Upgrades - cheap ones with bang for your bucks!

[freiston]

Other than the tyres I don't see you've much to gain from any cheap upgrades.
If it hasn't already had one, give it a good Spring strip down and service, if it's had much winter use I'd replace the cables, maybe for some upgraded ones, I like jagwire. When I know a bike is spot on with everything exactly as it should be it always feels like an upgrade even if it has no new parts.

That's what I reckon too. As comfort is part of your aim, how about re-examining your 'fit' and contact points and consider any changes to that - are you happy with your saddle or do you think you could do better? Likewise handlebars and tape (I'm presuming you ride drops). I've recently been through a Goldilocks phase with my handlebars. I wasn't completely happy with the short reach compact bars that came with the bike - the only hand positions off the drops were on the hoods and on the tops (and not much difference in reach between the two). I tried the Modolo Gran Fondo bars which to me were lovely except for the drops which I hated and I ended up with a shorter stem and Velo Orange Grand Cru Course (with a much longer reach than my original bars) - but I do like to move about on the bars quite a lot compared to some. With the new bars, it feels like a different (and better) bike.

[belgiangoth]

Kojaks are still my favourite, just shows how subjective it can be.

Another value purchase is a hearty lock for at home/in shed with some sort of anchor.

[Tangled Metal]

I've never had any issue with a saddle since my first sports bike with drops. That was a kids bike with solid plastic sports seat! I got used too that so I've just used the stock saddle the bikes I've bought since came with. I'm happy enough with that.

Fit is ok. I have started to get a stiff neck occasionally but i believe that's more to do with an injury i had years ago that keeps coming back. In between spells of bad neck I'm alright.

For me it's important to get the hands right. I could never do that with flat bar hybrids. I need drops. If i don't then my elbow and wrists hurt after less than an hour of riding. Since going back to drops I've never had an issue.

Drops have always been stock bars. I have 440 wide and it seems to suit me. I ride on the drops almost all the time, only changing hand position to the hoods to prevent elbow problems due to being in one position. I can't get on with bar tops. It feels like I've no control because my hands are too close together.

I've thought of new bars but the faff of changing them puts me off. Plus I'm not sure i could choose a better bar anyway. If it ain't particularly broke don't change it I think.

Wheels are my second consideration after 32mm tyres. I've got PlanetX cx wheels that came with the bike. I think they're a wide rim and seem OK but no doubt heavy. I'm interested in something new and front hub dynamo interests me too. I've emailed Hewitt for suggestions. My second nearest LBS supplies factory made wheels. They used to make their own but for the money most of their customers want to pay they can't compete with stock bought in wheels. They will build wheels though if asked to customer's specs. It used to be a significant part of their business decades ago. A bunch of old guys who have been in the business for a long time.

So far tyres are my only immediate upgrade. Wheels do need sorting though. Out of true for sure but disc brakes seem to be ok with them. Going to have to be nice to my dad, he's got this weird knack to be able to true a wheel by eye. He hates doing it though. I tried it and made it worse.

[nigelnightmare]

That's what Dad's are for......








....Fixing things and getting plied with beer afterwards.

[Brucey]

.... I can't get on with bar tops. It feels like I've no control because my hands are too close together....

if you also struggle to ride 'no hands' then this could indicate that your headset needs attention. A good bike should appear to steer itself, i.e. respond to weight shifts as much as steering inputs. However it won't do this if the headset is set too tight or is damaged in some way.

Very many bikes can be utterly transformed by being set up and serviced properly.

Years ago I loaned a chum a spare road bike which was fitted with a mixture of (mostly midrange) parts including a smattering of Shimano 105 (eg 1051 brakes) in the (rare) dark blue anodised finish. I had (for some reason I can't even remember now) debadged these, so if you hadn't seen these parts before, you might struggle to identify their humble origins. Obviously I'd set it all up as best I could. My chum (an experienced road racer) was pretty blown away; he reckoned the bike went better than his race bike and refused to believe the parts were not some species of Dura Ace... The bike did have a nice frameset, wheelset and tyres on it but it was otherwise nothing special.

So there is the cheapest and best 'upgrade' you can have; a decent service and setup. Learning how to true wheels, prep cables, and set bearings up properly can transform your riding experience, and is very rarely time wasted.

cheers

[peetee]

Upgrade your bike ride from one heading into the wind to one that is wind assisted.

[Brucey]

beans for tea, then....

[blackbike]

Get thinner.

That has always been the best upgrade in my experience.

[Tangled Metal]

Used to be 9 stone but 6'5", I'm a lot heavier but no taller and a much faster rider. Weight and low girth isn't everything. Turn sideways i disappeared, front on the bike probably had more drag than i did!

I can ride hands-free ok. Choose not to. Headset no doubt could be fettled but i still don't like hands on the tops of the bars. My old road bike was exceptionally good to ride hands-free. Whilst marginally better on the tops it wasn't to my liking. I guess I'll always prefer a wider hand position. Over last 4or5 years hand position has become more critical for me. I get a kind of crunchy feel to my elbows if i ride flat bar bikes. The position at the elbows causes problems.

[esuhl]

I'm still a bit of a newbie, so apologies if this is all obvious, but...

The one thing that makes a big difference to the "quality" and enjoyment of my ride is having really fast, sharp gear changes. Assuming that the chain and gears aren't worn-down and in need of replacing, if the rear gears don't seem to change "linearly" (i.e. the gears change okay over some gears, and not on others), then the gear-mech is probably out of alignment. A new gear-hanger for my bike cost about £12, and brought the gears into perfect alignment.

As others have said, replacing the gear cables and housings is something I do relatively regularly (compared to other maintenance). It's fairly cheap and quick to do, and really makes a difference.

After that, bleeding the brakes (if you have hydraulic ones) and changing the handlebar grips to more ergonomic ones (if you have flat bars) might be worthwhile.