Road Cycling

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Robzere31 said:
In my neverending quest to replace my 5 year old Allez frame which has seen better days I.E head/steerer is knackered plus I'm starting to hate the colour of it (Silver),
I've been offered a Specialized tarmac S-works frame.

It's in excellent condition from what I can see, no obvious signs of abuse or damage, but I was wondering is it false economy buying a used frame?
The one thing putting me off is I can't verifty the history of the frame as to what sort of mileage it's done etc.
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I guess it really depends on how much of a deal you think you're getting and how much you trust the seller. Obviously getting an S-Works means budget isn't the deciding factor! ;)

Quick google search - Tarmac SL2 £2000, Tarmac Pro £1500, Allez 2015 £1500. I'm assuming those are new frame prices to give a rough guide.
 
FrenchTart said:
My rear is a Novatec - hope it lasts longer than that :eek: It's done about ~2500 miles so far I think.
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The disc hubs may be different but the freehubs on all mine have gone after a few wet rides, the sealing is really poor so the outer bearing fails leading to grinding/clunking under load.

You could replace the bearings with higher quality units if/when they fail, but the weather proofing is just not that great so not sure how much it would help.
 
One More Solo said:
Spec me a 24 hole rear hub (light would be nice, but durability is equally or more important). Looking at:

Dura Ace 9000 (no Shimano hubs are available in 24h in 105/Ultegra)
Hope Mono RS
Miche Primato

I'm tempted by Shimano purely because it's not cartridge bearing based, although it is the most spendy.
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I have Primato hubs on my archetype wheels. They've been fine for me over the past year, probably done about 1800 miles on them, occasionally in damper weather. Even with my lax approach to maintenance they're going strong. The wheelbuilder (cycleclinic) recommended those hubs in particular as being very reliable.
 
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Thanks Von, heard good things about the Primatos.

Robzere31 said:
In my neverending quest to replace my 5 year old Allez frame which has seen better days I.E head/steerer is knackered plus I'm starting to hate the colour of it (Silver),
I've been offered a Specialized tarmac S-works frame.

It's in excellent condition from what I can see, no obvious signs of abuse or damage, but I was wondering is it false economy buying a used frame?
The one thing putting me off is I can't verifty the history of the frame as to what sort of mileage it's done etc.
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I've bought every bike I own bar one used. Frame wise, if it looks in good condition then I'd not hesitate to buy it regardless of mileage. Frames don't age in that sense and I'd frankly be impressed if someone had managed to catastrophically damage a frame without it being externally visible.

Used deals on bikes are so good I'd really struggle to justify buying a new one now. Just like a car, I'd rather someone else took the depreciation hit!
 
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It is my first day back at work after my 3rd trip to Majorca. I'm glad for the rest really. We were all knackered by the last day. We managed 6 consecutive days of riding with a 'rest day' of just 15 miles in the middle and clocked up 330 miles in total.

The first day was a wash out by the time we got to the hotel in Alcudia. It thundered for around 3 hours. All subsequent days were flawless.

I've not had much time to look at some of the videos but they look pretty awesome from what I've seen.

Time for a few days of rest now where I can reassemble and clean the bike. Also some time to prepare for the atrocious roads of the UK.
 
One More Solo said:
I've bought every bike I own bar one used. Frame wise, if it looks in good condition then I'd not hesitate to buy it regardless of mileage. Frames don't age in that sense and I'd frankly be impressed if someone had managed to catastrophically damage a frame without it being externally visible.

Used deals on bikes are so good I'd really struggle to justify buying a new one now. Just like a car, I'd rather someone else took the depreciation hit!
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Thanks, I think it's a good price for the frame, with a little persuasion I think I can get it for £700.
I'm just worried about a used frame, I'm planning on swopping all my ultegra groupset over to the S-works frame along with my prolite wheels.
 
daveski said:
My ride to France with work starts at Crystal Palace. Depending on what time I get to the hotel on Thursday night I might head to Richmond Park for a lap. Seems to be around 12 miles from the hotel (Crystal Palace Travelodge) anyone got any advice for cycling to the park from CP?
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Drop down the hill towards the South Circular (A205) through Herne Hill, over Clapham Common where it becomes the A3, Wandsworth where it's the A205 again, then just straight through to Richmond. It's only Clapham Common where you actually deviate off the same road. Wandsworth and Clapham Common are a bit more confusing on the way back because of the one-way systems.
 
FrenchTart said:
Those VO2max intervals with virtually no rest look insane :eek: Though I've had similar experiences to you before /re the last interval - I guess it's all mental :)
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Definitely unpleasant to say the least. The last interval I wasn't actually watching my power just spinning at rate I knew was high enough but comfortable, a natural rhythm if you will.

I've actually let my TR account lapse. I'll probably renew it at the start of next month if the weather doesn't improve. Quite enjoying trying to put the same effort out on rides whilst on the road at the moment. Quite hard to do and definitely not as time-effective as TR but it's nice to be out in the sun/wind/rain.
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Yeah, it's nice to be outside but I just don't have the time for a long ride/evening ride in the week and then small odds of getting a flat or stuck I just don't have the contingency time for the evenings at the moment. TR has also come in handy when a ride's been rained off at the weekend too.:)
 
BennyC said:
Definitely unpleasant to say the least. The last interval I wasn't actually watching my power just spinning at rate I knew was high enough but comfortable, a natural rhythm if you will.

Yeah, it's nice to be outside but I just don't have the time for a long ride/evening ride in the week and then small odds of getting a flat or stuck I just don't have the contingency time for the evenings at the moment. TR has also come in handy when a ride's been rained off at the weekend too.:)
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That's my approach to most TR stuff actually - work out a cadence that is in the right ball park for power and then stick to that. Watching my actual power is annoying as it fluctuates far more.

Also agreed regarding time and rain. I'm a cyclist first and weights/gym person second (and social life is a far distant 10th or something :p) so I have a lot more time for cycling. My weights routine suffers far more - I do part of it at lunch after cycling home and then another bit very quickly when I cycle home again at the end of work.
 
Jonny69 said:
Drop down the hill towards the South Circular (A205) through Herne Hill, over Clapham Common where it becomes the A3, Wandsworth where it's the A205 again, then just straight through to Richmond. It's only Clapham Common where you actually deviate off the same road. Wandsworth and Clapham Common are a bit more confusing on the way back because of the one-way systems.
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Thanks Jonny.

Shamrock said:
Is that this Thursday?
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Two weeks tomorrow.
 
Droopy Flaps... slowing me down?
Is it time I took my mudguards (roadracer 2) off my road bike? They came in handy last weekend because I didn't get soaked when riding on wet roads after it had rained... but I can't make them not rub on wheels and I'm sure they're slowing me down.
 
Cruds are aptly named to be honest. A tiny tiny bit of rub wouldn't be the end of the world but if they're rubbing badly then I'd get rid.

Try and find some raceblade longs instead if you don't have mudguard mounts.
 
Jono said:
Droopy Flaps... slowing me down?
Is it time I took my mudguards (roadracer 2) off my road bike? They came in handy last weekend because I didn't get soaked when riding on wet roads after it had rained... but I can't make them not rub on wheels and I'm sure they're slowing me down.
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If they're rubbing best to remove, I know from my previous experience with the mk2's after enough rubbing when commuting the plastic will wear through and they're then destined for the bin (you get wet!). Had one season out of mine though...

I replaced (new bike) with Giant's own brand (rubbish and noisey) and more recently replaced with SKS Raceblade Longs (great and removable but a little rubbing). One of my tabs has worn through (very tight tyre clearance) and I have to attach it with a cable tie. Still removable, just not as easy ;)

I've been meaning to email SKS and see if they do spare parts...

Reminds me, I found the Raceblade Longs (XL) hard to source online (they're EOL). My LBS has them in stock so anyone who is desperate for a set (and doesn't mind paying more than online) let me know :)
 
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