Bike From Scratch

Weight isn’t something I get really worked up about, but I thought it would be fun to see how much the frame I built weighs, along with some other frames and bikes I have at the house. So I borrowed a scale from my buddy Dan and then dorked out

New Frame: 4lbs 2 oz. New Fork: 1 lbs 8 oz. All made from TrueTemper Verses, VersesHT and OX Platinum. The frame size is about 59 cm with a 58 cm top tube.

If I was to care about these sorts of things I’d say that the frame weight is right where I expected it to be, and the fork is god awful heavy. I can feel this when I lift the fork. You hold it in your hand and can tell it weighs far more than it should. This is two fold I think. A. the steerer is uncut, and B. we did the mutant 1 inch to 1 and 1/8th inch steerer deal so I’ve got 3 inches of 1 inch steerer inside my 1 and 1/8th inch steerer. 1 inch steerers are super duper thick. As long as handling isn’t effected I’ll soon forget about it (I am a touch concerned about what this will do to the handling, I don’t think I have a logical reason to worry, but we will see). On the upside if I ever get mugged on my bike, I can hit em with my fork, or attach a snow plow.

All thats hidden inside my steerer.

Knowing the frame weight I can take a guess at the total bike weight. I suspect I’ll end up in the 16 to 17 lbs range (including saddle and pedals). I say range because I’m still don’t have my head set and rear hub in hand so I can’t weigh them and I have not cut the steerer and head tube. For comparisons sake my Allez weighs 20 lbs 0 oz. (with saddle and pedals). I was shocked to see that the Specialized weighs that much as I’ve always thought of it as zippy and light weight. I will continue to think this. My Rivendell fully equipped weighs 35 lbs, and was a chore to lift onto the scale. Possibly the real kicker is the Trek 720 project I have in my basement. The frame, fork and cranks weigh a wopping 13 lbs. That’s before things like wheels, handlebars, chains etc. It’s going to make a hell of an xtra cycle when I get done with it.

With the new weight in had I played out a little thought experiment about my new bike compared to a new modern road bike. Modern typically means carbon, which has a serious weight advantage. Most of the folks I ride with ride on carbon bikes and love em. I’m not a believer that weight contributes to ride at all so that’s not taken into consideration below. Its merely the amount of effort required to get my bike vs. another one into a truck I guess. Or maybe RAGBRAI will have a really big hill this year that I’ll curse the extra weight.

(Mark or Heather correct me if I got this next part wrong, my memory is a little hazy from what you said on Saturday)

For arguments sake I want to compare a race bike to a race bike. A gal named Heather* rides with the same group I do and she just got a new Trek Madone that’s kitted with similar stuff (she’s using D/A, I’m using Red) to what I will be using. I think her rig tipped the scales at a hair over fifteen pounds. So my bike weighs a pound or two more than hers three at most. Lets call it two because I suspect that’s closer to the truth. I’d guess I’m running slightly lighter wheels (if memory serves she had something with a deeper dish than I do, but I think the Bontrager hubs are lighter than the Kings, and I’ve got way more spokes) and I think Red weighs a little less than D/A. But close enough. I think its neat that I could build a frame that allows me to have a bike anywhere near the weight of Heathers bike. When you pick up Heather’s bike there is a moment of panic that you over did and and you have to think about not tossing it across the room. I expected the frame I built to weigh at least 5 pounds more. Heck I’m shocked that I came in under the weight of my Specialized.

Perhaps to add a little perspective. I’ve been taking a cycling class over the course of the winter. One of those make you faster on the road affairs. I’ve lost the difference in weight between my bike and Heathers about 10 times over since the fall. Or another way of looking at it I’ve shed the weight of my old bike from my body. I suppose that more than makes up for the differences between my bike and Heathers. I’ve still got more to loose before I need to really start thinking about taking the weight out off the bike though.

Note I’ve not said much in this post about the advantages of one material over another. Typically I choose not to involve myself in this type of discussion because I think the talk tends towards drivel, conjecture (I bet I can count the number of people I know on one hand who have ridden carbon and steel and really thought critically about it in my circle of bike friends) and religious fervor. I don’t buy the argument that steel makes the greatest bikes in the world. I do think that steel is the most friendly material to work with, which might explains why there are so many one man steel operations. I think when folks start down the steel is real and the best thing ever line it’s total BS. If you’ve got a frame builder using this as their sales pitch you should go find a new one. Fit is job 1, material is secondary (at best). As for carbon there seems to be a lot of FUD there too. I don’t think that carbon bikes shatter all over the place or are in any way unsafe (despite the noise some of the folks I respect in the bike industry make). The only reason I’m not rocking my very own SL3 is that my wife would throw my ass to the curb if I showed up at home with another bike. Yeah crap happens and carbon reacts differently than steel in a crash or impact scinereo, but if something hits you hard enough to shatter your carbon fork / frame (where as  steel would have bent / dented)  you’re going down and the bike is the least of your worries at that point. Chances are that neither one is rideable if you get up. That said I don’t think a carbon touring bike makes any sense, and a steel racing bike is a flight of fancy and not something I’d expect to ever see in the pro peloton nor many of my friends on. I ride em because I like the way they feel. I’d go out on a limb and say that Heathers bike will ride nicer (where nicer means absorb more vibration) than mine because of the material. I have this grand unifying theory that says a carbon bike will have less vibration than a steel bike, but a steel bike will soften a large bump more. That seems to jive with the elasticity of both materials and is certainly how I’ve feel after riding both materials. I’d expect both bikes to be equally stiff, and the smiles on our faces will probably be gigantic the first time we get to ride our new bikes. So you know, go ride your bike, don’t worry too much about what its made out of. And if you’re shopping for a new one, get what makes you happy (The SL3 is a hot bike, if you can…. or an Ira Ryan if you want a custom, he makes pretty things and might just be the best of both worlds).

*Mark or Heather speak up if I got anything wrong or it bugs you that I’m using your bike as my example. There in the same size ball park and both new.