The short answer is: yes, it's worth the money and more. With bike gear it's always been "cheap, light, quality, pick two" and this frame is a bit porky for carbon. At over a kilogram and without the gigantic head tube and BB shell it looks somewhat dated. Maybe it is, but when you can get the package below $2000 with SRAM force and fairly light wheels it's definitely the bike for me. I found I had cash left over for a Giro ProLight, Shimano S240 shoes, a 225 gram saddle and a carbon bottle cage. Whatever I gave up in frame weight, I got back elsewhere. At a little over 16lbs for the 51cm (when I put on the Neuvation C50s I already owned) this bike is about the same weight and exactly the same color as my cat!
The only caveat is that I should have gone with the heavier version of the wheels (ie "M" rather than "R"). At peak fitness I weigh in at about 162 lbs, but found I'd beat the wheels up in the off-season when I floated up above 170. On the front I broke two spokes and pulled one out and the rear has required occasional truing. I will say that when I broke a spoke up front I'd just loosen the brakes and keep riding. The rims are incredibly strong and the hubs about the slickest non-ceramics I've seen. A local wheelbuilder owed me a favor and re-strung the front with somewhat thicker spokes and no problems since. Looking at online reviews, these issues are by no means universal. Some variability is inevitable at this price point. Also, I'm somewhat brutal on wheels, I don't know anyone else who has needed to have Ksyrium Elites trued up.
From the above you can conclude I've been on this bike a while and raced all of last season. Also rode a century as well as several other long rides. I've raced mostly criteriums, but a few road races as well. The frame is astounding in that it works flawlessly in all of these. The 73 degree parallel geometry might seem a bit slack, but there's none of that. Twisty mountain roads, elbow-to-elbow crits or all-day comfort - you've got it here. I race 40-45 events a year and frankly don't want to worry about a frame with a replacement cost north of two grand. Last I looked, John sells replacement frames at about eight bills (can't find this link on the site anymore, you'd have to contact him).
Regarding SRAM Force, it's hard to say anything new about the group-set which hasn't already been articulated by people with more experience than I. The only comment is I'd say SRAM is better to use and worse to maintain. I frankly didn't like the chain (1070) which wore out quickly I thought. The Double Tap system is just plain better, but many people prefer the Shimano ergonomics, up to you I guess. Replacing the derailleur cable is much more fiddly than on Shimano (haven't used Campy in 20+ years, so no comment there). After a year and a half things seem plenty tight and work fine.
Unfortunately I see there's been a price increase since I got my FC100 and C50s, but it's still hundreds less than competitors. You could say the frame is "generic", but when you go with Neuvation you get their expertise along with the bike. All my questions were answered promptly via email and the bike came out perfectly according to the measurements I sent. Good luck with discount competitors where you don't even get to choose stem or crank length! Another plus is the fact that he'll put in an Enduro ceramic BB for a slight upcharge so you can avoid another ding in the pocketbook there.
Last note: I was chugging up Bear Divide from Santa Clarita and passed a couple of kids taking their BMX bikes up to play on the trails. One of them looked over and summed up the aesthetics succinctly: "Sick bike!" I'll post a pic later, I've been putting this review off too long already, so I'm going to publish it now. See you on the road. -pat
Showing posts with label equipment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label equipment. Show all posts
Friday, April 1, 2011
Monday, April 27, 2009
Friction Bad, Power Good
Finally I've stumbled on something truly amazing. Even my wife, who frequently rolls her eyes at my equipment priorities, agrees that the VCRC ceramic bottom bracket is just freakin' cool! Bear in mind, I've ridden on this apparently friction free BB for fewer than 100 miles but - well DAY-UM! After the missus installed it I spun the crank (with the chain off). That was two days ago and I think if I hadn't stopped the crank myself it might still be going around. She's getting one.
Skeptics will tell you that the amount of drag produced by a crank just isn't enough to matter, but I disagree. Most people who care about such things put the absolute mechanical efficiency of a racing bicycle at around 95%. For what it's worth, here's my opinion based on degrees in engineering and physics, and a lifetime of bicycling. I'd rank the friction penalty of components in the following order: bottom bracket, deraileur pulleys and wheels last. This is not a statement about the importance of the component perse, but rather that manufacturers have actually paid some attention to wheel friction, and not the other factors. Even moderately priced wheels spin pretty freely, but some really pricey cranks don't.
Back in the late 70s an engineering grad student told me that derailleur pulleys were most important (bear in mind, this was in the day of cup-and-ball BBs so they were much slicker than today's sealed models) and the difference could be about five watts or more. Thing is there are fairly cheap ball-bearing jockey pulleys for $10-15 which eliminate most of the friction compared to the ones with bushings. That's the way I've gone, mostly because my wife would surely believe me insane for blowing $80 on derailleur pulleys. I crunched some numbers and concluded that in a 15 second sprint over 800W that every five watts translates to 0.5 meters at the finish line. That's why basically every pro has ceramic bearings in their cranksets and I suspect in other components as well.
Skeptics will tell you that the amount of drag produced by a crank just isn't enough to matter, but I disagree. Most people who care about such things put the absolute mechanical efficiency of a racing bicycle at around 95%. For what it's worth, here's my opinion based on degrees in engineering and physics, and a lifetime of bicycling. I'd rank the friction penalty of components in the following order: bottom bracket, deraileur pulleys and wheels last. This is not a statement about the importance of the component perse, but rather that manufacturers have actually paid some attention to wheel friction, and not the other factors. Even moderately priced wheels spin pretty freely, but some really pricey cranks don't.
Back in the late 70s an engineering grad student told me that derailleur pulleys were most important (bear in mind, this was in the day of cup-and-ball BBs so they were much slicker than today's sealed models) and the difference could be about five watts or more. Thing is there are fairly cheap ball-bearing jockey pulleys for $10-15 which eliminate most of the friction compared to the ones with bushings. That's the way I've gone, mostly because my wife would surely believe me insane for blowing $80 on derailleur pulleys. I crunched some numbers and concluded that in a 15 second sprint over 800W that every five watts translates to 0.5 meters at the finish line. That's why basically every pro has ceramic bearings in their cranksets and I suspect in other components as well.
MicroShift Redux
Since MicroShift has generated more interest than other things I've blogged about, I'll try to keep current. The shifters still work. There are two real issues: the shifting of the front derailleur and availability of the product itself. These are clearly four position front brifters. So you can trim on both the large and small chainrings. That's good, and it worked at first. Then, to facilitate racing, I asked my my mechanic (AKA my wife) to change it such that trim on the big ring was effectively defeated. During a race it's kind of hard to tell if you're chain is rubbing, you don't want it to, and you REALLY don't want to look down to see if it is. That's all well and good, but now the front derailleurs requires fiddling so it won't rub on the fourth cog from the inside (a combination I'd like to have for racing). Now the bad thing: no matter what is done at this point, there is no way to trim down from the fourth position to the third. It's as if the spacing between the two stops has gotten larger. On the other hand, this is immaterial for me since I can reach the third cog on the cassette from the outside position on the fron derailleur.
Gripe number two, availability. In the USA it appears to be Nashbar only and the cool new components shown on the MicroShift website (Arsis system and MTB stuff) aren't there. In fact, I can't find the Arsis series anywhere. Some UK sites have something they call the MicroShift 2x10 which looks like the Nashbar offering. The MTB stuff appears to be available in Australia, NZ, Malaysia, the UK and South Africa. Usually a product website will point you to either distributers or retailers, no such luck. So bottom line, Nashbar has two versions of the basic 10s. The more expensive one is clearly the SB-R102Band the cheaper one can't be found on the microshift website, but appears to be the same thing only with the large paddle made of plastic rather than forged aluminum. Pricing appears to be random, I've seen the expensive ones marked down to $150 from $200 and the cheaper ones at half price ($100) on occasion. Imagine that, 10s brifters for $100.
I'd have to say these things are a buy at $100. Compare that to over $300 and up for Ultegra SL and so on. Give me a break, who the hell in his right mind lays out $800+ to shift gears? My wife thinks I'm kind of a kook because I'll lay out $100 for a bottom bracket, but try to save money on brifters or derailleurs. I'd argue that this makes sense since the BB is directly in the power transmission sequence and, as long as the shifting works reliably, it's less critical.
As far as the slightly more expensive model is concerned, I may give it a try. A small improvement may be realized from the use of aluminum rather than plastic on the structure which bears the largest load.
Gripe number two, availability. In the USA it appears to be Nashbar only and the cool new components shown on the MicroShift website (Arsis system and MTB stuff) aren't there. In fact, I can't find the Arsis series anywhere. Some UK sites have something they call the MicroShift 2x10 which looks like the Nashbar offering. The MTB stuff appears to be available in Australia, NZ, Malaysia, the UK and South Africa. Usually a product website will point you to either distributers or retailers, no such luck. So bottom line, Nashbar has two versions of the basic 10s. The more expensive one is clearly the SB-R102Band the cheaper one can't be found on the microshift website, but appears to be the same thing only with the large paddle made of plastic rather than forged aluminum. Pricing appears to be random, I've seen the expensive ones marked down to $150 from $200 and the cheaper ones at half price ($100) on occasion. Imagine that, 10s brifters for $100.
I'd have to say these things are a buy at $100. Compare that to over $300 and up for Ultegra SL and so on. Give me a break, who the hell in his right mind lays out $800+ to shift gears? My wife thinks I'm kind of a kook because I'll lay out $100 for a bottom bracket, but try to save money on brifters or derailleurs. I'd argue that this makes sense since the BB is directly in the power transmission sequence and, as long as the shifting works reliably, it's less critical.
As far as the slightly more expensive model is concerned, I may give it a try. A small improvement may be realized from the use of aluminum rather than plastic on the structure which bears the largest load.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Review of MicroSHIFT shifters
Specifically I bought the MicroSHIFT (that's what's printed on the brifters) brifters and rear deraileur. I have a compact FSA system with the FSA front derailleur. As far as installation is concerned, just follow the directions - nothing fancy. Adjustment, same deal - no surprises. The big surprise is that you can buy a brifter that even works at all for the price I paid ($119/pr). Nashbar claims MSRP at $199, but I've never seen them at full price. The rear derailleur was $29 ($59 MSRP). One thing I did do was replace the incredibly crappy pulleys with Shimano ones. Performance pulleys (11T sealed bearing) would be first choice and I'll make that change later.
Shifting is Campy-style, but without the refinement. There are large and small paddles used separately for up and down shifts and the brake lever is old-school and isn't involved with the shifting. The paddles are plastic and the overall appearance is unexceptional, without looking too cheap. With the exception of the 34-->50 front, shifting is precise and quick if somewhat noisy on occasion (clack!) Going from the small to large ring on a compact is never pretty, but this is the only shift I'd rather have my old (9s) Ultegra for. The effort is high and the response somewhat slow and occasionally a second push is necessary. Trimming works, but I seldom use it since I'm set up for racing.
Under racing conditions it's never let me down, but I haven't had to upshift the front under pressure. When you think about it, that doesn't come up all that often in a race when a 50x21 combination is easily obtainable. I'm on the big ring a lot, with the compact you'll find people do that. Unfortunately, there's no way to say anything about durability or reliability at this point. I have to say I like the Campy shifting better than Shimano. It's nice to have a brake lever that doesn't move sideways, speaking as an old-timer I never gotten used to that.
Even though the shifting is Campy-style the appearance is more Shimano-esque. The brake cables are hidden, but not the shifting cables. The pull ratio is 2:1 (Shimano) so the brifters should work. I don't know if Campy is different, but something deep inside tells me that Campy buyers won't be interested.
Shifting is Campy-style, but without the refinement. There are large and small paddles used separately for up and down shifts and the brake lever is old-school and isn't involved with the shifting. The paddles are plastic and the overall appearance is unexceptional, without looking too cheap. With the exception of the 34-->50 front, shifting is precise and quick if somewhat noisy on occasion (clack!) Going from the small to large ring on a compact is never pretty, but this is the only shift I'd rather have my old (9s) Ultegra for. The effort is high and the response somewhat slow and occasionally a second push is necessary. Trimming works, but I seldom use it since I'm set up for racing.
Under racing conditions it's never let me down, but I haven't had to upshift the front under pressure. When you think about it, that doesn't come up all that often in a race when a 50x21 combination is easily obtainable. I'm on the big ring a lot, with the compact you'll find people do that. Unfortunately, there's no way to say anything about durability or reliability at this point. I have to say I like the Campy shifting better than Shimano. It's nice to have a brake lever that doesn't move sideways, speaking as an old-timer I never gotten used to that.
Even though the shifting is Campy-style the appearance is more Shimano-esque. The brake cables are hidden, but not the shifting cables. The pull ratio is 2:1 (Shimano) so the brifters should work. I don't know if Campy is different, but something deep inside tells me that Campy buyers won't be interested.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Sorry, Francois
Okay, if I'm going to blog I need to do it daily. I let things slip and missed a comment from I nice person named Francois inre the Polar iRDA interface. The answer is I never even suspected the CS600 would work with the old interface so I didn't even try at the time. Polar is a very frustrating company. They tease you. First they offer power monitoring for about half the price of any real competitor (notwithstanding the latest from iBike, I'll believe it when I see it) but then you find the IR interface is an extra $50. The installation involves wanting to grow an additional appendage and then it drops out seemingly at random during use. When this happens I stop and move the pickup unit a couple of millimeters (really!) and we're back online. The AAA batteries in the power unit seem to last a random amount of time, sometimes as little as 60 hours (vs the published 300 or so). But then they include some cool software which does almost everything you want.
In spite of all this I found myself defending the Polar in a class my coach was giving on using power measurement to reach training goals. In his opinion the Polar was marginal. This was based on the fact that most of his clients who tried the Polar later switched to the more expensive PowerTap or SRM and I was the only person who made the Polar work consistently. He related that there were numerous complaints about the PowerTap, especially the wired one. It appeared the SRM was pretty trouble free, but that may be due to the maintenance being handled by team mechanics or household servants.
I guess everyone lives somewhere on the "Frustration-Money Curve". The more money you have, the less frustraion you need to bear up with (unless acquiring the money is frustrating - which brings up a different discussion). For me, there were two sound reasons that the other systems seemed crazy. First, you could buy an additional bike for the price of either one. Second, hubs and cranks wear out - I like the "no moving parts" feature.
In spite of all this I found myself defending the Polar in a class my coach was giving on using power measurement to reach training goals. In his opinion the Polar was marginal. This was based on the fact that most of his clients who tried the Polar later switched to the more expensive PowerTap or SRM and I was the only person who made the Polar work consistently. He related that there were numerous complaints about the PowerTap, especially the wired one. It appeared the SRM was pretty trouble free, but that may be due to the maintenance being handled by team mechanics or household servants.
I guess everyone lives somewhere on the "Frustration-Money Curve". The more money you have, the less frustraion you need to bear up with (unless acquiring the money is frustrating - which brings up a different discussion). For me, there were two sound reasons that the other systems seemed crazy. First, you could buy an additional bike for the price of either one. Second, hubs and cranks wear out - I like the "no moving parts" feature.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Bride of Frankenbike
I keep going around in circles, well rectangles actually. SoCal must be the epicenter of the criterium. I count forty-two crits, GPs and circuit races on the SCNCA calendar this year. The distinction between those forms is pretty arbitrary, Bicycle John's "Grand Prix" is on a 1km four-corner nearly flat course while several criteriums are more complicated, with more than four corners and some short hills.
Since the vast majority happen on the flat with really long runs into awesomely fast sprints, it occurred to me that using my nice road bike for this is a little like drag racing with a Ferrari. You might do well, but if something goes wrong the repair bill would be a lot higher than it would be for a Mustang. Also there's lots of stuff on the Ferrari you'll never use. So why not re-think what we're doing here? A few observations:
I know that for a sprint I'd like to reach 35MPH+ and do it somewhere between 120-140RPM. I figure 53x15. In that gear you're turning 90RPM at 25MPH (typical pack speed) and 141RPM at 39MPH. Second point, the front brake is critical and the rear is only useful for scrubbing off a little speed while moving in a straight line. Third, who cares if the bike weighs 14 pounds or 18, as long as it jumps when you put the hammer down?
So here's the non-existant "Criterium Assault Vehicle" in a nutshell:
So maybe just a track bike with brakes. That setup would have the advantage of looking great, but I'm sure somebody's done it already. I guess what I miss is a time in the past when people would just try oddball stuff to see how it worked out. C'est la vie!
I know that for a sprint I'd like to reach 35MPH+ and do it somewhere between 120-140RPM. I figure 53x15. In that gear you're turning 90RPM at 25MPH (typical pack speed) and 141RPM at 39MPH. Second point, the front brake is critical and the rear is only useful for scrubbing off a little speed while moving in a straight line. Third, who cares if the bike weighs 14 pounds or 18, as long as it jumps when you put the hammer down?
So here's the non-existant "Criterium Assault Vehicle" in a nutshell:
- cheap track bike frame, or road frame and single-ator
- track crank with 3/32", 53T ring
- AC Racing 15T 3/32 freewheel
- 3/23" chain with master link
- track bike rear wheel
- front wheel built on disc brake hub
- one good quality hydraulic disc brake (front)
- one rim brake
- winwood cross fork
So maybe just a track bike with brakes. That setup would have the advantage of looking great, but I'm sure somebody's done it already. I guess what I miss is a time in the past when people would just try oddball stuff to see how it worked out. C'est la vie!
Thursday, May 31, 2007
$40 For what?
A chain. Bicycle chain. Specifically a 10 speed Wipperman nickel-plated chain which frankly could double as jewelry. I'm incapable of spending that much, I just had my friendly LBS owner build up a two year old Interloc with Ultegra-9 for racing. I picked up an SRAM chain for $17 on sale and was quite proud of myself, but in the days of Buycycling Magazine our thinking has shifted until two cents a mile for the chain wear seems OK. The really interesting thing is that even with $5000 bikes, $50 tires and so on it's still way cheaper than operating a car.
Which is weird. Regular guys would never layout big bucks on a two-wheeler with no engine, but not blink at $2500 annually for depreciation on a pretty ordinary automobile. Then there's the small matter of gasoline.
Which is weird. Regular guys would never layout big bucks on a two-wheeler with no engine, but not blink at $2500 annually for depreciation on a pretty ordinary automobile. Then there's the small matter of gasoline.
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