All bikes with deep sections do.
Road Cycling
- Thread starter FrenchTart
- Start date
All bikes with deep sections do.
Soldato
Walking down descents is even cheaper, let's all do that instead!
Walking isn't fast.
My point is, you said you can't go faster than 46mph descending but are you getting as aero as you can? If you aren't descending on the top-tube à la Chris Froome then the answer is no.
Hahaha dammit! Good spot, but you know what I meant!A 15k frame - nice budget
Probably, really need to video myself a bit to check my position out. I'd like to think I'm fairly aero for the position I have on the bikes I have (which unfortunately are both quite relaxed geometries)... I know a shorter stem was fitted on the Defy for one of the fits I had, my flexability has drastically improved since then and I've dropped 2-3 spacers on it and still find the position comfortable, so maybe I should go back to whatever the previous stem was (LBS did it for me FOC so don't have it).Most people you see on particularly aero frames are in particularly non-aero positions too. Surely would save a lot more by just going aero yourself
Getting myself out for some TT'ing will address my aero position more, or at least I'll just be more conscious of it!
If you've only used normal rim brakes then you might not notice, basically the aero brakes on the Propel have very tight clearance (limiting wheel choices) and lack much stopping power, there are aftermarket/alternative brakes you can fit to solve both of these issues to a certain extent.
Walking isn't fast.
My point is, you said you can't go faster than 46mph descending but are you getting as aero as you can? If you aren't descending on the top-tube à la Chris Froome then the answer is no.
Aero as I can without splicing my meat and veg across the TT yes.
Does this sound too good to be true? A 3/8" torque wrench for 20-110nM (BB's/cranks/lockrings!) for less than £20... Cromwell are well regarded toolmakers... Most of the others this size/spec are £30+ for quite unknown brands with the 'known' ones usually £50 or more.
I, and I'm sure now Max
, would strongly disagree. Their stopping popper is very good, if not superior to other caliper based systems I've used and the front brake being at the rear of the fork is the ideal position from both force & aero perspective. They are however a bit of a ballache to align as each side is tensioned separately.Pretty sure Max has 25's on his/my old Propel with no issues.
In other news, the penultimate stage of the ToB starts locally in Hemel Hempstead and will actually loop round Aylesbury heading out to finish in Cheltenham. Previous stages have used Chinnor and Kop hill in the past. Keen to see exactly which route they'll take but I have a reasonably good idea
Soldato
If I'm not mistaken, all newer Propels had brakes that were copied from Fouriers so there should be clearance for 25mm tyres. I bought a 2015 Propel frameset a while back so changed the brakes out for a set of Fouriers so I could fit 25mm tyres instead of being limited to 23mm. The brakes are easily just as good as my other bike (Ribble Gran Fondo) with Ultegra calipers and brake pads. I run Zipp 404s which are wider than most wheelsets and they run fine on the Propel
The cable routing is the same as any other bike, the only thing is the brake noodle looks crap but the whole system works very well.
Can only go from what my LBS said about them and the 2-3 guys I know well with Propels who've discussed it. Main guys I ride with (Climb on Bikes shop/club) are giant dealers so shift a lot of them - they were advising all of the local club riders who'd bought them to change to the Fouriers and were even doing deals for some of them (I think they felt the original aero brakes were unsafe when racing & group riding). Glad to hear you & Max have had no issues!I, and I'm sure now Max
That would explain much of it - it's been discussed but nobody worried about it recently, even with several new Propels appearing.
The noodle does look silly, Dean painted his black and I recall seeing a totally different looking noodle on one of the others.
Soldato
The rear V-Brakes (the type on the Propel) have been the bane of my life for some time on my BMC, but as I found out on Monday, my rear V-brake calliper was full of grime, the brake cable had rust…and inner noodle disintegrated. No wonder why I hated it and it performed poorly.
I’ve never re-built the V-Brake system so im hoping it was Evans doing a poor job and I can get it fully functioning again.
One thing to note, V-Brakes have small grub screws to adjust the spring tension on the side. If you mess up the grub screw thread within the calliper, you will have to replace the whole thing. I learnt the hard way.
EDIT - looks like the fouriers have external spring tension screws.
I’ve never re-built the V-Brake system so im hoping it was Evans doing a poor job and I can get it fully functioning again.
One thing to note, V-Brakes have small grub screws to adjust the spring tension on the side. If you mess up the grub screw thread within the calliper, you will have to replace the whole thing. I learnt the hard way.
EDIT - looks like the fouriers have external spring tension screws.
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I discovered I'm fairly non aero from the sportive photos at the weekend
My aero bar position wasn't bad but I really didn't find it that comfortable and I suspect I may have been faster with hands on the hoods and elbows bent at 90deg instead.
Even top tube decending isn't fully optimisedWalking isn't fast.
My point is, you said you can't go faster than 46mph descending but are you getting as aero as you can? If you aren't descending on the top-tube à la Chris Froome then the answer is no.
it all depends how much you want to push the risk envelope.Do this on every decent and save yourself thousands
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Soldato
Now you're getting it!
Ageing and dirty V-brakes are absolutely horrible to try and adjust! Hated them on mine and the other halfs hybrids! See how much replacing with new will cost, you might save yourself lots of hassle.
I actually ride like that quite frequently, I only tend to use the drops when sprinting and descending.
Haha! I'm still convinced he's got a motor as that's not a very steep slope to gain speed (even in that aero position) on riders which look to be pushing on. Unless it's staged of course!
I think in his first video his cranks were also spinning, like a motor!
Short legs, long torso problemsGood lord Lethal how long are your arms?! On the drops your body looks like it' positioned on the hoods
To be honest I think my arms are generally more bent than that while on the hoods... so the result when I use the drops is not much change in torso height. I need to somehow experiment with position.
Yeah, I tend to spent most time on the hoods and if the wind is feeling particularly bad I might bend the elbows a lot more to compensate.
Rule of thumb, aka, absolute law = Top tube descending will result in the rider being labelled a complete and utter b-end unless they are in fact in the process of performing a Stevo Cummings/Tim Wellens level of solo escape from the bunch. It is worth noting that the level of b-end'ness achieved by top tube descending is far lower than levels achieved via ownership of a super slick aero machine complete with aero wheels when the only level of competition you see is that of Strava KOMtwattery*
*Primarily it is because it indicates you have more money than most.... and vote Tory therefore. ****.
*Primarily it is because it indicates you have more money than most.... and vote Tory therefore. ****.
Soldato
If you aren't a "gifted descender" you gotta get aero.
If you don't have massive testicles you gotta get aero.