Reviews for the hardcore cyclist

joneswares.com cycling clothing

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 02:03:09 +0000

Joneswares.com has some good wool cycling tights are good for cool weather riding
and you can get them with a leather pad !

Additionally the hat and head band are warm and never get soggy.

Allen keys on the go

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 01:55:56 +0000

I carry the AWS-10, park tool has plenty of multi tools and hex tools.
http://www.parktool.com/products/detail.asp?cat=7&item=AWS%2D10

Pedals

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 01:45:53 +0000

Keo Sprint do well for training and Keo Ti Carbon are nice for racing.

The Keo Carbon Ti come race ready, they all ready have gone threw a test of load bearing rotations. The rotation is silky smooth.

One of my older Look pedals weight more then two of the Look Keo Carbon pedals. Very noticeable on the pedal stroke and well worth the extra $$.

For commuting I use greyhound track pedals with plastic clip ones from mec. They have a sealed bearing which does well for one winter. Salt and sand mixed together to a great job at braking down grease while wearing out any metal part.

Chain wear tool

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 01:36:22 +0000

I received the chain wear tool from my mom as a stocking stuffer and it has been a fantastic gift. It is a must if you are going to be putting on the miles, if I ride a week with a worn out chain I’ll end up replacing the cassette as well as the chain.

The best one and most accurate I have found is made by Parktool.
http://www.parktool.com/products/detail.asp?cat=5&item=CC-3

Cassettes

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 01:27:13 +0000

I have run threw more cassettes that I can remember, ultegra has done well for training and so long as regular chain replacement is done they last 3 to 4 chains.

Lower end cassettes wear quicker and I tend only get 3 chains out of them.

I don’t ride much with dura ace cassettes, I doubt that the cassette would last longer then ultegra. If it did then it would need to wear 2x slower then ultegra to make it financially justifiable for training.

For racing, the extra weight loss is easily justified considering how difficult (costly) it is to reduce weight on wheels. Rotational weight is key during races with lots of spin ups.

Seats, to each their own

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 01:10:38 +0000

Seats are a very personal preference. Sense I am allergic to the pads in shorts I tend to prefer a softer seat.

Brakes Ultegra, Tiagra

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 01:09:29 +0000

Considering that I am heavy on brakes, I should try out more brake systems. Ultegra does well in all conditions, wet, dry, dusty, out right mountain bike muddy and cold, salty with mud mixed in.

Tiagra fairs close to Ultegra in conditions expect they are more softer. They work fine on my commuter.

Giant Tcr compact frames

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 01:01:32 +0000

Over all the Giant Tcr compact frames are a fairly inexpensive platform to build your bike on. Personally have found them not to be the stiffest frame but that has not changed my results in any significant way. Aero dynamics is where improvement could likely be made.

Ultegra and Dura Ace shifters

admin — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 00:58:36 +0000

Ultegra, Dura Ace shifters fair well for training and racing. What tends to do them in is dust which gets into the shifters and or spring breaks in side. The Dura Ace are some what lighter but at this moment have not noticed any difference in Durability.

Cables and cable housing

admin — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 03:11:09 +0000

So I have far been using Shimano cables and housing, they last the usual year though could replace them more often. I only recently started trying other brands and the http://www.yokozunausa.com Cables look promising, putting it on the todo list.