D
davek
Guest
Well, last weekend I finally ditched the clunky old lumps of steel that were
weighing my bike down and replaced them with my lovely new (well,
secondhand) wheels - 32-hole MA3 rims on 105 hubs, fitted with Vittoria
Rubinos. The verdict? Well, the short version would be: Wheeeeeeeeeee!
My first proper ride was the Sunday morning club run. We did a fairly
undulating route and the uppish bits seemed significantly less of a struggle
than previously. Not surprising really - I tried to weigh the difference
between the old and the new wheels and it seems I've suddenly dropped
something in the order of 2kg off the overall weight of my bike. I've also
gone from chunky 1 1/4" touring tyres to 23mm high-pressure slicks - the
difference in rolling performance is such that on smooth tarmac it feels
like I'm gliding with the new wheels, although less-than-smooth surfaces
suddenly seem a lot harder than before...
The wheels may be secondhand, but they have been well looked after. The hubs
are a dream and I reckon there's plenty of life left in the rims - but even
if there isn't and I need to replace the rims soon, £35 for a pair of 105
hubs would still be a bargain.
Today I was working up in the big town and decided to take my bike so that
on the return journey I could get off the train a stop or two early and get
a short ride in. And it was abso-bloody-lutely marvellous. This morning's
rain had all disappeared and the afternoon sun had nicely dried up the
roads, leaving a pleasantly mild evening - perfect cycling conditions, in
fact, especially when you factor in the slight tailwind.
I blasted through the 12.6 miles in a little over 38 minutes - an average
speed of 19.6mph, which I'm sure is some kind of record for me. And it felt
wonderful- even though I compensated for the lighter weight of the new
wheels by having a backpack (containing all my day-in-the-office
accoutrements), the difference in the way my bike feels with the new wheels
meant that the route suddenly seemed somewhat flatter than before...
Another big difference with the new wheels is the gearing. I've gone from
having a five-speed 14-28 freewheel to an eight-speed 11-28 cassette, so
I've now got two extra gears at the top end (11t and 12t) and one extra gear
in the 14-28 range (only one, but it's enough to make a noticeable
difference). I was a bit dubious about needing the 11t sprocket, but it's
hard to find off-the-shelf cassettes that give a closer-spaced range
combined with a lower top end, especially on my budget. And I do still
appreciate having the 28t big sprocket (my small chainring is 42t, so my
bottom gear is still not especially small, even by modern road bike
standards - my calculations tell me 42*28 is the same as 39*26). Having
ridden it, I'm glad to have the 11t sprocket - paired with the 52t
chainring, that's a pretty big top gear I've got now (and a huge increase on
my previous top gear), so I've only used it a couple of times, on the odd
occasion when I've had a proper hill to go down, but those occasions have
been almost obscenely good fun.
Anyway, I am one very happy bunny. With recent upgrades to my brakes and now
my wheels, I've breathed new life into my old bike (next job I'm saving up
for is a respray) and further boosted my enthusiasm for cycling - of course
it's not just the wheels, it's partly my rapidly improving fitness that's
making the difference, but when your bike allows you to convert improved
fitness into increased speed, rather than just sucking up your extra energy
and wasting it, it does give you a lot of extra motivation.
My club mentor (it's an ad hoc designation I've just come up with for want
of better words) is talking about entering a local road race in September, a
prospect that not so long ago would have scared me witless - but now it's
something that I would relish. Roll on September!
d.
weighing my bike down and replaced them with my lovely new (well,
secondhand) wheels - 32-hole MA3 rims on 105 hubs, fitted with Vittoria
Rubinos. The verdict? Well, the short version would be: Wheeeeeeeeeee!
My first proper ride was the Sunday morning club run. We did a fairly
undulating route and the uppish bits seemed significantly less of a struggle
than previously. Not surprising really - I tried to weigh the difference
between the old and the new wheels and it seems I've suddenly dropped
something in the order of 2kg off the overall weight of my bike. I've also
gone from chunky 1 1/4" touring tyres to 23mm high-pressure slicks - the
difference in rolling performance is such that on smooth tarmac it feels
like I'm gliding with the new wheels, although less-than-smooth surfaces
suddenly seem a lot harder than before...
The wheels may be secondhand, but they have been well looked after. The hubs
are a dream and I reckon there's plenty of life left in the rims - but even
if there isn't and I need to replace the rims soon, £35 for a pair of 105
hubs would still be a bargain.
Today I was working up in the big town and decided to take my bike so that
on the return journey I could get off the train a stop or two early and get
a short ride in. And it was abso-bloody-lutely marvellous. This morning's
rain had all disappeared and the afternoon sun had nicely dried up the
roads, leaving a pleasantly mild evening - perfect cycling conditions, in
fact, especially when you factor in the slight tailwind.
I blasted through the 12.6 miles in a little over 38 minutes - an average
speed of 19.6mph, which I'm sure is some kind of record for me. And it felt
wonderful- even though I compensated for the lighter weight of the new
wheels by having a backpack (containing all my day-in-the-office
accoutrements), the difference in the way my bike feels with the new wheels
meant that the route suddenly seemed somewhat flatter than before...
Another big difference with the new wheels is the gearing. I've gone from
having a five-speed 14-28 freewheel to an eight-speed 11-28 cassette, so
I've now got two extra gears at the top end (11t and 12t) and one extra gear
in the 14-28 range (only one, but it's enough to make a noticeable
difference). I was a bit dubious about needing the 11t sprocket, but it's
hard to find off-the-shelf cassettes that give a closer-spaced range
combined with a lower top end, especially on my budget. And I do still
appreciate having the 28t big sprocket (my small chainring is 42t, so my
bottom gear is still not especially small, even by modern road bike
standards - my calculations tell me 42*28 is the same as 39*26). Having
ridden it, I'm glad to have the 11t sprocket - paired with the 52t
chainring, that's a pretty big top gear I've got now (and a huge increase on
my previous top gear), so I've only used it a couple of times, on the odd
occasion when I've had a proper hill to go down, but those occasions have
been almost obscenely good fun.
Anyway, I am one very happy bunny. With recent upgrades to my brakes and now
my wheels, I've breathed new life into my old bike (next job I'm saving up
for is a respray) and further boosted my enthusiasm for cycling - of course
it's not just the wheels, it's partly my rapidly improving fitness that's
making the difference, but when your bike allows you to convert improved
fitness into increased speed, rather than just sucking up your extra energy
and wasting it, it does give you a lot of extra motivation.
My club mentor (it's an ad hoc designation I've just come up with for want
of better words) is talking about entering a local road race in September, a
prospect that not so long ago would have scared me witless - but now it's
something that I would relish. Roll on September!
d.
