S
Steve Palincsar
Guest
On Sun, 01 Aug 2004 17:38:36 -0400, Kurt Tappe wrote:
> I bought a used Cannondale road bike in 2001. It was in great shape
> then, but now many items are in need of replacement--shifters, cables,
> saddle, wheels, tires, etc. Admittedly a new bike might not need all of
> this after only 3 years, but I'm still stuck in the position of either
> fixing this one (which I fear would be putting good money after bad) or
> buying a new ride.
>
> This brings up the question of what the expected lifespan of a road bike
> should be.
It _should_ be in the neighborhood of 30-50 years. If not more. There
are plenty of people riding 50 year old road bikes.
Of course, if you push the envelope for light weight, you are going to
sacrifice durability, and who knows, on some bikes 3-5 years may be a
long time.
Is it 3-5 years and one should just live with the thought of
> dropping $2K for a new one that often just as one must do with
> computers? Or is it longer, allowing one to think more of it like a
> car? If the latter, are expensive parts worth replacing on a bike? I
> expect the shifters & cables alone to cost over $400 to have replaced; a
> significant expense that requires serious consideration.
Replace shifters after 3 years? Perhaps brifters are real junk - but
certainly bar end shifters aren't, and will last much, much longer than
that. Cables, of course, are dirt cheap.
You haven't said anything about mileage or care. My daily commuter, now
close to ten years old, has at least 20,000 miles on it. Wheels are
original, and have required a minor true once in that time. I've worn
out quite a few tires, a handfull of brake blocks, several rolls of bar
wrap, lots of chains, a few cassettes, several sets of shift cables and
even a set of brake cables. And this year, the saddle cover finally wore
through.
> PS: I'm a bit dismayed at the lack of durability of "Dura-Ace"
> components. Has anyone else found them to not necessarily be worth their
> cost?
DA is for racing. In terms of price/performance Shimano's XT and Ultegra
lines are much better.
> I bought a used Cannondale road bike in 2001. It was in great shape
> then, but now many items are in need of replacement--shifters, cables,
> saddle, wheels, tires, etc. Admittedly a new bike might not need all of
> this after only 3 years, but I'm still stuck in the position of either
> fixing this one (which I fear would be putting good money after bad) or
> buying a new ride.
>
> This brings up the question of what the expected lifespan of a road bike
> should be.
It _should_ be in the neighborhood of 30-50 years. If not more. There
are plenty of people riding 50 year old road bikes.
Of course, if you push the envelope for light weight, you are going to
sacrifice durability, and who knows, on some bikes 3-5 years may be a
long time.
Is it 3-5 years and one should just live with the thought of
> dropping $2K for a new one that often just as one must do with
> computers? Or is it longer, allowing one to think more of it like a
> car? If the latter, are expensive parts worth replacing on a bike? I
> expect the shifters & cables alone to cost over $400 to have replaced; a
> significant expense that requires serious consideration.
Replace shifters after 3 years? Perhaps brifters are real junk - but
certainly bar end shifters aren't, and will last much, much longer than
that. Cables, of course, are dirt cheap.
You haven't said anything about mileage or care. My daily commuter, now
close to ten years old, has at least 20,000 miles on it. Wheels are
original, and have required a minor true once in that time. I've worn
out quite a few tires, a handfull of brake blocks, several rolls of bar
wrap, lots of chains, a few cassettes, several sets of shift cables and
even a set of brake cables. And this year, the saddle cover finally wore
through.
> PS: I'm a bit dismayed at the lack of durability of "Dura-Ace"
> components. Has anyone else found them to not necessarily be worth their
> cost?
DA is for racing. In terms of price/performance Shimano's XT and Ultegra
lines are much better.
