Forme TT bike

[bianchi928]

Hi all,

I am looking for a cheaper options to get into a TT bike.

I was thinking something like this -

https://www.cyclingdeal.com.au/buy/form ... BIK-FOR-56

Obviously not a lightweight but my thoughts are that weight isn't such an issue with TT bikes, it is reasonably well specced , plenty of adjustability and I could sell it at a good price and not lose too much money should I like the TT bike caper and choose to upgrade.

I am looking second hand, but not much out there in this price bracket.

Any thoughts?

Cheers

[Derny Driver]

Mate you cant go wrong at that price. The other thing is, there is an abundance of 10 speed disc wheels, zipps etc for sale second hand as everyone is busy upgrading. Wheels are probably more important than anything else. And those stock Eastons look okay.
I would go it for sure.

[MattyK]

Assuming you already have a road bike, I'd go down the mutation path first. (See my ugly bike in the Triathlon section). That way you've only invested in a few parts that can be sold off without too much effort, rather than a bike of unknown provenance and unknown geometry (quick image check has that bike at about 75° seat post angle, so not particularly steep, especially as it appears to be a small size).

Most of the drag comes from your body position, then your head and wheels, and finally your frame...

Parts can be picked up on ebay and gumtree for decent prices if you're patient and watch carefully.

Shopping list:
(Optional:
0. bike fit session, so you know your geometry requirements.)

1a. Aero bars. Ideally ones that mount the elbow pads as low as possible.
1b. ~25mm offset seatpost that can be flipped to forwards position, eg a 3T.
1c. Triathlon/TT saddle that you can sit on the nose of. ISM, Cobb, Sitero, etc
1d. MTB stem (eg 35 degree) - flip it upside down. Don't get a short one, stick to a similar length.

That will get your body in a decent position. The below are optional, but the order I would do things in:

2. Aero helmet/skinsuit/shoe covers etc
Cheap aero gains

3. Bar end shifters
That will make life a little easier on the aero bars. But more fiddly to re-cable the bike if you want to do it regularly... Depends on your terrain really. You could probably just do the rear shifter and leave the front shifter as-is.

3. Deep front wheel - more beneficial than a rear as the air is clean.
4. Disk wheel cover (Wheelbuilder, Dyma).
That will get you most of the aero gains.

Everything after that is small fry.

[g-boaf]

What road bike do you have? You might be able to adapt it to the TT mission rather than spending a heap of money on buying a new bike. It'll probably take a bike fit to get that sorted out properly.

Planet X also does TT bikes, I remember a few people here had those:
http://www.planetx.co.uk/c/q/bikes/tt-a ... es/stealth

I've never ridden one of the Planet X bikes. Obviously they are much more expensive, but still a cheaper option than Cervelo, Specialized, Trek or something like that.

The trick with the TT bike is getting comfortable on it, getting used to the handling of those things and then being able to stay in that tucked down position and be able to make reasonable power.

And aside from that, Dave Millar gives some pretty good advice in these videos:

https://youtu.be/jHxDQySr7Q4

You'll find all the other parts as related videos. Who better to learn from, he was a national champion in this discipline and he doesn't BS about.

The aero helmet and skinsuit/speedsuit (whatever you want to call them) and shoe covers will probably be the first ones to get (and cheaper). I'm going to guess about about $400-500 for the aero helmet with a removeable visor, and skinsuits well they vary in price by brand and type. Cuore's top ones are around $350 from memory, those are absolute high end stuff like what you'd see the pro teams wearing. They also do one with pockets on the back which is extremely comfortable to wear and quite practical (even has a nice zipped pocket to take a phone/cards), but it is equally costly.

Never underestimate the penalty of a jersey flapping about in the airflow big time. The aero helmets make a surprisingly big difference. Next is the position on the bike and training hard.

After those, look at the wheels. You might decide that you don't like TTs at all and if so, if you don't have the wheels, then it's not so much of a financial cost.