Splurge vs Save?

Gene

The Dancing Machine
Interesting video by Pro Closet on what to splurge versus save on.

I upgraded my frame this year, but now I’m questioning the carbon wheel upgrade to them…

What do others think?

Spurge vs Save
 

Gene

The Dancing Machine
What do you splurge on first? I found my frame splurge made me much faster. Each situation is different of course as I was upgrading from a 10 year old bike.

If you had an older medal bike would a wheel upgrade make a big difference?
 

a.s.

Mr. Chainring
I weigh 215 lbs and ride like a bull. My carbon wheels weigh a total of 1500 gm. Not only are they light and fast, but I have beat the crap out of these wheels for 2 years. That they are as true as the day I bought them, makes them worth every penny to me.
 

tonyride

Don't piss off the red guy
As usual I'm the boring one here. My motto is balance. I rarely see anything as all or none/go big or go home/this or that. I believe there's a balance of cost and performance. I also take into consideration cost/benefit, perceived quality, and point of diminishing returns. This all depends on the specific component and I never pit one single item against another. I always look it as a system, not just an individual component, because any component needs to work with other components.
 

a.s.

Mr. Chainring
I will argue that good brakes and a good fork make a big difference. Definitely splurge on those first, before dropping a grand (or more) on carbon wheels.

Drivetrain not so much. Sram NX ain’t gonna shift badly. It’s as good as XX1 from 5 years ago.

Almost all dropper post move exactly the same - up and down. Sure, some will die quicker than others but if yours works then no need to upgrade (yet). If anything, the lever makes the most difference.

Seat, bars, stems, etc. are usually more about comfort, aesthetics and weight.
 

Cassinonorth

Well-Known Member
Drivetrain not so much. Sram NX ain’t gonna shift badly. It’s as good as XX1 from 5 years ago.

Hard disagree here. My NX was garbage....couldn't wait to get it off my bike. Clunky as all hell. GX or better for me.

Almost all dropper post move exactly the same - up and down. Sure, some will die quicker than others but if yours works then no need to upgrade (yet). If anything, the lever makes the most difference.

They do...until they don't. There's piles of KS Levs and Specialized Command posts which can't even be rebuilt.

As usual I'm the boring one here. My motto is balance. I rarely see anything as all or none/go big or go home/this or that. I believe there's a balance of cost and performance. I also take into consideration cost/benefit, perceived quality, and point of diminishing returns. This all depends on the specific component and I never pit one single item against another. I always look it as a system, not just an individual component, because any component needs to work with other components.

Looking at my current bike with GX AXS and a Fox Performance Elite fork on it, this is probably my motto at this point as well. Not worth the extra money for Kashima or saving 80g.
 

Patrick

Overthinking the draft from the basement already
Staff member
interesting the DH guy wants brakes, and the drivetrain isn't that important !!
:D

At least we can all agree on a good fork.

Did anyone mention professional fitting?
 

Ian F

Well-Known Member
I can't really give an honest opinion on the subject... depends too much on your budget and willingness to spend stupid amounts of money on marginal gains.

My Spot is a full XTR bike with Enve carbon wheels. There really isn't much to "upgrade" on the bike. The only thing I "might" change is adding AXS shifting. But that will only happen if something happens to the XTR rear derailleur.

The Megatower will likely get a second set of wheels over the off-season. Probably a set of I9 Enduro 315 Carbon wheels. Not that there's anything wrong with the current wheels - which are I9 Grade DH wheels wrapped in Maxxis Assegai DH tires. But I'd like to get a second set of wheels with lighter tires on them for when I use the bike for trail rides (it's mostly used for park riding). And someday I'll get a Cane Creek DB Air rear shock to match the Helm fork. It is already equipped with eeWings cranks, which I was able to "justify" because I pedal-strike a lot and the Ti crank arms can take a beating.

The Chameleon is fine as-is for now. I'll ponder things to change after I ride it more over the winter.

I can definitely see ditching a full drivetrain on a park bike. If I ever get that Tora the bike will likely be built up as a single-speed.
 

one piece crank

Well-Known Member
NX/GX = it’s all in the set-up & tuning. I do think the GX shifter is better.

I ride with PSI on the edge of rim strikes, so no way I would risk $$$ on carbon rims.
 
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stb222

Love Drunk
Jerk Squad
I have to agree that sram doesn’t trickle down tech like Shimano does and NX is basically trash.

Anyways, wheels make a huge difference but would highly recommend a good set of hubs and alum rims. Carbon rims aren’t worth the money in my opinion as they come with some huge downsides. Like others have said, wheels and fork are probably the upgrades that make the most notable difference.
 
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