I can't help but notice on the Cannondale Trigger thread that lots of people are buying the bike and planning to swap out the forks, tires, brake rotors etc immediately.
Am I alone in just buying a bike and riding it until something wears out then I swap it?
Am I alone in just buying a bike and riding it until something wears out then I swap it?
Yes.
Good. I'm being weird then.
Mods. This thread is done.
Perhaps its nor the ideal bike for them and just a bargain
It all depends but I usually ride it as I bought it though I may adjust stem length bars and grips
My bike is only half put together but I have already changed the bars...
The only thing I changed on my Trigger was the rotors. And then only for the colour.
I usually change the tyres if they are crappy ones, then maybe the saddle if i dont get on with it. After that just replace / upgrade as things wear out.
I don't often buy whole bikes but when I do, often I've got stuff I like already so I'll take parts off unused to sell, rather than riding them and hitting the value. Drivetrain, bars, brakes, stuff like that.
I try not to change much. But it's so hard to resist.
I've just bought a Trek Stache 9. And so far I've only changed the grips and saddle to different models of Bontrager stuff so it looks standard spec to the untrained eye....!
The thing is that there really isn't much else it's possible to change on this bike, I've pretty much bought a fully loaded bike. 🙂
How many 29+ forks are there on the market, for instance?
My road bike and mtb are both almost as they came from the shop (tyres changed). I've been happy with both and would only upgrade when I break stuff.
Both bikes can do way more than my limited ability and fitness needs.
The last full, off the shelf bike I bought, way back in 2006, stayed as was for about a week. I HAD to change the saddle, it was akin to a razor blade. Still has the same saddle. But the only other original parts are the frame and forks. 🙄
I've got fussier as I've got older and I like certain things, grips, saddles, pedals, etc. so they would be changed before the first ride. Other parts are just preference. I wouldn't spec SRAM for instance.
Never bought a complete bike.....
I have a tinker, I've bought the Trigger Carbon and straight out of the box I know I need tyres.
Eventually I'll get it 1x10 set up as I'm finding the cockpit a little cluttered with brakes, 2 shifters, dropper lever and shock lever.
Oh, and grips, I swear by ESI grips
I have one of those triggers in the post- already plan to change cranks, drivetrain, tyres... But with stuff that is on what was meant to be by beater winter hardtail that acquired 11 speed xt, e13 cranks etc. So the XT. Off the trigger 2 will go on the hardtail, 11 speed pimpstuff on the trigger..
Didn't change the winter road bike cos, well, it's just gonna get a kicking, so no point blinging it out, it's basic but functional.
Haven't changed anything on the newmad either, but then I ticked every upgrade option so no point changing anything...
The mtb I custom specced to start with has had more changes than my other off the peg mtbs put together...
On the 27.5 FS, I've changed everything except the frame, forks (pike), seatpost (reverb), chain and headset.
On the 29er I've changed everything except the frame and headset.
Brooms trigger innit.
my blue voodoo from halfords is still stock with the exception of one tyre (bald last one) and the front brake that died, and replacement wheels that came from Matts giant when my rear hub died. I don't bother upgrading mine because
a) I'm tight
b) whats the point
c) it's not going to make me a better rider
however if I was building from scratch I would be choosy about what I have
Ed. I agree with your points a, b, & c 100%
I guess it depends on why you bought a bike?
With my new cannondale super six evo I found the cheapest model (105) to get my hands on the frame set. Had looked at aftermarket framesets but nothing available of that quality (just over 900 gm) and reputation at a good price.
Whole bike was £1080 on sale.
Already had 6800 ultegra groupset, pair of 1500gm DT Swiss wheels, Vittoria corsa tires, toupe pro saddle and zipp service course finishing kit.
Fully rebuilt out the box. 7kg all in. Feels incredible to ride.
Tyres and contact points are usualy on the change list pretty quickly depending on how i get on with them. Everything else stays till it breaks.
To be fair bikes are specced pretty well these days
My process came with 760mm bars, 35mm stem, sticky front tyre, comfy saddle
Nice grips,
Non compatibility issues with tapered/15mm/142/650b standards also meant I didn't have much I could swap over!
I swapped out the brakes after a ride though
But I kept the drivetrains till oit wore out etc
I tend to be a bit fussy and like what I like. The day I started building bikes from the frame up and buying exactly the bits I wanted was the day I began to save a lot of money - it's a great antidote to upgraditis...
Yeah usually, I've upgraded parts after a few rides if I don't get on with them, but I don't recall swapping things before I try them.
I don't often trust 'conventional thinking' it usually doesn't match my own taste / experience.
Shouldn't it be
Cannondale Trigger(s broom)?.
Last three bikes built from frame only, but, if I bought a bike it'd have its saddle changed then just ridden til stuff wears out.
My last complete bike (that was semi-custom specced when I bought it) had tyres and grips changed before the first ride, saddle and brake pads after the first ride, seat post, bars, BB and stem within 5 rides. Basically, anything I'd not chosen myself got changed anyway.
I'm about to pull the trigger in swapping out my colorway.
Grrrrrr.
That aside, the closest I've come to this was my Diverge. Only change when I bought it was the saddle. Fitted pedals and cages, but it didn't come with any so that doesn't count.
Have since changed tape and tyres.
Fit, it's the first thing I feel on a bike. Set that up for the first couple of months then I'll know what needs changing.
Tyres usually the first to go, I have my favourites see.
Bars normally stay until I want to reduce in width once settled 42/44 are too wide for me but I'll suffer until convinced. I'll certainly change seats, but again that's because I have favourite brand and ass positioning.
The rest? Well I'll ride it for a while before changing, possibly, the other bits.
Fit n feel eh 🙄
I'm with the OP, I just ride it and replace stuff when it wears out. I can see how you might want a different saddle, but I must be lucky as I've never encountered a saddle I can't get on with.
Stuff like grips and bars- really?
And going further to brakes etc. - surely you should've just bought something else?
New Trigger 4 here.
Swapped C'dale seatpost for Reverb which I had anyway.
C'dale seat collar for Hope - had.
C'dale lock on grips for RF Good n Evil grips - had.
Rotors - bigger F & R - had.
The tyres may go - depends on how they feel wet - by all accounts they aren't great.
540 pedals off existing bike.
The bike was great at £1800 off RRP but a lot of changing is contact points which are very personal.
Seat looks nice but not sure it fits my arse so that may be swapped with either a BelAir or a Spoon/Knife.
Cheaper Deore chainset & f mech will be replaced when they break - mech might be sooner rather than later as it's wobbly as **** already!
I've never bought a mountain bike where I thought 'these wheels are really good'. Always look to change them - seems like you need to spend quite a lot on a full bike before the wheelset starts to get serious.
I like cannondales, owned several over the years, but they must be some of the most poorly spec'd bikes in the industry. At the prices Paul's are knocking them out at you can't complain, but CDale are not known for pushing the boat out on the componentry (IME).
Harry_the_Spider - MemberAm I alone in just buying a bike and riding it until something wears out then I swap it?
Nope. That is exactly what I have traditionally done, although I am starting to think in terms of separate parts now.
I was like that as a kid with things like Lego sets and G.I.Joe toys as well, though. I would buy the set, build it as it appeared on the box, and play with it until it was worn out. I am a bit conservative that way.
On my Canyon Nerve AL I changed the grips to Ergons, saddle to a Charge spoon and then fitted the same spec Reverb stealth that the higher spec bikes had.
The bike just works well.
On my old Kona, everything was changed apart from the frame shock and seat clamp, it just didn't work so well.
The Whyte I'm riding has different tyres and has been converted to 1x10 but that's it.
No. One bike has just the frame left. Another has the original frame & fork. One of the others has just had the cockpit changed, oh and the drivetrain set up. And finally the most recent bike the stem, bars, dropper post, narrow wide chainring, different pedals, converted to tubeless, rear mech will go soon & shifter will go soon. Works in progress...
On my Trigger I took the double chainrings, front mech and shifter off before I rode it. had a spare direct mount chainring in the garage, so there didn't seem any point using the new bits. At some stage I am sure I will sell the chainrings, although not sure how much of a market there is for front mechs and LH shifters. The rest of it has been left as it was supplied.
Last full bike I bought was a Emmelle Cougar 12 in 1986. Only because my Dad made me.
I typically ride stuff I buy "out of the box" until something wears out or until I decide it really doesn't work for me OR I've built it from the spares box (a bit of a hobby in itself for me).
I put decent pedals on my recent new bike straight away (resin with clips and straps isn't really the way to go) and did the tubeless conversion on the wheels a few days later (blooming brambles).
Things I would change early on if I didn't get on with them:
- saddles
- tyres (if totally inappropriate).
- stem or bars (for reach/comfort)
I think in part it depends on your attitude and how you go about it.
I know people who've bought a bike with the sole intention of only getting the frame out of the middle because their accumulated over the years kit is super bling and buying a frame only is poor value. With the right discounts I've seen one friend end up with a free frame (albeit including selling their "old" one). With ever changing standards I can see this being less easy.
Equally if you're on a budget you could buy the base model and deal with some critical weak points straight away and flog off the shiny new unused OEM stuff and minimise your losses.
Yep, first MTB was standard Trek HT, rode it for over 7 years
Just bought camber evo - apart from reverb, it's all standard.
Given that I often forget to switch the CTD, fannying about with different forks etc seems a total waste of time and money 😉
I was determined not to change anything on my Canyon Strive. Changed the seat immediately to my tried and true SLR but then I lasted 4 months before I even changed the weird Ergon grips. Everything else is stock at the moment.
I used to be very particular about what I liked (SRAM vs Shim, RS vs Fox etc) but it's all pretty good stuff these days. Just replace when it breaks.
See this is why I buy Rose bikes, you get to change stuff before it even turns up.
Stock bikes are the worst - don't do it ever ..
My Trigger will get the Reverb Stealth I already have, mostly because there's way too much seatpost for the frame so I can barely lower it.
Rest will stay as-is for a bit. I'll at least try the tyres before replacing.
I impulse bought a Santa Cruz Nomad literally last week for a riding holiday. I then rode it for 4 straight days of fairly demanding riding, and it was fine. I had to swap out one of the headset spacers for a rude one, but otherwise it seems to have passed the test. Tubeless conversion, then use until broken.
🙂
Road bike is two years on with no change.
Last MTB had chnages planned before it arrived.
It's a do and don't care issue.
Well the last complete bikes I've bought have been a road bike and a CX.
The roadie got the chainset swapped in the shop for a compact (surely I don't to explain that one!). After a couple of 50+ mile rides the saddle had to go as it was making me bleed. After 400+ miles in the alps the bars had to get swapped out (they were narrow 42's and I like wide 44's!). Had to change the stem as different dia (and I got a cheap matching one off Merlin for £20-25). Oh and I bought a decent set of wheels as well. OEM were Aksiums, I put on Dura-ace
The CX seems fine. The bars are a little narrow, I can see them being changed. I'm not overwhelmed with the Spyres so would like to go hydraulic, but that's a wish not a must do.
So basically I like to change things for fit purposes and to improve the cycling *experience*.
No way I could buy an off the peg mountain bike (even a Cotic) as I know what I want. It'd be like buying a pair of size 44 shoes when your really a 45, they'd work but you'd always wish you could change them so they were that little bit more comfortable.
Who rides a stock bike ?? Bloody weirdo's 😆
I just like having nice parts on my bike and when buying complete there are lots of compromise parts that I would never choose. The last complete bike I bought was 6 years ago and just ended up with the frame, forks and headset after 2 years.
If I was into buying bikes that cost £4K then I doubt I would swap much, otherwise what is the point in spending £4K.
Think it is cheaper in the long run to just build them from scratch and any compromises on parts are my choice that I am happy to make rather than a manufactures.
Road bikes get ridden as bought until something wears out. My first decent road bike was a custom handbuilt frame so if I hadn't got that right ... Since then I've just gone with stock bikes.
Current MTB was specced and built up prior to purchase so there was no need. I changed the stem after about 4 months as an experiment (I'm still using it) but apart from replacing parts as they wear out it's the same bike that I bought 18 months ago.
Road bike, I only changed the saddle, but it was Ultegra groupset & wheels so not much reason to "upgrade"
MTB, I have never bought a complete bike, always frame plus combination of old/new kit to complete it
Stuff like grips and bars- really?
you find the idea of changing one of your few contact points to something that is more comfortable strange - really?
3yr old road bike is on original frame and groupset everything else has been changed for comfort and/or weight/performance. Most of the old stuff is in use on other bikes in our household so very little has been "wasted".
I was tempted to buy a new bike this summer, but went with some deep section carbon wheels instead...
CX bike bought a month ago - changed to my preferred saddle, and after a couple of rides changed to a 10mm shorter stem. Lighter wheels I already had, having previously upgraded my CX/gnar/commuter, which has had it's stock wheels re-fitted.
Depends on the bike.
Sometimes I'll buy it knowing that I need to change parts and other times I'll buy it because it's spot on.
I only changed the tyres on my Whyte, whereas I changed almost every component on my 456 SS.
The first one or two bikes generally get ridden around unchanged because you don't know any better
After that you're a pro and you know what works and what doesn't so you barter with the shop
Then you buy a bike purely for the frame and ebay the rest of it
Then you get a frame or two and build them up
Then you stop because every bike you see is worse than yours
I'm in the buy it, ride it camp.
Nerve AL is completely stock 6 months later, apart from the tyres which shredded fairly quickly and the chain which snapped.
Arkose is changed a bit - needed a new BB after 3 months, so I swapped it out for 105 + attendant crank change (FSA seemed to be made of cheese and was much more expensive). I also have a set of Aksium wheels for commuting, the originals have the gnar tyres on so it's easy to swap out for canal rides with the Mrs.
you find the idea of changing one of your few contact points to something that is more comfortable strange - really?
Well, OK, obviously if something was causing me discomfort I'd change it. But I guess what I find strange is that grips are anything you'd even notice!
Like I said though, I've never had a problem with any saddle and grips are even further down the list of things I'm likely to have an issue with.
Each to their own, but speccing, building and modifying bikes is part of the fun for me. It's certainly being made a lot harder by the proliferation of new "standards" though. Whether that is deliberate or not I don't know, but it's a pain.
Yes and no for me really. Just bought a complete road bike and swapped the wheels, bars, stem and saddle straight away. The rest of my bikes have been frame up save for my first road and mtb which were stock until broken. I'm at the stage where I have a pool of components and a pool of rolling chassis to stick them on, when I get a full bike I'll chop and change bits from my existing stuff and put the swapped bits on different bikes. So like with the new bike the bars went on the winter road bike, the saddle and stem to the mtb and the wheels will make up a turbo bike. So no extra money spent but just re-ordering so the 'best' stuff is on the 'best' bikes and the less nice stuff is filtered to hack bikes.
Iain
Swap tyres and contact points. OEM tyres are always a way manufacturers save money, road or MTB and probably the most cost-effective upgrade you can make. Road saddle is a Fizik Arione, which is nice, because the new Propel came with one. MTB grips are Ergon and are swapped immediately. Brakes, gears, bars, all stock.
Swap tyres and contact points.
Snap. OEM tyres were rubbish, peddles were needed anyway, and I wanted wussier grips.
When bits started to fail I replaced. Eg, Avid Elixirs worked well for quite a while, but then started to get sticky and needed a bleed. Couldn't be bothered getting the kit or LBS on the job. Just bought some Deores.
I do scratch my head when I hear, "I love my new bike and have already upgraded the SLX chainset to XT"!
However, a new fork can transform a bike. If someone has an entry level hardtail with a rubbish fork, then sticking a decent second hard fork can really extend the ability/interest of the bike.
Each to their own, but speccing, building and modifying bikes is part of the fun for me.
Agree. I love putting together bikes, building wheels, generally messing about and changing things.
In that regard my choice of rigid/SS is a bit of a let down as I am missing out on many opportunities
i've only ever bought 2 full bikes. first was a gt palomar..a real bargain basement bike...i didnt bother changing anything on it as i was skint and was still paying off the money i splashed out on my Marin that had got stolen.
the other bike is the current commuter bike which i got through cycle 2 work...i've only made a few changes to this...new carbon bars and seat post and a comfier saddle...other than that everything else is standard although i may look at trying to reduce the weight further with some carbon forks in the future.
Wheels, tyres, bars, stem, seatpin, saddle.
They always seem to be fairly low grade on anything remotely mid range as they have to be able to hit the price point with as much snazzy kit as possible, like the rear mech, chainset.
So I always budget a bit extra if I buy stock, so I can swap the OE versions for (at least) a halfway decent (lighter/stiffer/better shape/whatever) replacement.
If I was in the market/budget for a bike which DIDN'T have crappy OE kit on it, I'd build my own.
Oh, brakes, I've never worked out why anyone would fit Avids to a bike, every single one I've ever had has failed, at last count, that's 14, 7 pairs. 4 that came on bikes, and the 3 warranty sets that replaced them. So I buy something that works, and just accept that i'll have to lose money selling the brand new, unused, Avids on eBay.
"Am I alone in just buying a bike and riding it until something wears out then I swap it? "
Have we burnt the heretic yet?
I bought one with the intention of swapping at least the brakes, saddle, wheels and the tyres. Rode it, it felt great, didn't touch anything.
Another bike I bought because the spec looked perfect. A few years later, I've changed everything except for the brakes, saddle and seatpost!
MTBs for me have to be built up from scratch. I know exactly what I want to get the balance of cost/performance on different parts and some parts are picked just because that's what I want.
Buying a new bike and instantly swapping parts does seem a bit odd unless it turned out this was the cheapest way of getting what you wanted.
The road bike on the other hand was just pick a bike for £500 and live with it.
Yes.
Just replace bits when needed...mostly like for like.
I don't change the spec until something breaks, wears out or isn't working.
Road bike (6 years old !!) is completely unchanged
Full Suss was unchanged until a wheel, brake and drivechain refresh after 5 years - old bits put on a cheap rigid SS
Hardtail was a custom build so no changes there.
Planning a new roadbike that will equally be unchanged unless I need to swap the stem (planning on getting a proper bike fit)
HtS, Every time i see your arse flying through the air, into a ditch I wonder why the hell you've not got a dropper post 😀