Mountain conversion

Hit Craigslist for a good, used road bike or hybrid or whatever you are looking for. It will be less expensive, fit you better for road use and be designed to do road work from the get-go.

Just my two cents worth.

On the cheap, you could lock out the fork or buy a pair of split collars to prevent the sliders from moving, install a pair of slick tires, put on some bar ends, etc. and call it a day. You'll still be on geometry that was never intended for efficient riding on pavement, but it sure as heck will go the miles if you are able to pedal them.

Pharmer said:

I have a 2013 Trek 4700 that is collecting dust. It is basically brand new and I do not mountain bike anymore. I would like to convert this bike over to a exercise/road bike to do a up coming 50 miles charity ride.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

FWIW. While there may be some wisdom in simply buying "a good, used road bike or hybrid or whatever you are looking for" from whatever source is convenient for you ...

[INDENT]Now, if you are really lucky you can indeed find a really nice, used bike for a either a bargain price (as YOU may have already learned, bikes depreciate faster than almost anything else) or certainly within whatever budget you may have in mind ...[/INDENT]

AND, the conventional wisdom is that it is less expensive to buy a ready-to-ride bike (new OR used) ...

[INDENT]THAT is particularly true if cannot DIY because it will probably take several hours to do the work ... and, a bike shop's labor charges will probably approach the cost of a low end new-or-used bike ...

To state the obvious, you can spend as much money as you want by replacing almost all the MTB components with Road components (this is typically NOT advised because of the expense if you don't already have 'cast-off' parts which were once on a Road bike ... BUT, you CAN-OR-WILL end up with a better bike than most "used"-or-low-end bikes you might come across from a private seller or a shop) ... [/INDENT]

However, if you can DIY, then for LESS THAN the cost of what is probably a lower end bike from an LBS, you can (IMO) end up with a better bike by converting a Hardtail MTB to a "Road" bike ...

YOUR budget is your only real limitation ...

[INDENT]Always worth repeating, you will get much more bang-for-your-buck if you can DIY ...[/INDENT]

Here (for the umpteenth time!!!) are what one may consider to be two extremes with regard to converting a MTB to a bike for "Road" use ... the first is based on a relatively plebeian Mongoose Hardtail frame ...

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[INDENT]The ready-to-ride weight is just under 20 lbs (while that's porky by most people's standards, I'm not a weight weenie & its weight is just fine, IMO) ... with some different components, it could weigh a little less OR (of course!) a bit more.

ONLY the Shimano 737 XT front derailleur & pictured seatpost survived from when the bike was configured as a MTB ...

The Road fork changed the head tube geometry to roughly 73º ... that's a typical angle for a Road bike's head tube.

I had to lace a 700c rim to a 135mm/MTB hub, BTW.[/INDENT]

And, this is a NYC Camelsback frame which I got a few years ago to attach some of my other 26er castoff components onto (pictured without cables or the rear brake calipers mounted):

[CENTER] [/CENTER]
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I'm not sure what it weighs ... probably over 21 lbs. despite the vintage (as in, almost zero travel) fork's CF fork legs (otherwise, it would probably weigh at least one more pound) ...

[INDENT]In today's parlance, I think the above bike which still has 26" wheels can accommodate fatter tires could-or-would possibly now be classified as a "gravel bike" in some circles ... particularly if it had 27.5" wheels-and-tires ...[/INDENT]

A MTB frame-and-fork can accommodate a 700x42 tire, BTW.[/INDENT]

REGARDLESS, before you either pony up for another bike or venture toward modifying your bike, I recommend that determine whether-or-not you will be more comfortable with a more aerodynamic riding position ...

[INDENT]Toward THAT end ...
[INDENT]
The first & LEAST expensive change you can make is to simply lower the stem-and-handlebar (flip the stem over so that it is not angled upward and/or re-stack the majority-or-all of the spacers from below the stem to above the stem) AND (if you know that you will never take the bike off-road, again, then probably & initially) narrow your handlebar by about 3" on each side ...

As far as so-called road slicks, they will provide better traction on pavement when cornering at more than jogging speeds ... and, the road slicks & smaller tubes will weigh less ... but, if you aren't descending on mountain roads, I think you can probably wait until you wear out your current tires before you consider replacing them with new tires-and-narrower-tubes.

[INDENT]AFAIK, my neighbor didn't change his "medium" width MTB tires when he rode his Hardtail on pavement when he was riding with tubes ... but, I'm not sure what he is doing with his tires when he is riding on pavement, now, because he just switched to tubeless tires last year.[/INDENT][/INDENT][/INDENT]

So, AFTER you feel comfortable with a slightly more aerodynamic riding position, you can decide if you want to graduate to Drop handlebars, or not ...

[INDENT]BTW. You may decide that Drop handlebars are NOT for you!

OR, you may realize that simply making your current riding position a little more aerodynamic is all you need to do to make your Trek a bike you feel more comfortable riding on the road.
[/INDENT]
BTW. Whether-or-not you need-to-or-should to lock-out your Front Fork's suspension is up to the you & your riding style PLUS the type of roads you ride on.

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