To upgrade or to replace?
Posted: Mon May 06, 2013 3:24 pm
Hi all. I'm just having difficulty deciding on a direction in regard to my bike choice.
My riding requirements vary. I like weekend riding with my mates, and I like the occasional climb up to King Lake. I also like to do a little touring. Not months-long, cross-continent touring, just weekends (10 days has been the longest). I live in a small place in Melbourne, so having multiple bikes is not ideal. Neither is the cost of having multiple bikes.
Last year, when I first got into cycling, I bought a Schwinn Le Tour Classic (2011) for $649. It's a steel frame bike with drops and Sora/Tiagra componentry. It's served me well, and I love the look of it. I've done a fair bit of riding with a mate who has a fancy carbon Giant and kept up just fine, but it was particularly great for the 10 day tour of New Zealands west coast.
The Schwinn is a nice ride but doesn't have eyelets for racks, so I have to rig them up with p-clips. Not ideal. And everything is getting a bit creaky now. The shifters are fine, but the crankset is a bit wobbly and it doesn't run quietly anymore, even with the LBS servicing it.
So I was thinking of upgrading the components to Shimano 105 (from Ribble or the like, for around $650), but I'm wondering it it's worth it. I'd also like eyelets for racks; to do that, with powder-coating, would be a minimum of $250. So I'd have a steel framed touring-ready bike with 105 components for around $1550.
Essentially, that's what I think fits my cycling best - a steel framed bike with 105 triple-ring components, ready for panniers when I want them. Is there anything out there that fits this description already that doesn't require the hassle of redoing the Schwinn? I like the look of the Jamis Bosanova, but it's Tiagra only. Any other ideas? A steel framed cyclocross bike perhaps? Or should I not fixate on steel - maybe aluminium?
Of course, I'd love to have two bikes - one for touring (with cheaper components) and one light modern looking thing for the road (and hills) on weekends, but I can't afford $1500 on two bikes. I'm tempted to buy a new road-specific bike, believe me (!), but it will still leave me without a tour-ready bike.
Any ideas, tips, recommendations?
My riding requirements vary. I like weekend riding with my mates, and I like the occasional climb up to King Lake. I also like to do a little touring. Not months-long, cross-continent touring, just weekends (10 days has been the longest). I live in a small place in Melbourne, so having multiple bikes is not ideal. Neither is the cost of having multiple bikes.
Last year, when I first got into cycling, I bought a Schwinn Le Tour Classic (2011) for $649. It's a steel frame bike with drops and Sora/Tiagra componentry. It's served me well, and I love the look of it. I've done a fair bit of riding with a mate who has a fancy carbon Giant and kept up just fine, but it was particularly great for the 10 day tour of New Zealands west coast.
The Schwinn is a nice ride but doesn't have eyelets for racks, so I have to rig them up with p-clips. Not ideal. And everything is getting a bit creaky now. The shifters are fine, but the crankset is a bit wobbly and it doesn't run quietly anymore, even with the LBS servicing it.
So I was thinking of upgrading the components to Shimano 105 (from Ribble or the like, for around $650), but I'm wondering it it's worth it. I'd also like eyelets for racks; to do that, with powder-coating, would be a minimum of $250. So I'd have a steel framed touring-ready bike with 105 components for around $1550.
Essentially, that's what I think fits my cycling best - a steel framed bike with 105 triple-ring components, ready for panniers when I want them. Is there anything out there that fits this description already that doesn't require the hassle of redoing the Schwinn? I like the look of the Jamis Bosanova, but it's Tiagra only. Any other ideas? A steel framed cyclocross bike perhaps? Or should I not fixate on steel - maybe aluminium?
Of course, I'd love to have two bikes - one for touring (with cheaper components) and one light modern looking thing for the road (and hills) on weekends, but I can't afford $1500 on two bikes. I'm tempted to buy a new road-specific bike, believe me (!), but it will still leave me without a tour-ready bike.
Any ideas, tips, recommendations?