ive owned a 2010 trek 1.1 for a couple of months now and im getting more serious about cycling but i just dont have the money for a new bike. its not the most high end bike in the world but it does what it needs to do. barely. i was wondering if there any upgrades such as forks, cranks, wheels, seat posts, anything that you guys think would make the bike a bit lighter, more responsive, and maybe even a better look. im also on a pretty tight budget.
trek 1.1 upgrades needed
Baltimore biker12
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ive owned a 2010 trek 1.1 for a couple of months now and im getting more serious about cycling but i just dont have the money for a new bike. its not the most high end bike in the world but it does what it needs to do. barely. i was wondering if there any upgrades such as forks, cranks, wheels, seat posts, anything that you guys think would make the bike a bit lighter, more responsive, and maybe even a better look. im also on a pretty tight budget.
You are right, your bike is an entry level bike and most of what you might do will cost half of what you paid for the bike. A new set of wheels will cost between $300 to $500. Upgrading the shift system can cost $500 or more. One thing you can do and will see an immediate improvement is upgrade the tires and tubes to new lighter ones. If you watch the sales you should be able to do that for under $100.00. Good luck.
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i dont know if im going to upgraading the shifting system. ill purchase a new bike before i do that. and if im going to upgrade the tiress and tubes i might as well upgrade to a lighter stronger wheelset so i can do it all at once. thank you for the tips
Upgrading a low end road bike can be a costly proposition. I bought a Trek 1.2 (paid $700 for in July 2009) and have since upgraded with the following:
Wheelset: $350
Tires: $90
Pedals: $100
Shimano 105 groupset: $500
If I had it to do over, I probably would have sold the 1.2 and bought a 2.1 or 2.3 equivalent from a bikesdirect, pricepoint, or some similar value retailer. Yes, I learned about wrenching and about my bike in particular, but it came at a steep price. I know you don't want to drop a lot on component upgrades, but going the piece-part route may be worse in the end.
If you still want to upgrade something, you gotta start with the wheels. I went from a 3100g set to a 1550g set (Blackset Race from Bicycle Wheel Warehouse), and it made a HUGE difference.
Wheelset: $350
Tires: $90
Pedals: $100
Shimano 105 groupset: $500
If I had it to do over, I probably would have sold the 1.2 and bought a 2.1 or 2.3 equivalent from a bikesdirect, pricepoint, or some similar value retailer. Yes, I learned about wrenching and about my bike in particular, but it came at a steep price. I know you don't want to drop a lot on component upgrades, but going the piece-part route may be worse in the end.
If you still want to upgrade something, you gotta start with the wheels. I went from a 3100g set to a 1550g set (Blackset Race from Bicycle Wheel Warehouse), and it made a HUGE difference.
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If you still want to upgrade something, you gotta start with the wheels. I went from a 3100g set to a 1550g set (Blackset Race from Bicycle Wheel Warehouse), and it made a HUGE difference.[/QUOTE]
The wheels are what i planned on upgrading first. next i plan on carbon fiber forks, dont have a plan after that. eventually ill just upgrade the frame with an offbrand carbon fiber one
The wheels are what i planned on upgrading first. next i plan on carbon fiber forks, dont have a plan after that. eventually ill just upgrade the frame with an offbrand carbon fiber one
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i have a trek 1.2 and i upgraded my tires 2 weeks ago to vittoria open corso. what a difference in ride quality. im on a budget myself as well but upgrade as i need to. its not a bad bike and i currently race on it with my sora shifters. once something breaks ill then do an upgrade
Just wait till something brakes. Nothing you can upgrade (aside from wheels/tires) will make the bike any faster or perform noticeably different. Yes, you could make shifting easier with 105, but at that point just buy a new bike. A carbon seat post might make the ride a little more plush though.
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Stop!!!!
As a general rule, DON'T DO IT! You should wear out the tires on your bike (riding those miles will incresae your speed a lot more than any equipment you can buy) and then buy some quality tires and tubes. Spending money to upgrade the wheels or components on your bike is not at all cost effective. Take that money and set it aside for your next bike. You'll get a LOT more bang for the buck that way.
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Save up your money for a better bike..and keep the 1.1 as a second bike.
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I think that with any bike worth owning, it's worth making it fit well.
That may mean some swapping around of components. Try not to use that awful word "upgrade," because you're not going to be increasing the objective value or awesomeness of your bike. You're making it a better tool for you.
That can mean a different stem, different handlebars, different saddle. If you're using toe clip or flat pedals, cycling shoes and clipless pedals make a pretty big difference. If you don't know what you're doing, pay someone to do it for you. Ask some of the roadies in your area who they go to for a fit. Keep good records, so you can restore it if you tinker with it and make it worse and for future bikes.
Tires are a good purchase too, although I have to say that I'm noticing that difference less and less on road bikes, at least when it's dry out.
Drivetrain, wheel and fork upgrades are very expensive. IME, they don't do much. Certainly not as much as making the bike fit, or buying new tires. My experience is that a bike that goes, stops and shifts is already most of the way "there" in terms of maximum efficiency. So replacing a component that works with another component that also works is not a very good value.
That may mean some swapping around of components. Try not to use that awful word "upgrade," because you're not going to be increasing the objective value or awesomeness of your bike. You're making it a better tool for you.
That can mean a different stem, different handlebars, different saddle. If you're using toe clip or flat pedals, cycling shoes and clipless pedals make a pretty big difference. If you don't know what you're doing, pay someone to do it for you. Ask some of the roadies in your area who they go to for a fit. Keep good records, so you can restore it if you tinker with it and make it worse and for future bikes.
Tires are a good purchase too, although I have to say that I'm noticing that difference less and less on road bikes, at least when it's dry out.
Drivetrain, wheel and fork upgrades are very expensive. IME, they don't do much. Certainly not as much as making the bike fit, or buying new tires. My experience is that a bike that goes, stops and shifts is already most of the way "there" in terms of maximum efficiency. So replacing a component that works with another component that also works is not a very good value.
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I'm in the same boat. I put on my mtn bike pedals and have been using my mtn shoes
my upgrades so far:
1. computer with cadence - installed today
2. carbon seat post (bonktown 80% off a Stella Azzurra - slight, but noticeable better ride)
upgrades that should be here within a few weeks:
3. new saddle (on order cuz 10 mile rides my arse is sore even with bibs)
4. new look/keno pedals and road shoes (exustar 200Ti on sale e-cyclingstore.com)
upgrades next month:
tubular wheelset and tires - either boyd or im going to copy dlhillius's blueprint for some stans aluminum wheels with continental comp or sprinter tires. This wheelset will be re-used on my future 'dream' bike
between putting 200+ miles on it, focusing on improving my cardio/cadence and these minor upgrades im up 2mph average speed on my 'normal loop' and increased my comfortable cadence 15 rpm to 80.
this is as far as im going to upgrade this bike, when I reach my arbitrary targets/goals, (or when I have the cash) I'm going to build a new dream bike after a professional fitting somewhere so I can order a carbon frame that will have the closest geometry to my theoretical ideal. I'll either put the stock parts back on the trek and either sell it or put fenders on it for a rain bike
still a long way to go until I'm where I want to be
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If you've only been cycling for a couple months I wouldn't worry about any upgrades unless something on your bike actually fails or wears out. There is no sense in making upgrades when you've just started as a cyclist because it's costly, you don't seem to know what you're looking for yet so you might make some poor choices in parts and you might just have the cycling bug now but it could drop off in the future. A lot of people seem to think they are going to get a lot more enjoyment out of a bike (or many other things) if they put more money into it but the returns start to diminish very quickly. Just focus on riding the bike at this point and don't worry about new parts.
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