I recently bought a KHS Flite700 frame for a rediculously silly low price. Already have a KHS Alite4000 MTB and am uber-impressed with it, so was looking for a road bike of the same make.
I have a list of parts that I am considering for it and wanted to run it by you guys to see if anyone has had any good or rotten experiences with it, and maybe offer advise if you know of something better. With this build projuect, price is definitely an issue, but I also want to aim for something that I can really enjoy.
Crank: Stronglight Impact, compact crankset. (I want to be able to climb hills well, but am not sure about going to a triple crank). Found this one at XXCYCLE.com for $109. I've got a Stronglight on my '83 peugeot and am impressed with it.
F & R derailleurs, shifters: Shimano 105. Figure I probably have to bite the bullet there unless someone knows of something better that costs less.
Seatpost: Ascent carbon fiber from Nashbar for $38-ish.
Saddle: Selle Italia Flite Gel Saddle from Nashbar $69
Handlebar: Forte Pro Carbon from Performance Bike $89 (since I have an alloy frame, I'm trying to go carbon fiber on what I can to make
it a little softer ride)
Wheelset: Shimano WH-R500. $150 This is what's spec'd out for the Flite700 when it is sold as a whole bike. With my MTB, I built the wheels myself and love the results. This seems not as possible with road bikes. I am having trouble finding parts to build a road wheel with 20 or 24 spokes or even less, and not spend a fortune doing so. The R500 wheelset seems a little cheap, but I cant really spend more that $150 on wheels. Any suggestions? I would love it if retailers would sell custom wheel build kits that would cost maybe 30% less than buying the equivalent pre-built wheel. Anyone know of such a thing?
Stem: Easton EA70 110MM. (I already have it)
Cassette: Shimano 12-25t
Brake Calipers: Nashbar's in-house brand. $19 I figure that theres not a huge difference between cheap and high price brake calipers if you use good quality pads with them.
One other question: I'm more used to MTB frames with clamp on front der's, but my new road frame has a tab welded on with a slotted hole. I assume it's for the front derailleur. Do all road FD's use this tab, or do i have to look for something special in order to fit it to my frame?
Any suggestions and ideas will be welcome. Let me know if I should steer clear of any of these parts.
Thanks,
Matt
I have a list of parts that I am considering for it and wanted to run it by you guys to see if anyone has had any good or rotten experiences with it, and maybe offer advise if you know of something better. With this build projuect, price is definitely an issue, but I also want to aim for something that I can really enjoy.
Crank: Stronglight Impact, compact crankset. (I want to be able to climb hills well, but am not sure about going to a triple crank). Found this one at XXCYCLE.com for $109. I've got a Stronglight on my '83 peugeot and am impressed with it.
F & R derailleurs, shifters: Shimano 105. Figure I probably have to bite the bullet there unless someone knows of something better that costs less.
Seatpost: Ascent carbon fiber from Nashbar for $38-ish.
Saddle: Selle Italia Flite Gel Saddle from Nashbar $69
Handlebar: Forte Pro Carbon from Performance Bike $89 (since I have an alloy frame, I'm trying to go carbon fiber on what I can to make
it a little softer ride)
Wheelset: Shimano WH-R500. $150 This is what's spec'd out for the Flite700 when it is sold as a whole bike. With my MTB, I built the wheels myself and love the results. This seems not as possible with road bikes. I am having trouble finding parts to build a road wheel with 20 or 24 spokes or even less, and not spend a fortune doing so. The R500 wheelset seems a little cheap, but I cant really spend more that $150 on wheels. Any suggestions? I would love it if retailers would sell custom wheel build kits that would cost maybe 30% less than buying the equivalent pre-built wheel. Anyone know of such a thing?
Stem: Easton EA70 110MM. (I already have it)
Cassette: Shimano 12-25t
Brake Calipers: Nashbar's in-house brand. $19 I figure that theres not a huge difference between cheap and high price brake calipers if you use good quality pads with them.
One other question: I'm more used to MTB frames with clamp on front der's, but my new road frame has a tab welded on with a slotted hole. I assume it's for the front derailleur. Do all road FD's use this tab, or do i have to look for something special in order to fit it to my frame?
Any suggestions and ideas will be welcome. Let me know if I should steer clear of any of these parts.
Thanks,
Matt
