losing weight

[Jay]

I bought a used 4500c about a year ago. I love the bike, but I'd like to trim some weight. Right now, it's mostly stock and weighs in at 31 lbs. Where can I get the most bang for the buck as far as replacing parts?

[eastcoastk2]

I'm no pro but I have read enough threads like this to know that the first place to start is with the rotational components.  

Maybe someone else can make some specific reccomendations.

[pharph]

That sounds heavy for a 4500c.  I've got an 856 that weighs in at 25lbs ... and it's the 'Way Big' 20" frame with!  I'd say your best bet is to look into the wheels and front shock.  As much as I loved my Girven Vector2 front shock, switching it out for a newer Manitou shaved about 1.5lbs from my bike.  It's a totally different ride now.  Also, just as 'eastcoastk2' mentioned, getting a new wheelset will make a huge difference.  Anytime you can reduce the rotating weight, it's going to make a noticable difference.

Course, another option is to visit the restroom before you ride!    Good luck.

[tmaybee]

Hi there.  The cheapest and easiest way to loose weight from the wheels is lighter tubes and tires.  On mtbr.com "save some weight" forum, the consensus seems to be the best all-around lightweight tires are Nokian nbx lite 2.0  with the Schwalbe Racing Ralf a close second.  If you do a search over there, you will see many discussions on this.

For tubes, Try Maxxis.  They have some 80-90 gram tubes that are highly recommended.

Next, try some lightweight grips like Titec porkrinds.  The weigh about 12g  and stocvk grips are around 100.  Very cheap weight savings.

Plastic bottle cage bolts will save 24g (if you use a camelback)

A lighter stem and seatpost will save weight can some good deals can be found.  A Pazzaz stem is reallt cheap. about $15  and weighs 145g.

Bolt on skewers will save about 100g too.  I use Ti skewers from www.dusted74.com  and they are great, but some people want steel bolt-ons because they are stiffer.  I have never had any stiffness issues, but they 856 with a crosslink is plenty stiff...   My skewers were 42g for $30  and steel ones are about 65g for $12.  Regular shimano Qr's are about 150 or so.

A lighter seat will be another place to save weight, but this is all personal preference.  Check mtbr for recommendations.

Handlebars are another area you can save weight, but this is a bit more expensive, usually at least $50 and up for lightweight ones.   And use a flat bar for the best weight savings.

Ti bolts are the last step.  If you need some of these, let me know.

Good luck,
Trevor

[Proflexman]

Try doing a search for a site called ( weight weenies ).
These guys need help and thats not from the likes of us but guys in white coats.
Its a great site and does give you some idea of what to use.
They dont have all the bike industry coponants but nearly and the weights for each item.

[Simon]

A standard 4500 should weigh around 27 to 28lbs.

As has already been mentioned the wheelset/tyres etc is the best place to start,

Replacing the standard shock (Nr4 on the 4500) to a quality air shock will save you 1/2lbs and give better performance.

you should have no problem reducing the weight to around 25lbs funds permitting.

Simon.

 

[Jay]

Thanks for the advice.

This is my first bike, so I'm pretty new to all this. The guy I bought it from said it was all stock, but it looks like he probably stripped it down and rebuilt it with cheaper and heavier parts. Right now, it has Shimano Deore XT front and rear derallieurs, XT shifters and skewers, and an LX crank. The fork is Judy Rox Shox. The wheels are Sun Rims Sub IV with Panaracer fire XC tires. The seatpost and stem are titec, not sure of the exact model. The only new parts on it are the saddle - an '04 WTB Laser V Stealth, and the handlebar - Scott LFX carbon fibre.

So given that, I want to get it down to 25 - 26 lbs. I might have to do it in stages depending on cost. After the cheap stuff like a seatpost, stem and tires, what should be my first priority to make a big difference?

Thanks again for all the help.

[Matno]

I'd say your first big priority should be a new fork. I'm not sure how much the Judy weighs, but I know it's heavier than the performance you're getting out of it. Get a good 4" fork and the performance improvement will be so huge that you might not care about weight anymore!

Then go for wheels. The Sub IV's are pretty low quality (they did come stock on many K2's though).

One other thing to consider is the bottom bracket. Depending on what cranks you have, you could have a ton of extra weight down there. Particularly with some of the older square taper BB's, the difference in weight between low end and high end can be considerable.

Pedals can also make a big difference. If you really want low weight pedals, I highly recommend Bebops. They're pricey, but they rock, and they're by far the lightest mountain bike pedals out there.

[Carbon_Angus]

my 2 cents

Probably the best combo to make the bike lighter would be the tubes/wheels and then the shock (Astro 5) then a fork like a Mega~Air

The tubes/wheels you will feel the weight loss the most because it is rotating weight. The shock 'cuz it will be lighter but also it will make the bike more efficient and that will make a big difference. The fork well 'cuz that fork is heavy! Everything else beyond that like crank/bb/stems, etc.....will help but the cost vs weight savings vs making the bike faster/better diminishes.

good luck
[smiley=beer.gif]

[BFG]

It sounds like you have a little extra weight all over.
the sub 4 rims are really light, but the xt hubs are really heavy.  In fact all xt stuff is fairly heavy, it works great and is strong, but heavy.  The standard grade titec stuff is heavy as well.  If you have the cash I would recomend going with the easton carbon fiber bar/post combo.  Probably about a pound right there.
there are some good cheaper alternatives if the easton stuff is out of reach.  The Kalloy UNO seat posts are light and cheap 250 grams and about $20.  A nice cold forged stem 180 grams and about $20.
Loose another 50-100 grams by ditching the quick releases and go with bolt on style.  There could be 50 grams in your headset if you have a cheap steel unit now. 99-120 grams and $25-$100.  Your seat could be hiding 200 grams in those steel rails.  200-300 grams in pedals if you have plaforms now.  If you have wire bead tires now ditch them for some lighter folding bead tires and go with light weight tubes or better yet go to stans no tubes.
Its a slippery slope for sure.
my best advice would be to keep an eye out for good deals and upgrade when you find good deals.