Right now I ride a 2001 Specialized Hardrock Comp. I was wondering (besides tires) what I would need to make my bike a little lighter? I was thinking new cranks and handle bars. What else should I look into?
Lighter Bike
- Thread starter Mastamind
- Start date
Tires and wheelset are going to be the easiest way to save noticable weight. I don't know what fork comes on it, but that would probably be my next upgrade.
Cranks are a good upgrade as well. Bars aren't a great place to upgrade an inexpensive bike because they offer no performance increase and there are places that will save weight, AND offer a performance increase.
My suggestions would be tires, wheelset, fork, cranks. What order to go in is up to you.
Cranks are a good upgrade as well. Bars aren't a great place to upgrade an inexpensive bike because they offer no performance increase and there are places that will save weight, AND offer a performance increase.
My suggestions would be tires, wheelset, fork, cranks. What order to go in is up to you.
The fork is a Rock Shox Jett XC, 3.0" travel which they don't make anymore.
One problem with lighter part upgrades is cost and weight savings vs the long term.
For example, you could buy a carbon crankset for $400, which would save you about a half pound. But you could buy an used scandium frame for $700 which would save 3lbs over the Hardrock frame.
The Hardrock is a heavy entry-level mountain bike. You could put some major upgrades in, but there are lighter and/or stronger bikes out there. Spending a lot to upgrade parts would ultimately delay getting a better bike.
Right now, tires would make a noticible difference, particularily the lighter kevlar bead tires, which typically sell around $40 each. Another easy place to lighten up is the stem, which the Hardrocks spec a beefed up stem. Almost any stem would be lighter and it would be simple to replace.
You could buy things like wheels or a new fork, but ultimately if you are getting more serious, there are better bikes out there that you should save your money for.f
For example, you could buy a carbon crankset for $400, which would save you about a half pound. But you could buy an used scandium frame for $700 which would save 3lbs over the Hardrock frame.
The Hardrock is a heavy entry-level mountain bike. You could put some major upgrades in, but there are lighter and/or stronger bikes out there. Spending a lot to upgrade parts would ultimately delay getting a better bike.
Right now, tires would make a noticible difference, particularily the lighter kevlar bead tires, which typically sell around $40 each. Another easy place to lighten up is the stem, which the Hardrocks spec a beefed up stem. Almost any stem would be lighter and it would be simple to replace.
You could buy things like wheels or a new fork, but ultimately if you are getting more serious, there are better bikes out there that you should save your money for.f
Salsa offers a scandium frameset for around $800 with carbon stays. It is pretty light depending on the size of frame. It also has a great ride quality.sanjuro said:
I ride a 20" frame, therefore can't even come close to these 20/21 lb. bikes i see in magazines.
It could easily be that upgrade parts exceed the value of the bike. Perhaps lighter tires, tubes, and saddle would be a good place to save some weight... without costing too much. These can always be used on your next bike.Mastamind said:
I definately think new tires. I run specialized crossroads 26x1.96 and forever run across flats. Other than that I am attached to the bike because it was one of the last things myh grandmother bought me before she passed away, and i'm in school, so i'm gonna have this bike alot longer before I can get a new one.
The Hardrock is decent bike for commuting and light off road riding. Tires are a definite improvement, and if you are going to keep it, I would think about getting an used Marzocchi fork. They are not much lighter than your RST, but they are very plush and reliable, whereas the RST is not.
He has an older Hardrock, not the newer, "heavy duty hardtail" style frames. I owned the exact same bike, and I can say it's a great platform for the recreational cyclist. The frame isn't overly heavy, and is of good quality, definetly worth upgrading components.
I agree with BV.
IMO, upgrade in this order - tires, wheelset, cranks, fork, everything else. Generally speaking, you're going to see the most gain for the least dollars in that order.
IMO, upgrade in this order - tires, wheelset, cranks, fork, everything else. Generally speaking, you're going to see the most gain for the least dollars in that order.
I'm with BV... Tires are a fast and cheap way to shave a lot of weight. When I usew to race a lot I'd take my trailbike (at the time it was a 97 Jamis Dakar Pro SL) and throw some skinnier and much lighter tires on it and it would completely change the bike by several pounds. It would go from like 26 lbs with 2.3's (Tioga I think back then was my trail tire) to like 23 with Explorer Pro's Kev's.
Wheels are an easy way too because of the difference in Hub weight... that aint a cheap upgrade though. Really light wheels are expensive.
The fork is the other big saver, go from a coil to an air fork and thats a lot of weight... again though, its expensive.
Cranks... but again, you have to spend a lot of $$ to get a difference.
Bars, stems, seatposts... you not going to get much of a difference from them. 5 grams here and there is nothing when you save 800 grams from tires, 1.5 lbs from your fork, and another 700 grams from your wheels. You know?
The only problem with all this is that once you have upgraded Wheels, fork, and crank... you've spent over a grand and you probably could have bought a new bike that is even lighter than your new upgraded hard rock is.
Wheels are an easy way too because of the difference in Hub weight... that aint a cheap upgrade though. Really light wheels are expensive.
The fork is the other big saver, go from a coil to an air fork and thats a lot of weight... again though, its expensive.
Cranks... but again, you have to spend a lot of $$ to get a difference.
Bars, stems, seatposts... you not going to get much of a difference from them. 5 grams here and there is nothing when you save 800 grams from tires, 1.5 lbs from your fork, and another 700 grams from your wheels. You know?
The only problem with all this is that once you have upgraded Wheels, fork, and crank... you've spent over a grand and you probably could have bought a new bike that is even lighter than your new upgraded hard rock is.
Save Hundreds Of Dollars
Here's the thing, though. Yes, you could have bought a new bike, but if you spend that money on a new bike, you're spending part of it on upgrades that we have just told him aren't as important - drivetrain and cockpit mostly.
You can always move good components over to future bikes, and in the mean time, you're putting your money into the upgrades that will make a difference.
Just MHO
You can always move good components over to future bikes, and in the mean time, you're putting your money into the upgrades that will make a difference.
Just MHO
I disagree to some extent. Upgrades of the "disposable" parts, like tires and cassettes (a very good place to save weight), is always a good idea, but adding components to a so-so bike might not be the best plan.binary visions said:Here's the thing, though. Yes, you could have bought a new bike, but if you spend that money on a new bike, you're spending part of it on upgrades that we have just told him aren't as important - drivetrain and cockpit mostly.
You can always move good components over to future bikes, and in the mean time, you're putting your money into the upgrades that will make a difference.
Just MHO
For example, to save weight, you could buy a 80mm SID for the Hardrock, which, to a knowledgeable biker, is a bad combination. Or lets say MM (whose a she, btw) wanted to get disc brakes. She would also have to buy disc-compatible wheels, and given a limited budget, she would be forced to buy lesser wheels and brakes, which you would not want to transfer to another bike.
I think with entry-level bikes, and I consider the entire Hardrock line entry-level, upgrades have to be weighed against the purchase of a better bike. The key here is that the Hardrock frame is rather heavy, and a decent XC bike would have a lighter frame. Spending a lot of money to lighten this bike would delay the purchase of a better bike.
It was my understanding that I couldn't have disc brakes on the hardrock frame. Either way, I'm in school and therefore will not be getting a new/better bike anytime soon. I know my only bet to make what I have lighter would be tires/rims...any other parts may be out of my reach for now.
While your frame is not disc compatible, any fork from about 2002 on will have disc mounts.Mastamind said:
If you were to get a better fork, then you could get a front disc brake. Since most of your braking power is in the front, many riders upgrade to a cable actuated front disc brake and leave the rear as is.