Changing my BMC AC01?

pjtn
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Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby pjtn » Sat Apr 01, 2017 2:19 pm

I've had a BMC AC01 for a little while now and have been getting bad pains in my hands. After doing a little research it appears to be pressure on my ulnar nerve. So I moved the stem up, lowered the saddle a little and tilted the nose up slightly. This has made an improvement where it is not hard sharp pain any longer, more of a mild irritating ache now.

We also live in an area which has some rather steep hills. The Jack Bobridge Track if anyone is familiar with it. And I do wonder if the extra weight (10.6kg) and hub gear of the BMC might be making it more difficult to than necessary to climb these. Although the low gear is about equivalent to a 34:32. A worry is also as my rides get longer the chance of a tyre getting punctured increases and the rear wheel is not possible to get off without a large spanner.

So I'm thinking about changing bikes. Does this sound like a reasonable decision given the above?

The Canyon Endurace AL 6.0 105 Disc looks like a good option at a decent price. The carbon fibre model is nicer but obviously more expensive.
https://www.canyon.com/en-au/road/endur ... c-6-0.html

I would, of course, be losing the very clean and quiet belt drive of the BMC.

pjtn
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Re: Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby pjtn » Sat Apr 01, 2017 2:31 pm

Here's a photo:
Image

ironhanglider
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Re: Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby ironhanglider » Wed Apr 05, 2017 10:51 pm

pjtn wrote:I've had a BMC AC01 for a little while now and have been getting bad pains in my hands. After doing a little research it appears to be pressure on my ulnar nerve. So I moved the stem up, lowered the saddle a little and tilted the nose up slightly. This has made an improvement where it is not hard sharp pain any longer, more of a mild irritating ache now.

These seem to be pretty big changes for a problem with your hands. I presume that this is an attempt to reduce the pressure, however it would be more relevant to change the way you grip the bars. Something like this View item would let you change the contact points so you can distribute the load differently. I suspect that you need someone to help fit your bike to you.

We also live in an area which has some rather steep hills. The Jack Bobridge Track if anyone is familiar with it. And I do wonder if the extra weight (10.6kg) and hub gear of the BMC might be making it more difficult to than necessary to climb these. Although the low gear is about equivalent to a 34:32.

Since you posted in the commuting section, I am guessing that this is your commuter bike. 10.6 is pretty light for a commuter, and that is before you start carrying all the necessary stuff like clothes and laptop etc. On top of that you have a low gear that should be capable of taking you up just about anything. The only reason to get a lighter bike would be so that you could use bigger gears and go faster, however unless you are racing I'm not sure that the difference between climbing at 10km/h and 15km/h is going to make a worthwhile time difference over the course of the whole ride.

A worry is also as my rides get longer the chance of a tyre getting punctured increases and the rear wheel is not possible to get off without a large spanner.

If you are worried about punctures, then either be armed with the equipment and knowledge to be able to deal with them out on the road, or change the tyres to something that is less likely to get a puncture.

So I'm thinking about changing bikes. Does this sound like a reasonable decision given the above?

No.

The Canyon Endurace AL 6.0 105 Disc looks like a good option at a decent price. The carbon fibre model is nicer but obviously more expensive.
https://www.canyon.com/en-au/road/endur ... c-6-0.html

I would, of course, be losing the very clean and quiet belt drive of the BMC.
The Canyon is a fine looking bike. Buy it if it would make you happy, but I'd need better reasons than this to get it past my treasurer.

Cheers,

Cameron

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rodneycc
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Re: Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby rodneycc » Thu Apr 06, 2017 8:27 am

I'm with Cameron that its probably the way you grip the bars what is the problem. The ergo bar ends will make a little bit of difference but I found them a little too wide for my liking (not in line with my shoulders creating different problems).

The only real thing I found helped with longer distances (eg greater than 20kms under that I was fine), was to ditch the flatbar and go to dropbars with the hoods.

Anyway its a nice bike you have but not sure how hard or expensive it would be to convert it to dropbars to be worth it otherwise there is the new bike option.

With saying that - try the bar end grips first though - nothing much to lose there.
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bychosis
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Re: Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby bychosis » Thu Apr 06, 2017 9:49 am

I don't think a lighter bike will make a lot of difference to climbing. The easiest way to lose weight of a bike is to ditch a bottle of water, or not eat as much. Lower gearing does, makes it easier to pedal for longer, but 34:32 is pretty low as you say. I'd reckon going back to derailleurs and chain would be a backward step.

Puncture protection isn't too pricey. Tyre liners, tough tyres or tubeless will all help. I haven't had a 'traditional' puncture (through the tread) on my roadie with 23mm tyres since installing liners. Tubeless on MTB is also great.
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pjtn
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Re: Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby pjtn » Thu Apr 06, 2017 2:24 pm

Thanks for the well considered replies.

Perhaps I will try fitting the bike better and purchase some Ergon hand grips before changing the bike. Currently it is difficult to get to a place which carries out a fit.

I had been looking at Ergon grips for a little while, but since the AC01 already comes with grips which have 'wings', I wasn't sure if it would make much difference. The Ergon grips probably have a larger surface area though.

Initially a ride of only a few hundred metres would cause my palms to hurt. After a few kilometres the pain is very sharp and strong. After making the changes the pain is never as bad and only starts after a few kilometres. It is still not at all pleasant. There might still be too much weight on my hands.

The Canyon is out of consideration now as it seems the geometry might be too aggressive. I did test a Cube Attain at 99Bikes, though, and it was very nice to ride. It felt like there was so much balance and control that I was happy to take my hands off the bar. Something I would never do on the BMC.

It doesn't have disc brakes but that might not be a big deal:
http://www.99bikes.com.au/bike17-cube-a ... arbon-blue

I had a drop bar bike previous to the BMC and the hoods never caused pain for my hands. That bike was sold because it was too small and the position much too aggressive.

Would a derailleur not be more efficient than a hub gear for climbing hills? I was under the impression that a hub gear with belt reduces the amount of power getting to the wheels.

pjtn
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Re: Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby pjtn » Thu Apr 06, 2017 5:55 pm

I should also mention that I wasn't sure whether to include this in the commuter forum as the bike is used for recreational rides mostly. In the future it will be used as a commuter as well once we have moved to our new house that is closer to ammenities.

It is not likely that I will carry very much, a small backpack will likely suffice.

pjtn
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Re: Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby pjtn » Sun Apr 09, 2017 12:35 am

We went for an eighteen kilometre ride yesterday and the low saddle position made my thighs burn. So I found some good fitting instructions and followed them through:

http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm

The writer suggests not to align your knee over the pedal axle as do many other sources. Rather, they suggest to position the saddle further back until you can easily sit in a riding position without your hands touching the bars and feel like you aren't straining your back muscles for support.

My saddle is at its most rearward position now and I still feel that my body is leaning heavily forwards.

A quick four kilometre ride to test the bike suggests that my hands are still getting sore. However, they may still be a little fatigued from yesterday.

This makes me wonder if myself and the bike are just a bad fit.

ironhanglider
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Re: Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby ironhanglider » Sun Apr 09, 2017 10:46 am

pjtn wrote: I had a drop bar bike previous to the BMC and the hoods never caused pain for my hands. That bike was sold because it was too small and the position much too aggressive.
Your own experience shows that the amount of weight on your hands has little to do with pain. The angle of your wrists seems to be the issue, hence the suggestions for bar-ends which have a similar posture to the hoods. You might get some relief by rotating the brake levers further down so that your hands are at less of an angle to your forearm.

There are many variations with bars with regard to the angle that they sweep back or up, width etc and that is before you even discuss position in terms of height, extension etc.

A decent fitter, (fee for service) would be able to go through different options with you.
pjtn wrote: Would a derailleur not be more efficient than a hub gear for climbing hills? I was under the impression that a hub gear with belt reduces the amount of power getting to the wheels.
Yes you can measure a difference, just like you can with tyre choice, pressure etc. Whether the difference is in fact noticeable is debatable. e.g. I have a dynohub to power my lights and I can't pick the difference between when the light is on or not without looking, even though I know it is has to create drag to produce light. The difference between derailler gears and a belt driven hub would be a similar order of magnitude, particularly if they are not maintained.

Cheers,

Cameron

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Re: Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby Zippy7 » Fri Apr 28, 2017 6:12 pm

Not sure if it's been discussed, but do you wear cycling gloves?
Might be worth trying padded or gel gloves.
On my flatbar bikes, I've had round rubber grips, foam grips, and the ergon grips with bar ends (GP2/3).
Maybe think about how you are holding the bars too (too tight?)

As for the gearing - 34/32 is enough to get up most climbs. I don't think you need to change bikes. it's a want to (and have the money to) change bikes thing
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pjtn
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Re: Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby pjtn » Fri Apr 28, 2017 6:26 pm

I have been adjusting the bike and have managed to get rid of the pain in my hands now.

The main things are:
- Getting the saddle to the right height
- Positioning the saddle correctly fore/aft. Too far forward pushes me into the bars.
- Adjust the handgrip angles
- Adjust the brake levers down so my wrists are straighter

There is still more pressure on my hands than there should be, but I am starting to think this is due to my riding posture. My back curves upwards, whereas I think it is supposed to be straight.

Next step will be to buy some Ergon grips and see how they go.

I will look into gloves, Zippy. Now that it is getting colder they will have multiple benefits.

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Mububban
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Re: Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby Mububban » Thu May 25, 2017 2:47 pm

pjtn wrote:I have been adjusting the bike and have managed to get rid of the pain in my hands now.
Good to hear. Experiencing pain after only a few hundred meters is a massive alarm bell that something major is going wrong there.

Regarding gearing, I am skinny, unfit and p!ssweak, and my 9.6kg road bike with 34-32 lets me spin my way up anything I would reasonably consider tackling.
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Re: Changing my BMC AC01?

Postby Calvin27 » Thu May 25, 2017 11:07 pm

Lots of random advice and can't say if it's correct or not. But I'd say pony up for a proper bike fit and get some tips on what you need to do to get it right. Might be weak core strength, might be the fit who knows. None of us can observe you on the bike, but a proper bike fit will dial it right in.
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