, and I’ve been there!). This is the McNamara fallacy.
Turn those notifications on and you won't miss episode two! 🙌 It is going to be a super useful video for those wanting to build that dream budget super bike 🙌
Love this series! Should have been a group challenge where everyone was given x amount to buy and fix up a cheaper bike for a GCN competition
Yeah, those are fun to see what the different presenters come up with. I hope Alex uses the extra video time to explain more of the 'how' and 'why' behind some of his choices and repairs.
They've done it before, but always chose duff bikes. In fairness, this isn't great either. Canyon Roadlite 2013/4 would have smashed this bike all day.
@Ben how? They're both basic, non-aero aluminum road bikes but the Roadlight is far less aero due to the flat bar. Is this just dumb bias because you own one?
@@veganpotterthevegan it's over 2kg lighter without trying. Stock 8.2kg. Agree, it's not aero, but that's a lot of weight saving for free. Indeed more than a set of wheels.
And yes, I own one. Now sub 8kg and cost me £200 for the bike, less on 'upgrades'.
Good idea... maybe next time 👀
So basically building Triban RC520
Dont think u can get an rc520 for £100...or can you? 😅
@@JazMoody he'll replace the wheels, tires and groupset. If he were to use 105 it would be ~800£
This build is going to be nothing like an RC520! The base bike isn't far off that, the whole point of this series is showing what parts are key upgrades and how close to a performance bike you can get with a modest budget.
Triban 520 without the RC. A rim brake bike with 9 speed sora
@@jimmyhor78 the fact it's an old Sora makes me think he'll change it
I found a brand new, 2008 Synapse Alloy Frame for $90. Added a modern 105 R7000 Groupset and Mavic Ksyrium Helium wheels and it's a beautiful ride!
Great video. Very relevant for cost of living vs cycling addiction. More like this please.
More of this to come! Get those notifications turned on and you won't miss a thing 🔔
As someone that can, probably, never afford/justify spending on a superbike; this is right up my street.
Nowadays you dont really need to spend that much. Outside of racing its ... kind of pointless?
Most of us can probably lose the 3kg rather on our bodies than on our bikes.
You even get hydraulic disc bikes new for 1200-1300€
And if you are fine with rimbrakes you can get a new bike with 105 for
@@hkp9257 Got myself a boardman SLR 8.9 carbon bike with shimano 105 groupset(had to buy crank and rim brakes separately) total cost me 1,4k pounds(bike itself was 1,2k) weighs roughly 9kg and if i upgrade later on into some nice deep section carbon wheels, most likely gonna drop in weight and be about 8kg, i'd say its more than enough for a budget road bike like this especially if you don't even race it's more than enough.
Also my previous road bike was about 13-14kg, so for me the one i bought recently is a huge upgrade in weight, components and the way it handles, so anything above that, i don't care as much, unless i go for wireless shifters so i dont need hassle myself with the wires at all, that seems like QoL change, but not exactly necessary.
@@sinnaru6286 sounds like a great combo!
Iam always a fan of spending money on memories rather than equipment. So plan some nice bike trips with the leftover money :)
I still dont know if electric shifting is such an QoL change. Changing the cables every 1-2 years vs charging the batteries way too often ...
Sadly I gonna have to get a disc brake bike so I can fit 28/30 street tires and 32/35mm gravel tires on it. 2 wheelsets + 1frame = 2bikes :P
Thanks for this kind of video. It can be so discouraging for a beginner cyclist to hear the prices that they are expected to pay for a new bike. These are options. Definitely some more work involved, but I think it is so good to have so more cyclists can be included and encouraged. There is always time to get more expensive bikes in the future.
I just got my first full carbon road bike for 450 bucks. It doesn’t have any cracks in the frame and it’s with a full set of sram rival. So I’d say you can definitely shop around and find used stuff. Patience and lots of research is the key I guess ❤
You don't need all the fancy kit... just a bit of imagination 🙌
Totally agree with your comment! While top spec bikes are great to see and ride, there is more to cycling that just fancy bikes and parts. I really enjoy doing builds like this.
Finally the HiLow series… 😜
Donut fans have entered the chat 🎉 😊
You might have me back as a regular viewer, and I'm sure many more.
One comment I'd like to add is that I ride a fifty year old classic Reynolds 531, original manufacturer unknown, it was renovated by Argos in Bristol in the eighties. I'm extremely happy with it, but due to a major accident, had to have frame repaired (snapped left chainstay) which entailed stripping down the bike. I made quite a few improvements more apt for today, had chainstay bridge moved back, chainstays dimpled, and now use a 28c tire front, and 32c rear, both 700c rim. It seemed grotesque at first, but with Conti 4 seasons, the ride is incredibly good for day touring.
A *big mistake* I made, albeit I'll try some 'gummy' brake blocks before going back, is replacing the brake levers with sideways cable routing (along the bars, like all modern bikes). The loss of mechanical advantage is profound, bordering on downright dangerous.
I always lamented the cable loops getting in the way of things on the bars, but I suggest to any others thinking of 'improving' them by replacing the levers with side routing ones: Don't! Braking with side pull calipers was superb with the 'old fashioned' set-up. Those same calipers are now left wanting for mechanical effort to engage them fully.
This article really interests me, as I have recently been gifted this exact bike (other than the color, mine is black), and have been wanting to do some upgrades. It would honor my late friend I rode with who's fiance' gifted me his bike because she said he'd want it to go to someone that would appreciate it, and I'd like to do so by upgrading it to near "superbike" status.
Simple upgrades might be called for, but don't invest too much into it, there's a point of of minuscule or no returns.
Wow! Keep those eyes peeled, sounds like this video is made for you 🙌 How does the bike ride? Is Alex onto a winner?
@@gcntech I'm currently fighting a bout of mild pneumonia, so I haven't got to ride it much. I put new tires and bar tape on it, and tuned it to get the front derailleur to work, now it's just waiting to get my lungs back so I can take it for a proper spin. On the short rides I have taken, it rides quite well, a big upgrade from my Windsor Leeds 700s for sure.
Great vid gang BUT...you could have got a WAY better bike for 200quid lol!
For 210quid I got a carbon frame with di2 10spd and dura ace wheels. Near new condition mileage wise but very dusty. Last week off the second owner here in Adelaide.
Glad you enjoyed it Durian 🙌 Sounds like you got yourself a great bike there. This one has good bones... it's going to end up looking like a real peach 👌
Don't suppose its for sale? asking for a "friend"..... Might be a short series though after buying a bike that doesn't need any upgrades!😅
I put a cheap bike together for racing, using a singlespeed. I put a disc brake fork on the front, deep section wheels and an appropriate gear (64x14) for the speeds we do.
It's lightweight, simply by omitting all the gears, derailleurs and shifters. Cheap for the same reason. And I've never been limited by anything but my own fitness.
Where do I get myself a 64t ring?
@@ariffau there are lots of different suppliers for larger rings. Mine is Gebhart, but some of the Canadian national team guys use Digirit.
Velobike, Aerocoach, Kappstein, and Stone are some of the brands that come to mind but there are dozens to choose from.
First thing I'd change would be contact points: Stem and bars, seatpost and saddle so the bike fits your position. Next thing would probably be the entire drivetrain. I'd go search for used high end 11sp mechanical stuff. I'd love to see mechanical Dura Ace :) Also tires, bc they're probably about as old as the bike. Wheelset would probably be last for me. If you want a race setup, you could probably score a nice set of used deep section rim brake tubulars. People are basically throwing these away. Put on a set of Vittoria Corsas and you got yourself a nice racing bike.
Looks promising!
Can't wait to see it all and what Giuseppe could achieve 👍
I gave it the 15 year old upgrade recently. New carbon wheels, 11 speed rear derailleur (Ultegra GS), new 11-32 cassette, Carbon aero bars (Black Inc), 11 Speed DA chain (I can afford good chains as I wax), Vitorrio Zaffiro 25mm tires and latex tubes, with 105-7000 levers at the front. Still using the 105 10S front derailleur and Ultegtra 50/34 rings, the frame (carbon & original), forks (carbon & original), dura-ace rim brakes (original), carbon seat post (original). Seats are personal but re-suing the one I have. Comes in under just 8Kg fully fitted (call it 8) which is OK. It is aggressive geometry. It is also less comfortable but lighter and faster than my "new" bike which is 7 years old and Di2/Disk). I use it mostly for shorter sub 50km rides. Cost, a third that of a new mechanical bike but better equipped(theoretically). Now both bikes are 11 speed which makes it easier for me to maintain the drive trains. I kept all the old parts, as I might get nostalgic. Motto: Repair, Re-use, ReCYCLE!
Just revamped my Canyon Roadlite 6. No more 105 up front. Converted to a single chainring 46T. No more fidgety front derailleur. Perfect for me as I ride an hour at a time for workout purposes. Very happy with conversion.
Sounds like a great bike! Why the jump to 1x?
@@gcntech My small front ring was not utilized very often for my outdoor rides. Live along the coast of New England where steep hills are rare. Great setup for an old man (Approaching 60) while riding during Spring, Summer, or Fall. I could be in trouble when I ride indoors with my Rouvy subscription. I have to say that I want my double chainring back, in the Winter, because of some of those steeper Rouvy climbs. 😳
Nice! Stoked for this series, I love budget bike builds, it's always nice to see a bike get a new lease on life and a proud owner. Even though this is a 22 year old frame, it looks like aquality frame, definitely from a reputable brand. I'd say as long as it has 130mm rear hub spacing to accommodate a 10 or 11 speed groupset, it could probably bring it down to bring 90-95% all on the rider.
It's going to be a big glow up on this bike 🙌
Before I start watching. Been hoping for this series for ages. Thanks.
Woo a new build series! Too bad we now have to wait for new episodes... 😂
The suspense is too much 😬
Bought a £120 cross bike last year put new chain and cassette on, ridden ever since, perfect
I recently picked up a 2009 Giant OCR-2 that came with Tiagra Brifters and Shimano 105 gear set/brakes for $300us. Just completed my first charity ride of 38 miles in 2hr-19min. Great bike! After watching this series of budget bike videos I plan on doing the same mods on mine. 👍🏻
Love these series, how about this time every upgrade you add to it gets a monetary value rather than high end parts found "free out the back of the workshop"?
And sell off old parts to increase the budget
Thats the plan for some parts for sure
Weight 10.2kg, I bought a Giant Contend 1 frame in blue for £120 and put high to mid end Shimano components on it and it still weighs 8.7kg for an alu, rim brake bike👍🏽
That's very good, new wheels too?
@@gurinderkular7209 Yes but only Vision Team 35s tbf their bangin alu wheels for £160 a pair, p.s my build was not sub £1k😆I'll leave that to the ex pro but it was still only £1.7k with powermeter and ultegra pedals
Now this is a series I have been waiting for
Glad to hear it, thanks
I'm going 10.2kg. Looking forward to this series.
Fantastic idea! I have Canyon Ultimate CF Pro from 2009, which is still going strong. To keep it competitive I upgraded some years ago with a new set of wheels (HED Jet 6 Plus) with modern tyres (Conti 5000, with latex innertubes), A new aero carbon handelbar and some minor things (Nokon-liners for improved shifting and breaking). Altogether the bikes comes in just under 7kg and feels very fast! I you get the frame and wheels in good, used condition (maybe not the tyres and handlebars). You should be able to come in below 1500€...
Sounds like a great build 👀 Is it in the bike vault? 👉gcn.eu/app
@@gcntech Not yet, but I definitely thought about it...;-)
@@gcntech I uploaded it today, in Front of a Redwood.
I had that Sora set on my first road bilke. It was considered beginner but shifted really well. I put lots of happy miles on mine.
Sora is super reliable! A great first road bike groupset 🙌
I’ve ridden an OCR of that vintage before, those things are brutal over bumps. If I remember correctly they’re around 22lbs
Bumpy roads are not this bikes friend! i agree
That bike in size L wieghs in at 10.3 kilos without bottle cages and pedals. So I'd say more than 10.5 kilos as is.
I thought 10.5kg too.
Yes, currently around 23 pounds my guess. 🎯
Ditto, or very close.
My guess 9.8kg 🚴♂️ 💪
Cheers from 🇵🇹🏖
Those flat pedals would add more than 200g themselves plus a little bit for the bottle cages. I'd say about 10.7 kg.
I applaud this, I need someone to be inspired to buy my 2015 propel sl frameset 😂
Love your videos 10.8kg
Cant wait to see what you have done 👍👍💪👌👌
very excited for this series!
You should be! It's going to be great 🙌
Alan’s DIY Rembrandt lighting. the DRAMA. I also am secretly hoping he puts on a Chinese carbon groupset!
feels like direct response to Durianrider videos ahah
£995 worth of online EPO and £5 to hire a city bike.
alright..... this is going to be a great series, can't wait for the next episode.......
Turn of those notifications and you'll never miss a beat 🔔
Yesss!!! And I thought you'd upgrade Manon's budget bike. Now am gonna see thru how hyper this bike will be. Hope it will be upto my expectation😂! Will watch this series Alex!💥👍✌️
Cool idea, looking for the next episode
What upgrades have you ever made to your bike? Let us know in the comments! 👇
20mm shorter stem, flat MTB pedals and 30mm tubeless tyres. The thing actually feels comfortable now 😊
I just bought a 2013 Madone with Ultegra DI2 10s. Had some carbon wheels and a power meter already and had to replace the cassette, chain and chainrings which I went with Absolute Black oval and it is stunning. Also Dura Ace direct mount brakes and carbon pads. Have about 1500 in it and it’s under 17 lbs 🎉
I changed my touring bike a lot. I've done these changed in about 5 years.
1- New lugage rack on the back, in 2023 I mounted a luggage carrier extension on the luggage carrier. (monkey-mee it's called).
2- in 2018 I replaced the wheels. from wheels with single walled rims to wheels with double walled rims.
3- I replaced the rims-brake systems on the front and back. I will keep using mechanical brakes.
4- In 2022 I changed the frontwheel again. This time I took the wheel out and replaced it with Gazelle frontwheel containing the dynamo hub.
5- In 2022 I replaced the head and rear light which worked on batteries for lights that work on the dynamo hub.
6- I changed the stem and the handlebar.
7- My local bikeshop replaced the cartridge bottom bracket for a new cartridge bottom bracket with scuare tapered axle.
8- I added a few metal plates, with a bolt sticking out for pulling my bike-traler.
9- I replaced the cassette from a 7speed to a 9-speed (11-32).
10- I replaced the brake-cables, and the gear-cables.
11- I replaced the Shimano Alivio rear derailleur for Shimano Deore. (I might sound like and downgrade).
12- In 2022 I changed the shifter on the right from Sunrace with Shimano Juju.
13- In 2022 I had to replace the front fork. It was broken.
Frame
All of them. Only the frame and the seatpost is original:)
Really looking forward to this series! Especially as I want to upgrade my Gravel- & Roadbikes in an usefull way, as cheap as possible.
I actually also have Mountain Bike pedals on them, as I am living in Berlin, where you have a lot of stop & go situations... And as I use my bikes mostly for commuting and fitness, it doesn't make a lot of sense to me to go clipless. On your main channel you guys made a lot of videos comparing them and that little performance-gap, especially on short distances, isn't enough for me, to give up the comfort of having normal shoes/sneakers while riding.
Flat pedals are a great option for urban transport 🙌 Did you catch Hank razzing around Berlin? Som great city riding to be done! 👉th-cam.com/video/HWEqE5CmUVQ/w-d-xo.html
@@gcntech Yes and I really liked the video 👍
Interestingly, I went to mountain bike pedals on my road bike recently as well. I like to move my feet around quite a bit. I'm also riding in a quite upright position, so what this setup enables is taking tight corners at high speeds cycle speedway style with one leg dangling to the side. It's quite a rush if you ask me.
Also using mountain bike pedals on my giant tcr.
Nothing wrong with running flats 🙌Did you catch out run down on flats vs cleats 👉th-cam.com/video/aVLfqjcTbnU/w-d-xo.html
@@gcntech I've added it to my Watch Later list. I use those pedals on my bikes.
Love the title and am excited to follow the path to the results at the final installment. I have a 24 lbs Tommosso Monza which has already received upgraded handlebars, wheels, and tires. I've been considering an upgrade from Tiagra to mechanical 105, but that would require another wheel change to accommodate the 11 speed cassette. Way to go Alex!!
The bike’s paint job is actually beautiful
The welds alone appeared to weigh 3 kilos.
😅
You missed a trick here, you should have got a aero TT frame and made it into a super aero road bike!
I like the idea, but disagree, the point of this series is to highlight that only certain parts are the most important and body position is too
@@GCNalex I agree with that, but you could actually make a bike £1500 that is as fast, or if not even faster then a modern day 15 grand Bike. Would be good to see that.?
@@niceracleous9999 I mean thats the entire point of this series! top spec performance for 10% of the price. Im keeping the budget as low as i can while maximising performance!
@@GCNalex I have done this myself. If you would like me to send you a pic, send me a email or something I can send to you?
You should be able to find parts of a second hand goupset really cheap. If not I'd go the china way and get Sensah or L-TWOO goupsets. You are likely in need of the #1 preformance upgrade in changing all the cables, so pretty please with sugar on top get some colored housing. Usually it's the same price as black anyways, plus the possibility of colourmatching.
Nice. Had the same idea of building a used one by myself. Cool to see it from your to learn how to deal with it
Good content! Excited for the future eps!
yeah that's 22lbs for sure. Looking forward to the upgrades! 11 speed 105 groupsets are wicked affordable right now!
Nice concept. One needs to be careful to not get a stolen bike, though!
That was my first thought too. If it's priced really low, it might be too good to be true.
You should upgrade the bike using only parts bought secondhand as well!
Excited to see how this project turns out. I have a Giant OCR-3 which I've been riding (occasionally) since 2008. I only moved purchased a new bike and relegated it to the trainer this month. My friends convinced me not to spend anything on the old bike.
very cool series if it's correctly made !
it's got to be in the region of 9.4kg surely! looking forward to seeing how much better you can make it for the money!
Thanks Durianrider for all advises
Glad Aaron has another budget bike series and that he has his official tickets to the bike fest
Aaron?
amazing
more than possible to get a great used bike with an already high end groupset for well under 1000. I got a 2003 lemond steel frame around the same year for 500, all ultegra, which weighs ~8.7kg and rides like a dream
it will be nice to see how it turns out
200 pounds budget bike - seems like GCN came back down to earth 😂
Will be interesting to see if any new Chinese parts finds their way onto the bike, a lot of TH-camrs seem to like some of the things coming from there at the moment.
Keep those eyes peeled incase
@@GCNalex Thanks Adam, I will!
My Allez Elite weighed 8.8kg stock, my guess is that old OCR-1 is over 10 - write me down for 10.3kg.
My Allez now though, no idea what it weighs but I've swapped the wheels for Zipp 302's, tires for GP5000's with TPU tubes, lighter saddle, brakes and crankset upgraded to full Shimano 105, it's a pretty snappy bike now. Cheers!
10kg. 22lbs. My experience - it's about the legs more than the bike. Great find!
I love your audio and tracks, where do you get your audio samples from? Great video Alex! Love this series
I love the budget series.
Can’t believe you’ve done this .. surely you’d have been able to find an old CAAD for not much more 😂
I've got an SCR3 that weighs in at 11kg so reckon this is pretty similar.
I'm guessing 10.9 kilos weight... I recently did a retromod on a 1992 Cannondale R1000 F2.8 Aluminum which I bought for $60 at a garage sale. It was 2x6 with down tube shifting. I upgraded it to a Shimano 105 R5700 2x10 group set , Shimano RS70 Wheels and a carbon fiber front fort and seat post (group set and wheels left over from another upgrade a did). I ride this bike regularly and find it to be very acceptable. My #1 bike is a Colnago C64, so it sets a high bar. I will occasionally show up at my weekend club ride with my "Vintage Retromod" for 65KM ride. The ride is harsher than the C64, but I find the perforformane to be very good. I must admit that when I switch back to the C64 after 65KM on the older aluminum bike, I am very grateful for my C64. But if I didn't have that to go back to, I think I'd be very happy with the upgraded bike.
Better way is to buy an entry level giant carbon road rim bike and upgrade the wheelset. That is more than enough for everything
I bought a 2020 Vitus Zenium frame for £200, got a brand new hydraulic shimano 105 crankset and groupset from wiggle for £400 on offer, and then just spent £400 on wheels, tyres and bars. all in £1000 for a hydraulic disc road bike that weighs about 8.5kg, using only 1 used component, the frame!
It is (NOT) About the Bike. Get on the damn bicycle, Shinji!
9.9kg
my 2022 Trek Domane (carbon fiber frame) is 10.8kg LOL. with my saddlebag and one full water bottle its 12kg.... not even that aero with stock wheels. cant wait to upgrade. going the cheap route too. this series will help give me ideas!
used bike came with a gcn bottle 👍
already a good buy albert
Could try and do what Tyler / The Vegan Cyclist did. 1 x setup with Rotor oval ring upfront, mtb deraileur and big wide range gearing at the back. Nice weight savings to be had and very rideable.
Wonder if this vid is a response to him 😅
With this ocr factory setup I cycled everyday to work for 45min one way and doctor said I have a healthy heart and good blood pressure.
Just get hold of a giant propel gen 1 - job done ✅
Great series idea
I'd say it's around the 9,5-10kg mark. And it's a great fitness bike too. 48-38-28 front and 11-28 rear?
I have an alloy framed muddy fox road bike in mint condition which I was going to sell (quite cheap) but this series might inspire me to keep it as an ongoing project.
Keep keep keep! Follow along and get upgrading, you'll learn some great skills on the way!
It'll be around 10 kgs is my guess. Sort of works, especially for the cash you paid for it and easy to upgrade bits or more to get the weight down and make it lighter and more enjoyable. I wouldn't be afraid of using a second hand groupset, like a 9sp 105, done that and Ultegra and Dura Ace of the same period on several of my builds, bought individual bits and pieces off ebay and it worked/still works fine with new cables, liners, brake shoes, new chain rings and cassettes and chains, pedals... a better set of wheels, but still use the original for winter, on rollers, as a spare set? Stems and handle bars new or secondhand, but the exact fit, easy with this kind of set up, it's not a rocket science...
Cool idea. I would say 10kg.
I have a similar bike fished out of a river and rebuilt from a time when I was skint. It has lots of second-hand quality parts. I also have a new 2022 tcr that is awsome but the river bike is my goto cos I am not afraid to break it or leave it chained up. Can sprayed mat black I think looks cool too.
Brilliant idea .
Like someone else said about putting the other presenters aswell for the challenge.
But to put a spanner in the works .
What about a GCN viewer ?
Not a top amateur or something someone who rides regularly but can only afford bikes under 2k
Go to your local wheelbuilders and get a pair hand build.
I'm very much considering this for my future wheels.
8.7 a heavy bike? Tell me you haven't ride an entry-level bike fo years without actually telling me!!! I would go for 10.7 kilos.
10.3kg? Looking fwd to this build ❤
Look forward to the series. 10.8 kilos
10kg, possibly a shade over. Could get to below 9kg with better wheels and groupset. Not sure you'll have the cash for that though. But really, who cares? 9kg is fine for a basic bike that's used for short to medium rides at the weekend or commuting, which is what this bike is designed for.
11.1kg like on old Carrera TDF I had, triple crank not gonna help plus them pedals! I'll have the triple crank BB and left lever if you are swapping them for a touring build 😀
11.2kg. 8 speed Sora with a triple isn't going to be a light groupset
10.5kg at a guess, wheels, chainrings, and pedals are killing it. I reckon this can go sub 8kg with some cheap carbon seatpost, bar and stem, wheels, and 10 yr old groupset.
10,6 kg. Nice colour on the bike. A tiagra groupset and som nice wheels it's going to be 9,2 kg😊👍🏻👍🏻
Fun Project :)
episode 2 please!
Cool video, but I would have spent a bit more on the bike to start with and less on the upgrades. For well under £1000 you can buy a nice carbon frame bike with aero profiles and a decent tier 11 speed groupset that will get you a better overall result for the same money and a lot less effort.
I bought a full carbon Cube Agree SL Team Wanty edition with Dura Ace for £850 and it’s a cracking bike. Just adding a set of 2nd hand carbon wheels and good tyres gives it all the performance you could need. I also own a much more expensive modern Dura Ace Di2 super bike and the Cube is almost as good!
Weight ..... I would say 10.5kg + 😁