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Keith Bontrager: "strong, Light And Cheap - Choose Two"


gkms

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Being quite new to the trial bike community i am trying to figure out some questions with a view to upgrading or replacing my 2nd hand starter trial bike:

how important is the weight of the bike for beginners/intermediates, at what point of skills will a kilo less matter?

what would be the target weight of a good 26'' trial bike combining strong and light at a reasonable price?

what are the attributes of the most known brands of parts? e.g. brand xx parts are generally light and strong, yy are high quality but heavy, etc.

does carbon play any role at all?

any comment on this issue is highly welcome.

regards georg

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I won't go into great detail, but trials riders are definitaly weight weenies! a lot of riders will sacrifice the rideability of the bike just to make it lighter.

A good weight for stock is around the 10kg mark, that's doable with a smart choice on quality parts saving weight in some places, but putting on weight in others, much lighter than that then it either costs stupid money for top parts, or you need to modify what you already have. My bike weighs 11.5kg, I would like it lighter, but I havn't snapped or broken anything on it as it is.

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youre saying in the topic is pretty much spot on. Carbon isnt really used for much except handlebars and exotic little bits, but in all seriousness, you would save more weight by going to the toilet and shaving your head before hand. And that doesn't sacrifice the bike strength either.

If youre starting trials then a relatively light bike isnt needed, only top pro's who compete really shave the weight to gain that little more height / use a little less energy. For general street riding and having fun (if that happens anymore :shifty: ) just a bike with the geometry is good enough!

As for weights I couldnt say as I have no idea how heavy my bike is. All I know is it works and I enjoy riding it which is good enough for me :)

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Street bikes tend to be a little heavier than comp/natural set-ups.

This is due to the parts taking more abuse so the parts are tougher, and therefore heavier.

Good weight for a street bike - around 10kg's

Good weight for a comp bike - under 9kg's

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As has been said, 10kg is a decent benchmark for a good weight bike.

Compy manufacturers (Koxx/Monty etc) always used to be seen as the lightweight kit, though at a price, however this has all shifted around a bit in the last few years and most companies now put out decent parts at no real weight penalty. The forum is great for reviews/info on individual parts though and if you're looking at buying something but have any questions, the chaps at Tartybikes know everything worth knowing (Y)

People still seem to get confused with the fact that saving weight on the bike is significantly different to saving it by wearing smaller shorts/taking a pre game dump though.

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thanks for your answers.

I can see that there is no common sense on this issue which is not a big surprise.

The most useful statement for me is that with decent quality parts I will also be on a good path weight-wise.

If I translate from mountainbiking to trial biking, I agree that it is not the same having a few grams less on the bike to having a few gramms off your body. It definitely is more fun riding a light bike. It gets addictive though and I must admit, when it gets to light weight parts, I am loosing reason sometimes - but who cares?

regards georg

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in the seance of weight I have a custom marino /inspired frame fully built but i can't really post it until i get validated but none the less.

here is a parts list of what I'm running and my total weight.

-Marino/Inspired frame

-inspired forks

-inspired rims

-halo spokes

-hope pro 2 front hub

-hope pro 2 rear hub

-inspired seat

-inspired seat post

-inspired seat clamp

-hope head set

-hope stem

-hope spacers

-hope front quick release

-magura hs33 rear brake

-rockman cnc pads

-hope mono mini trials front brake

-KMC 710 sl chain

-maxxis holly roller tires

-trial tech single speed kit

-trial tech 14 tooth rear cog

-surley 18 front thread on

-echo sl drilled cranks

-echo urban 18 tooth bash guard

-reset titanium bottom bracket

-echo sl magura clamps

-trial tech brake booster

-echo tr snail cams

-trial tech m4 snail bolts

-inspired pedals

-inspired rise bars

-inspired lock on grips

-hope bar ends

this set up weight "21" pounds or 9.53 kg

as soon as I'm validated I will post the whole build from step 1

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spent some time today putting together an imaginary light bike from tarties.

below is the result. I figured that in most cases echo parts are the lightest. Is there also a drawback with echo parts?

part make price weight

frame koxx orange sky 867,06 1.460

bb Trialtech Sport Lite ISIS with Bolts 56,17 214

front break hope mono trial 153,19 444

rear break hs 33 60,26 315

break clamps echo sl 38,3 48

chain tensioner Echo SL Snail Cams (pair) 12,26 14

chain Trialtech Z610 HX, 3/32' 14,3 330

cranks echo sl 121,53 436

fork Echo SL 26 86,81 716

freewheel echo sl 108 61,28 175

grips try all foam 5,11 20

handlebar Echo SL Riser 61,28 254

headset Echo SL Headset 40,85 95

front hub Echo SL Disc 66,38 138

rear hub Echo SL Rear 81,7 176

pedals Echo SL Titanium 2011 137,87 261

skewer kcnc 25 20

rim tape echo 6,12 40

rim rear V!Z Square-Hole Rear 26" 56,17 584

rim front Try-All hOle Front 26'' 45,96 538

spokes Sapim Race 26" (Black) with Nipples 20,43 300

spokes Sapim Race 26" (Black) with Nipples 20,43 300

sprocket Echo Titanium 30,64 17

stem Echo SL 26'' CNC 61,28 184

tube conti ss 10,21 91

tube rear maxxis ultr 7,65 117

tyres try all sticky 28,6 716

tyres try all sticky 32,68 1309

2209,52 9.312

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spent some time today putting together an imaginary light bike from tarties.

below is the result. I figured that in most cases echo parts are the lightest. Is there also a drawback with echo parts?

part make price weight

frame koxx orange sky 867,06 1.460

bb Trialtech Sport Lite ISIS with Bolts 56,17 214

front break hope mono trial 153,19 444

rear break hs 33 60,26 315

break clamps echo sl 38,3 48

chain tensioner Echo SL Snail Cams (pair) 12,26 14

chain Trialtech Z610 HX, 3/32' 14,3 330

cranks echo sl 121,53 436

fork Echo SL 26 86,81 716

freewheel echo sl 108 61,28 175

grips try all foam 5,11 20

handlebar Echo SL Riser 61,28 254

headset Echo SL Headset 40,85 95

front hub Echo SL Disc 66,38 138

rear hub Echo SL Rear 81,7 176

pedals Echo SL Titanium 2011 137,87 261

skewer kcnc 25 20

rim tape echo 6,12 40

rim rear V!Z Square-Hole Rear 26" 56,17 584

rim front Try-All hOle Front 26'' 45,96 538

spokes Sapim Race 26" (Black) with Nipples 20,43 300

spokes Sapim Race 26" (Black) with Nipples 20,43 300

sprocket Echo Titanium 30,64 17

stem Echo SL 26'' CNC 61,28 184

tube conti ss 10,21 91

tube rear maxxis ultr 7,65 117

tyres try all sticky 28,6 716

tyres try all sticky 32,68 1309

2209,52 9.312

My bike is just under 9kg I think, it's a stock and rides amazingly, I have got a lot of light weight parts, like carbon bars and square holed front rim and I love it :D

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My bike is just under 9kg I think, it's a stock and rides amazingly, I have got a lot of light weight parts, like carbon bars and square holed front rim and I love it :D

How much did it cost you all together? What frame have you got? pics?

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