Don't Be Fooled By EXPENSIVE Components 

LOL.....Noooooooo I love seeing him spend $5k to save 0.001 micro grams!!

Whuhaha! Yes and no, both the pragmatic and the idealist/obsessive perspective are important and relatable!

LOL

But he's about light weight not cost or function. Unless this video shows cheaper things cost less...... I guess bar end shifters weigh less than sti? Idk

🤣😂🤣😂😂🤣

(Rene Herse)

definitely agree. great way to build a budget friendly high performance bike

Those vintage steel frames are pure gold! I love to do that "neo-retro" job on them and get a fantastic rig as a result

I just solder my cable ends with a torch. *shrugs*

Haha, that's funny. My weight weenie friend's bikes always break. They might wait for me at the top of the mountains, but guess who carries all the tools....

Y'all obviously don't see the sarcasm.

@@nerigarcia7116 You don't see mine? Haha, I was going to tell you aluminum is actually a bit lighter than ti. If we wanna get critical. Its easier to crimp too..... I figured that sarcasm would go over most folk's heads. I know we can buy titanium chains, but ti crimps? Where??? Check out ABSOLUT Black's (hacks) $700 derailleur cage and pulleys. Tri geeks drool over this junk and lose sleep. There's always something new for weight weenies and those suckers born every freakin minute! As a pro bike mechanic I'm glad to take their money when they assume they 'know it all'.

@@dreyn7780 Like I said, make your bike such that you enjoy spending more time on it. As long as you enjoy your riding, that's most important. I can ride one or two gears all day if I'm so motivated. For local mtns, trails and everyday rides, that's all I 'need'. That single proper gear is ultra important. It's why you see newbie fixie riders wobbling everywhere out of control. I realize most of that isn't for everyone. One needs to enjoy suffering on such a bike to truly enjoy the experience. When I go bikepacking for several days, that bike has 30 gears.

This is a really interesting take on things, Richard. By contrast I pitched up a 2X10 bike and have really enjoyed getting to know how to maintain and adjust the whole rig. Lots of hours watching Oark Tool instructional videos!

Among my five bikes are a single speed AL urban track and a single speed disc brake 29er. There is something to be said for the simplicity and silent drive train. N=5 covers all my bases😉.

@@BP-nj6fi on both bike what are you running in terms of gears

@@tmayberry7559 Both are geared in the 68 inch range. I use them predominately on safe neighborhood streets and local paths with only moderate hills. Low enough for head winds and moderate hills and high enough to spin at a good pace. I have a 1x fat bike, a 1x plus bike and a steel road bike for other riding situations.

@@BP-nj6fi so what gearing are you using for example 38 x 18 36 x 16 just curious because I am going to convert a road bike to single speed

Drivetrain doesn't matter as long as it's functional and reliable. Simple is as simple does. Inexpensive Shimano components are awesome, simple, high quality and well engineered. Singlespeeds can go way farther than most riders think! They just never try it or even consider it. They are ultra reliable and almost maintenance free!

With the new Shimano 12 speed MTB groupsets the common recommendation now is to run Deore 12 speed or SLX derailleur with an XT shifter, which is only slightly more expensive than the SLX shifter.

105 over sora is only worth it if you need the extra gears really. For a Bike packing or touring bike more granny gears is better, because it enables easier pacing and a comfortable cadence.

But make sure we're not talking about cheap derailleurs like Acera or worse - this is something completely different, and I don't want to ever experience something like that again.

@@nick008ru Most definitely: once you find the line you won't cross, keep those standards. Like if your standard is something like 105, then you can consider Tiagra to be the 'cheap' option and use that if you want to save money but won't consider Sora.

looking forward to your ideas and insights on the topic!

No complaints. I look forward to every video. Thank you!

Have you submitted an Instagram pic to Russ? I would love to see your bike.

@@Korina42 I have not, but I'll consider doing so!

Under $1000? We're looking for under $300! Our budget is pretty dang tight.

The best wheels are hand built and custom designed for your particular style and usage. Prebuilt wheels aren't custom and they're often compromised one way or another. Simple as that. By hiring a custom builder, preferably local, you know who's doing your work. You have recourse if issues arise. By doing it yourself, the quality level is up to you!! I, me, my person, ensure my very best quality!! There is no compromise! You can build a fine set of custom wheels for well under $1000. Much less if you learn to build them yourself and find nice used hubs. Wheel building is not rocket science. All it takes is patience, some tools(don't need fancy stuff) and a willingness to learn. I taught myself and have done it as a small side business for 20 years or so. NEVER FORGET: More spokes equals more strength!!! Don't use proprietary parts! Use ONLY J bend double (or triple) butted spokes. You can get replacements at most decent shops all over the world. You don't 'need' carbon junk for touring, or bikepacking. Carbon is very expensive as crash replacements and you'll never ever get high quality carbon wheels under $1000. Believe me, I've built carbon satellite components. Where the larger bike industry is concerned, carbon quality isn't in the same quality universe as high reliability manufacturing. We rely on our bikes, yes?

@@Korina42 Learn to build 'em yourself or buy used. I recently got Chris King singlespeed wheels for $200!! Deals are out there. Find the right sucker. Otherwise you're destined for cheap machine built replacement wheels at that cost. Not an upgrade! You could buy nice used hubs, decent rims and good spokes to build an excellent long lasting set of wheels. Check co-op shops. Also consider a good wheel builder or mechanic can just detension and retention all the spokes evenly on pretty cheap wheels and make decent wheels out of them.If you've got serviceable wheels now, Id do that and keep saving my pennies. Maybe sell stuff off or trade and barter to get what ou want. Nothing good comes easy.

@@rollinrat4850 good advice, thanks. My husband bought a gorgeous New Albion Drake frameset a few months before I was laid off, and it seems 650b in silver isn't in fashion right now, so maybe he can build the wheels himself and have a pro true them. Or go with cheap black wheels for now and have the women at Moon Cycles tune them, like you said. If they have the time...

@@Korina42 New Albions are really nice and simple bikes for a really nice price! They look great, good features and the welding appears to be excellent on the one I got. I bought their Privateer frame last year and I'm slowly building it up into a long distance bike packer. I wanted something solid, heavy duty and basic. My touring bikes always get used hard and I wanted a bike I don't worry about. This fits my needs. It rides super stable even on rough singletrack! Since I work in the bike biz, I got the frame for $150! I spent more on the fork I got for it, a low trail disc brake fork. My last project is building a hub dynamo light set up for it. Ive got all the parts, but not enough time! This winter, my plan is to do some dusk to dawn rides. Ive done them a few times but batteries are such a pain in the butt. Ive always wanted to just keep riding until the need for rest, sleep or food comes. I'm kind of a night owl anyways!

If you're using a MTB derailleur there are some to avoid. SRAM SX and NX eagle derailleurs are notoriously crappy, while GX eagle is quite good. I've never met a bad Shimano derailleur.

Rear derailleurs just need to do their job and be hassle free. The shifter is where the precision is at. Upgrade or invest in the shifter. A rear derailleur is essentially a consumable item. Eventually it's going to get banged up, bent, yanked off the frame or destroyed by a little stick getting shoved into it.

Compressionless brake housing, Especially if you're using mechanical discs. They make ALL THE DIFFERENCE! Buy carefully! There's very few decent and safe road mechanicals on the market. LOTS of weak dangerous junk. Avid BB7 and TRP are the only ones I'd recommend. The Yokozuna's are real nice but are priced like hydros. All that said, I despise brifters and hydro brifters are 5x worse. Simple is s simple does. Hydro brifters are prone to damage and dirt. They simply don't last that long compared to the simpler stuff. They're insanely expensive to replace after a crash too!!

Loose ball hubs are an incredible long lasting, fast rolling value. But ONLY IF you adjust, maintain and service them often and properly. Ive got some old Campagnolo Record hubs from 1977 still rolling fast to prove it. They've been through 4 sets of rims so far. Lots of new bikes come with the hubs too tight. Most riders can't be bothered to get their hands dirty. So they buy overpriced junk after they wreck the original hubs.

Agree. Mtn clipless on my gravel bike, flats (Issi Thumps!) on my grocery getter vintage flat bar.

Oooh yes totally true match an xtr shifter with a slx derailleur and you have 95% of the xtr experience for a lot lower price

@@stormeporm Deore, SLX or XT shifters are awesome and last at least as long as XTR. Ive found some XTR stuff to be finicky and problematic. They're just a little lighter. Still you can find deals on older stuff. I use a 10 speed Saint shifter (same as xtr) with an XT mech. I get this stuff cheap. 10 gears are more than enough for me.

I'm not paid to ride so 105 or Die!

You might want to try 2020 SORA shifters,I did because I have a 9 speed road bike. The SORA's shift as good as any Shimano Ive tried. Light and quick. New SORA's retail at 200.00 just for briifters,they are not cheap. I found mine for 160 but it took some doing. I like em alot.

I've heard Tiagras (and GRX 400 the gravel version of Tiagra) also shift well and have the option of hydrualic disc brakes out of the box.

Of four bikes my best shifting drivetrain is the one that came stock on my 1998 Specialized Rockhopper. Sram grip-shift shifters, Shimano STX RC rear derailleur, triple crankset, 8-speed cassette. I've never replaced anything except chains and it shifts perfectly every time.

Sora's the sweet spot for casual leisure, tiagra for relaxed amateurs, 105 for sport-oriented amateurs. Anything beyond that probably isn't necessary outside of racing. Tiagra is fine for brevets, for instance. Maybe even Sora.

Right on! They're round(hopefully) , they roll. They're supposed to do that! Half my bikes are 26" and Im 6 feet tall.

Lightweight steel hardtail mtn bike from the late 1980s-90s with lighter wheels. I'm repurposing a 1989 Bridgestone MB2 into a gravel/all road bike. Drop bars. bar end shifters, smooth tread tires.

@@donhuber9131 Im building an MB3 almost exactly the same except it's a single speed sort of, with a couple gear options. I'm almost done. I just need to get a really tall stem. I put an old Bontrager rigid fork on it and it handles razor sharp.

I should mention that Rodriguez Cycles does make this bike, but they want $3000 for it. There is no way I could justify that much money outside of a lottery win, and you have to play to win.

@@Korina42 If you're a serious rider, a custom frame is a great investment that could be handed down to your children someday. I save up and spend money so it lasts a long time. 1/2 of my bikes are custom built and I'm learning to braze myself. Ive already built a low trail fork. The best thing is you get exactly what you want and need. Not what some marketing genius 'thinks' you want. You know who built it if there's ever an issue. If you pick a great builder you will know the quality is excellent which is rarely the case on production bikes anymore.

I concur that you should just buy a complete for your first bicycle. Don't go overboard, you'll end up wanting something completely different in the next two years anyway. Then you can build from scratch or know what to buy.

@@jammystraub488 Yes the parts you to tend swap out quickly are the contact points: seat, handlebars, bartape, pedals. Relatively cheap compared to the rest of the bike so you’re better off getting whatever base brands are spec’d on the bike and ride it for a few miles.

@@dreyn7780 Thanks for the time to reply to my comment. I don’t think cassettes are the same as group sets, in my opinion. I was just hoping for PLP’s opinions on favorite cassettes, especially affordable ones. Maybe I should have used the word “brand” instead of “manufacture”? Cheers! 🙂👍🏼

Are all brakes compatible with all brake rotor sizes? I've always wanted to try a larger rotor but I don't know what's compatible

The braking force improvement (from rotor size alone) can't be more than linear (physics is cruel that way). So, for example, 140mm to 160mm is at best about a 14% improvement. Now, 14% might seem massive on marginal brakes, but in general good-brakes-small-rotor > poor-brakes-big-rotor.

@@davidbronstein2040 On gravel bikes which usually have flatmount brakes switching from 140 to 160mm is easy. The front brake usually needs nothing (the flatmount adaptor that comes can be flipped from the 140 to the 160 position). The back brake usually needs a 140 to 160 adaptor which costs less than 10 monetary units and is very easy to install (it's just a metal bracket that moves the brake 10mm further away from the center of the wheel). Moving to even bigger like 180 or 203mm is harder and is more common on MTB with postmount brakes. But you probably don't need more than 160. I'm 80kg, with 20kg+ bikepacking gear and a 8.4kg bike. 160mm rotors front and back stop me very very well even on long steep descents at 50km/h.

@@elorz007 I'm starting to see new adventure bikes coming out with a max of 140mm rotor in the rear. My last two bikes were 140mm, but couldn't tell a difference from previous bikes with 160mm using the same calipers.

The thing that makes THE DIFFERENCE with mechanical discs is compressionless brake housing. It saves your lever travel that gets wasted by the housing's comprehension. Great valued stuff so you dont necessarily need hydros.

Yep. Suntour Cyclone for friction or Shimano XT for indexed.

Yes. Hoodie is so good.

Yeah. He did not mention that when using mechanical brakes, or mech actuated hydro brakes that getting compressionless housing will dramatically improve their performance.

On a modern setup Shimano makes the GRX 400 groupset which is basically gravel specific Tiagra, it has the long cage clutched derailleur of the 600 and 800, but is 10 speed rather than 11 speed. It also has the option of hydrualic discs out of the box. Great bang for the buck and uses standard shimano stuff so no oddball components.

Tom Marriage I take 'old school' drivetrains even further. In addition to triple cranks and VERY USABLE relatively close ratio cassettes, I use friction shifters and separate simple brake levers. I use bar cons, down tube shifters and recently customized mtb style thumb shifters mounted right under my hoods. With dirt drop h'bars, these are awesome!! On a rough used 'adventure' style bike, brifters never last long, they're proprietary and quite expensive. They're easily damaged in innocent little crashes or the bike simply falling over. Brifters inner works are like clockwork. A mere broken cable or wet and dirty environments can bring early demise. Brifters designed for rim brakes are a compromise to operate anything besides the dual pivot brakes they were designed for. Under heavy use you can expect maybe 5-10 years of reliable use out of brifters. Replacement hydro brifters are very expensive to buy and install. In comparison, many of my friction, even indexed simple shifters are over 30 years old, still working perfect! With friction shifting and an old 7-9 speed derailleur, you can shift across any cassette, 5-10 speeds. No more proprietary BS! You can shift across the entire cassette in one movement. If your derailleur or hanger get bent or damaged, shifting still works fine as long as you don't shift into the spokes. All this stuff is simple to wrench on out in the boonies. A wide variety of inexpensive (practical) replacements are available at most decent shops. Simple is as simple does. Forrest's Mama was right!

If you have access to great used components that work for you then go for it. It's hard to talk used because not everyone's access is the same. We live in Montana and the used market is not the same as it was in Portland or other major cities.

Depends on how much seatpost you have. I have short legs and shock absorbing properties of carbon posts is almost nil.

Seatpost can really change the bike but like Russ says you need a decent bit to show and it really shines in tires smaller then 40c. If you go above that it gets less noticable. Cheers and congrats on the nice seatpost and improved comfort on the bike

You obviously don't subscribe to the Fist Full of Seat Post Fit.

Yup, XTR cantis and Koolstop salmons here. XT or XTR vees are great too. I don't think hardly anyone remembers, but ceramic coated rims are the very best. Mine haven't worn out in more than 20 years! The rims are scratched and the stickers are faded though!

I’m a huge cheapskate, but oh man that 810 is incredible. Definitely my plan for 2023 or whenever we get fancy bikes again!

Yup, yup, yessiree. IF you know ANYTHING about carbon manufacturing and high reliability manufacturing, the larger bike industry's quality isn't in the same universe. Bike companies can't and won't 'afford' high quality, much less a true QC program. That doesn't happen and it's blatantly obvious to anyone 'in the know'. They're too greedy. Its actually a huge joke that no one will acknowledge!! Too many are 'invested' in their egos. Don't believe the marketing BS. Its brainwashing and propaganda! Believe it or not. I simply don't care! Ride 'till you die is my motto. There's a sucker born every minute!! We rely on our bicycles, yes?

Same for me. Fairly inexpensive but excellent performance.

I had the same dilemma, but seeing as the yokos come with nice finned rotors and frictionless housing makes the price probably cheaper for yokozuna.

@@dreyn7780 I'm not sure I want to validate this comment with a reply, but does Juin really sound more Japanese than Yokzuna!?!? Actually, I think the opposite is true. And why does that even matter 🤦‍♂️ Also, they look exactly the same, so I'm not really sure you've researched these products at all before joining the discussion. Also, please explain what an "English product" is. Same thing but with a western name? Something manufactured in the west with any name? Something designed in the west, with a western name, but manufactured in the East? (And btw, that's 95% of all bike parts)