Bicycles... I want one... Suggestions/Recommendations?

caboose483 said:
Granted, I do train a lot and I am a fairly competent rider but I do get some satisfaction out of riding my aluminum frame bike in with the carbon guys. Most of them riding bikes worth 10 to 20 times what I paid for mine. I was 6th fastest out of 123 - in the ride segment - at the Lakeside sprint duathlon this past september
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See, guys like you (i.e. who aren't just weekend warriors like the rest of us) is who I'd like to ask those questions that obviously spawned my somewhat incredulous rants - do you really significantly benefit anymore from a $10k bike (outside of the looks factor) then from a $4k bike (which I would place as the most expensive a bike should get with all the latest and greatest)?

I mean, hasn't the technology reached the plateau for growth and innovation (I mean really, what could possibly be on the horizon for bike technology that would be ground-breaking e.g. disc braking)?

You know, back in my day it was making a bike as ridiculously light as possible and still take a beating e.g. I had a triple-butted chromoly frame and components that I managed to get down to approximately 21lbs vs. my full Ti Marin that was around 19lbs, how much would you sacrifice weight to get a shock up front, etc.

Like I said, to me it seems that the technology is finite for the bike industry hence why I'm shocked that there are bikes still so damn expensive.



Note: The above is my humble opinion of course, and stems from the fact that there are bicycles out there that cost as much as new motorcycle/used car, something I didn't think was still possible in this day and age. I'm not drawing a comparison to the field of auto and motorcycle design and manufacturing which I believe has more "moving parts" to consider when dealing with a final sticker price (and in NO way is it a jab at either caboose or FullMoto, or others, who are obviously skilled/passionate about biking).
 
honduhmatic said:
Unfortunately, Grip Shift fell out of fashion before it got good! The ESP 9.0 series was quite nice, and was the forerunner to X0, X9, X7, ...

Now for something truly obscure, does anyone have Sachs drivetrain parts? Or SunRace?
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Wow, Gripshift died the death we all predicted back then - can't say I'm surprised.

Oh, and I remember both the Sachs and SunRace stuff...heh.
 
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invictus43 said:
Pffftt...calling GripShift a competitor to Shimano is being a bit generous.. (ducks..) :-)
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Lol, trust me, we all had a good laugh when we first saw it (and reading Mountain Bike mag from those days you could see everyone struggling with accidental shifts, phantom shifts, etc.), and figured it would die a horrid death at the hands of the mountain bike community (although, we were surprised back in the day that it survived as long as it did).
 
If you've ever used the original, 1992-vintage, one-at-a-time shifting Shimano Rapidfire, you'd realize Grip Shift wasn't so bad.

I used it two years. The later, 1998 and 1999 versions, were quite good - smaller shifters, more secure ratchet action, more durable, and octagonal grips. Was nice to be able to brake/shift simultaneously, and change more than one gear at once.
 
dr_sarcasm said:
See, guys like you (i.e. who aren't just weekend warriors like the rest of us) is who I'd like to ask those questions that obviously spawned my somewhat incredulous rants - do you really significantly benefit anymore from a $10k bike (outside of the looks factor) then from a $4k bike (which I would place as the most expensive a bike should get with all the latest and greatest)?

I mean, hasn't the technology reached the plateau for growth and innovation (I mean really, what could possibly be on the horizon for bike technology that would be ground-breaking e.g. disc braking)?

You know, back in my day it was making a bike as ridiculously light as possible and still take a beating e.g. I had a triple-butted chromoly frame and components that I managed to get down to approximately 21lbs vs. my full Ti Marin that was around 19lbs, how much would you sacrifice weight to get a shock up front, etc.

Like I said, to me it seems that the technology is finite for the bike industry hence why I'm shocked that there are bikes still so damn expensive.
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It all depends. In a tri or other flat race, aero wheels far exceed the benefits of less frame weight. You'd be far further ahead with 80mm deep rims than a carbon frame. For hill climbing, weight is everything. My brother had a Vitus frame with a drilled out Dura Ace crank and drilled out Fiamme Red Label tubulars, Time Magnesium/Ti pedals, alu casette etc. for hillclimbing races in Germany and Austria. It weighed about 15lbs..just above the minimum weight allowed. For him though, he was actually winning races for money there against some Olympic-level athletes. So these things mattered. If you're not top 10, it's pointless.

Personally, I won't ride carbon anything. If the bike fits me and is comfortable and reasonably good quality, I'm happy. Bikes that cost over $5k are really difficult to compare to motorcycles..the componentry is really of a higher quality than most motorcycle stuff. And there's an economy of scale at work as well.
 
FullMotoJacket said:
There is nothing new under the sun..................er..................wait..... .......

[video=youtube;lWzdWMapJ-c]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWzdWMapJ-c[/video]
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Ahhh, but see, I would argue that the bike they built there should run $10k (it indeed has a lot of interesting features)...but realistically, automatic transmission on a bike controlled by your brainwaves? Really? I don't see the competitive benefits of that vs. the tried and tested method of trigger-shifting (my example of disc brakes was that they are/were arguably better than the v-break system that all bikes have/had when they first introduced).

What those folks built is a concept that may never see the light of day...and in my opinion, is a gimmick if it should come to mass market (more bling than anything else; I don't see how it would benefit a rider much less a competitor like yourself or caboose, for example).


P.S. Again, verbal diarrhea got the better of me - what I should have said is that what sort of performance innovation could they bring to the market that would warrant such a steep price tag in bikes today.
 
honduhmatic said:
If you've ever used the original, 1992-vintage, one-at-a-time shifting Shimano Rapidfire, you'd realize Grip Shift wasn't so bad.

I used it two years. The later, 1998 and 1999 versions, were quite good - smaller shifters, more secure ratchet action, more durable, and octagonal grips. Was nice to be able to brake/shift simultaneously, and change more than one gear at once.
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I've used them all..believe me.. :-) GripShift wasn't all THAT bad..I just thought Rapidfire was always better. At least it kept Shimano improving their product because it WAS actually a pretty decent competitor.
 
honduhmatic said:
If you've ever used the original, 1992-vintage, one-at-a-time shifting Shimano Rapidfire, you'd realize Grip Shift wasn't so bad.

I used it two years. The later, 1998 and 1999 versions, were quite good - smaller shifters, more secure ratchet action, more durable, and octagonal grips. Was nice to be able to brake/shift simultaneously, and change more than one gear at once.
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I have a 1992 Giant ATX990 with Deore DX rapid-fire shifters, with Nukeproof carbon handlebar, Syncros aftermarket everything, Sella Italia 'Flight' saddle and ti bolts everywhere/anywhere - I know what you speak of (and I've no idea if any of those manufacturers are still in business, RIP if they aren't).
 
Didn't mean to insult your vintage cycling chops...

Gen 1 RapidFire was BAD, although I can see how people just can't get on with GripShift.

After using Gen 1 Rapidfire, now I can see why early '90s XT 7-speed thumbshifters are highly collectible. By the mid-late '90s Rapidfire was great.
 
honduhmatic said:
Didn't mean to insult your vintage cycling chops...

Gen 1 RapidFire was BAD, although I can see how people just can't get on with GripShift.

After using Gen 1 Rapidfire, now I can see why early '90s XT 7-speed thumbshifters are highly collectible. By the mid-late '90s Rapidfire was great.
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LOL. Dear laaawd, I'm in no way offended - was just letting you know I have experienced first-hand the pain you write about (I still ride that bike given I'm no longer into the scene like I used to be i.e. getting money for bigger and more expensive toys like motorcycles ruined me).

Cheers!
 
Hahaha, in my GTAM experience, flame wars have been started over smaller things :p

You guys are making me feel young at under 30. I used to borrow my uncle's Nishiki with 7-spd Shimano DX. My first bike (at 14) was a '97 Trek 6000 with a bonded aluminium frame (last year Trek made'em), Grip Shift SRT400 and a Rock Shox Quadra 5.

Does the Giant have a Judy fork with Speed Springs and a Risse cartridge?

What's funny is that the OP's $500 used bike will probably ride as well as your Giant and my $2000 '99 Stumpjumper.
 
there's also the Toronto Spring Bicycle Show to check out March 2-4 down at the CNE, maybe you can find something there? not sure if there's a used section but worth a try.
 
honduhmatic said:
Hahaha, in my GTAM experience, flame wars have been started over smaller things :p

You guys are making me feel young at under 30. I used to borrow my uncle's Nishiki with 7-spd Shimano DX. My first bike (at 14) was a '97 Trek 6000 with a bonded aluminium frame (last year Trek made'em), Grip Shift SRT400 and a Rock Shox Quadra 5.

Does the Giant have a Judy fork with Speed Springs and a Risse cartridge?
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HA! Nope to the Judy fork - no suspension of any kind! I tried to add front suspension to it a few years back, only to be told they didn't make forks for that diameter tubing anymore...heh, how's that for old?
 
2live&ride said:
lol... you can let it out...
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Vintage is a sliding scale term. ;)

In the MTB world, this is vintage

IMG_0578-1.jpg


This is a little older than dr sarcasm's Giant, and is considered retro.

z12.jpg
 
Basically, fullmoto, to you vintage would be pre-'90 and retro would be... pre-'95? (Nice Corrado or A2 Golf in the background BTW - well, nice Ritchey too.)

Anyways, 2live&ride, you can see that cycling is about as much of a cult pursuit as motorcycling, and asking "what to get" would be similar to doing the same for motorbikes on gtamotorcycle...

Of course, always happy to help and answer questions.
 
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