What is the original bike model? That will help shape our recommendations, and the cost around them.

Wheelset is an obvious choice to lose at least .5KG. Tires can be tempting, but you can get to a point where performance is impacted, so we'll need to know the terrain, and type of riding you do (and climate for that matter).

 

Wheels and tires. Your wheels, tires and tubes come to 5.5 kg!
Not knowing anything about the components other than weight makes it impossible to say though....26" wheels, 27.5, 29? Age of bike, number of speeds? Do you have wire bead tires? They're pretty heavy. Does anything need to be replaced anyway due to wear? That would help save money! What's your total budget?

 

You've already pointed out the tires/tubes.wheels. Those are huge.

A carbon handlebar would be in the 250g range for a "cheap" one like a Brand-X. That would save you about 150g at least for less than $100. Cassette is 631g. Switching to a 1x10 with aluminum spider and granny gears could get you a cassette in the 430g range and net you over 200 grams but might require a wheel change. (Microshift 11-48 424g ~$70usd)

Edit to add: Forgot about the 11 speed SRAM XG cassette around 325g and $200USD.

 

Fork, drivetrain, wheels and tires...

Could drop 1kg to 2kg on those parts.

150mm travel Pike will drop a decent amount of weight.

One of the best forks I've used was a '17 Pike RCT3...

Wasn't boost though and it was on my HT so I wanted wider rubber.

If you're not bombing the bike park... some Exo or similar tires will drop a heap more weight.

A good 11 speed drivetrain will shave even more grams.

The other areas are more of an add up type scenario i.e. a lighter stem won't affect build so much...

but a lighter stem + lighter handlebars + lighter pedals + etc... will all 'add up'.

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A good 11 speed drivetrain will shave even more grams.

or even a good 9 speed drivetrain

 

Unless I had an unlimited budget, I would put ALL of the money I have into the lightest wheelset I could afford. Rolling / unsprung weight savings will be far more noticeable than any other part.

After that I would consider a lighter fork, carbon fiber crankset, and then anything else I had money for.

 

• Drop all of your weights in a spreadsheet.
• Put proposed weight of item that will replace it in next column.
• Calculate the weight difference.
• Put the cost of that replacement part in the next column.
• calculate the cost per gram

-sort your list lowest to highest by cost per gram this will aid in the order of your decisions and purchases and help you with your plan.

As others mention, it's easy to loose weight on tires, you can get a ton of grip averaging 800 per end.

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The cassette!!!!!! Besides the wheels and tires that people have already mentioned. It is, as also mentioned, the easiest way to save weight, or better not to gain. Stick with 11 speed, and get an ultra cheap Shimano 11 speed and cut off 150 grams. Want to save 300+ and put in a more $$ get a Garbaruk 1046 or 1048, although the shifting in my experience was not so great. Even better in my experience, is the new e-thirteen 9-46 that shifts better, saves some more weight because of the smaller chain ring you can use and shorter chain, and has much range as a 1051 or 1052. Lightest set up is still probably an 11 SRAM XX1 1042, but they are hard to find and cost a gazillion ...and of course the best performance wise a XTR Shimano 12 Hyperglide .. but you need shifters, chain ring, derailleur, chain ....

 

e13 is superlight(in 12 speed) and shifts better than the SRAM stuff.

 

I'm on Hyperglide, and seems the rear wheel is way too heavy anyways. If I check out that cassette, do you have a recommendation for an XD hub that is fairly light and doesn't break the bank? Bonus if it does NOT sound like an overcaffeinated rattlesnake, but I won't be choosy if the price is right!

Since the primary goal here is some wrenching fun, no reason not to bring wheelbuilding into it!

 

my man... that's a good thing lol. saw something a bit ago about an onyx silent hub. search on youtube (that's where i saw it)

 

I am SO sold on an Onyx hub for another bike I have, but that thing is like $400. Is there something more reasonably priced for this project?

 

You guys that are talking about lighter hubs, are you going to lace up the wheels from the hub to hoops with spokes? Cause I know hubs can weigh a lot, but It's not easy to swap them out right?

 

Not as easy as swapping a crank of a fork, yeah. But I've always fancied building a wheel, but could never justify it. You guys gave me a good excuse.

 

Cockpit seems pretty heavy. Without getting too exotic there are any number of reliable stems in the 100-130g range for $30-60. As others mentioned there are also lots of strong, well regarded carbon bars out there - 200g more or less and $120-160. Both of these work out to more than a gram saved for each dollar spent and together could take half to 3/4 of a pound off. Note, that if you're willing to go into ultralight equipment not really suited for Enduro riding you can do even better: If you want to go total weight weenie then you can get a Wren stem (~80g / $50) and a Mt. Zoom handlebar (120-130g / $130-140) to save a whopping 400g from your current set up for under $200.

The other thing that stands out to me is the bottle cage. Cheap carbon bottle cages weigh 30ish g. Also better than a gram off for every dollar spent.

I agree that wheels and tires is where you'll see the biggest improvement, but my suggestions will save you on the order of another pound of weight for maybe $250 spent.

 

Just buy new bike, modern trail bikes comes under 15 kg mark;

in case u wanna spent $$ for upgrade-> rear wheel will be nice start, loosing half kilo from accelerating wheel will change your riding exp

 

Thanks!

Based on the already awesome help here, I'm modelling (so far, not a complete model yet) that I can reach 14 kg (14.2) at half the cost of a new trail bike, while keeping a frame that has immense sentimental value to me. I'm amazed.

Keep up the advice! I'm soaking it all up, and haven't even started looking at shocks and rear tires (rear tires will be next year at the earliest, gonna ride these into the dust first, but everything else is fair game)

 

Noone mentioned the rear shock. It's a heavy coil shock. I have a line on lightweight coils, but can anyone recommend an airshock that is decent, middle of the line? Don't need all the bells and whistles, just a decent rebound damper min. My e2e if needed is 7.5"/190mm

 

Sure! Like I said, because folks here have already been SUPER helpful with advice, I'm now projecting I can get under 14kg (13.9 by my reckoning) for about half the price of a new bike, while using the frame I have now.

I figured part brands were not relevant because weight weenies would generally know stuff like light bars being in the 200g camp (I had no idea), and be able to see up front that my bars were 2x heavier than they needed to be! The shock weight alone makes it clear it's coil.

Anyways, the frame is a Super V. I love this frame, and it is WORTH investing in (to me). Especially given the project goals. The fork is a Lefty max, the drivetrain and brakes are XT minus the Truvativ cranks, the hubs cannondale, rims Mavic (stickers fell off long ago, not sure what model, I am not attached to these wheels), and the tires are HEAVY! DH casing Michelin DH34's which I love, love, love. pinch-flat-proof even at <15 psi.

I like to ride hard, but not Sam Pilgrim hard. I doubt I could break a MtZoom bar though I have been surprised in the past. I don't crash "much". "funnest" trails for me are like Soquel Demo Forest (for those in CA) Sawpit, with tons of rocks and roots to make riding challenging.

I like this bike as a counterpoint to the modern AM bike I already have. I find it refreshing to own a long slack long travel 27.5'er that has stability for days, and this tight 26'er with excellent foundation that has been bulletproof. But now that I really have that long long slack 27.5, it has highlighted the need to differentiate my classic bike more by lightening it in a budget friendly way. AND, since the real goal is to get wrench time in , the fun is in the building, less so in the riding! That's bonus.

So, to that end, the vast majority of the comments made in this thread have been super spot on and SO helpful to identify the possibilities.

Things I didn't know before now:

Saddle is heavy, and cheaply lightened.
bottle cages are light and cheap (who knew this was an easy 100g?)
Stem is heavy
THOUGHT cranks were heavy but it seems expensive to pull weight out of this one.
handlebars MUCH heavier than I realized!
Tubeless was a huge revelation. I knew weight could be pulled out. I lost a POUND!
Lefty is heavier than I realized. They were supposed to be light for travel. Not so.
front wheel seems OK at best, but rear wheel has lots of room for improvement.

There's more. And more to go too, so thanks and please keep advising on parts! (not on buying a new bike!)

 

I figured part brands were not relevant because weight weenies would generally know stuff like light bars being in the 200g camp (I had no idea), and be able to see up front that my bars were 2x heavier than they needed to be! The shock weight alone makes it clear it's coil.

That helps, it's not a question of brands, it's a question of model and application. There's no sense recommending a wheelset limited to someone 190 pounds on cross country trails if they're 200 pounds and ride challenging downhill. The shock weight may make it clear it's a coil (though I shouldn't have to research what a 20 year old air shock might weigh!), not knowing what it's on or its purpose makes it hard to determine whether it needs to be a coil.

 

For this project I will definitely be trying an air shock. Brief research shows I can save about 450 grams (almost a full pound!) by going to a Fox Float DPS shock. Still need to dig more and see what is out there, but looks like one option.

 

Do you know if your frames leverage curve works with an air shock?

You can't just swap from one to the other, their are some frames that will work with both, but most are one or the other.

 

Looks like I can get a built wheel for $300 that includes an XD driver and all DT Swiss material. Looks like 240g, more than half a pound:

Hinten Laufrad DT Swiss Freeride Enduro 533d 26 " 370 Thru axle Downhill NEU | eBay

Entdecken Sie Hinten Laufrad DT Swiss Freeride Enduro 533d 26 " 370 Thru axle Downhill NEU in der großen Auswahl bei eBay. Kostenlose Lieferung für viele Artikel!

www.ebay.de

any red flags here, other than long lead time from Germany?

 

DT Swiss is some of the best you can buy. Having said that, that DT 370 was the cheapest DT and it is a discontinued hub. That is fine but might be a problem when the time comes to service (it was not compatible with 350/240) or if you want to keep it for the long run and want to change axle type. To be on the safe side I would soend a bit more and get a DT 350.

PS when it comes to hubs I would stay away from copy cats or ultra cheap offerings on e-bay or alibaba.

 

There is a company on aliexpress that makes fully machined cassettes that are in the 250-350g range depending on size. ZTTO is the brand. They have every speed option and lots of gearing options. They are also under $100. Also you must have square taper cranks cause that BB is a tank. Going to a external cup BB crankset will be cheap and save a bunch of weight. Even a ZEE crankset and BB will lighten up the total crank BB system.

 

I will draw the line at alibaba.

What is the risk of ultra cheap wheels from ebay when they use name brand parts like DT Swiss? crappy build quality? bad spokes? arrive warped and in need of extreme truing? not arriving at all? Arriving 3 months later?

 

Build quality maybe, although you can always true a wheel. In this case it is the discontinued hub that I would stay away from ... chi poco spende tanto spende we say in Italy: "who spends little ends up spending a lot"

 

We have similar sayings. “I can’t afford cheap tools”

 

Is the chain lowered much from 11T to 9T?
I just checked and at 11T I’m REAL close to the chainstay.

 

Recommending the most expensive non-wear parts be replaced to find weight savings is downright bad. (Fork, hub, coil shock)


Wear parts are often the best bang for your buck for weight saved.

Have you not put everything in a spreadsheet as I mentioned? If you did, you wouldn’t even be wasting your time with a lot of these parts discussions.

I can take a quick look at your list and weight weenie it up, but if you drop it in a Google docs spreadsheet I am happy to contribute. We need to know the parts you have for compatibility... basically, what are your drivetrain/brakes, etc.

Also, where are your weights coming from? Did you Google or weigh them all?

Quick examples.
24g grips 2 dollars


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Recommending the most expensive non-wear parts be replaced to find weight savings is downright bad. (Fork, hub, coil shock)

Wear parts are often the best bang for your buck for weight saved.

Have you not put everything in a spreadsheet as I mentioned? If you did, you wouldn't even be wasting your time with a lot of these parts discussions.

I can take a quick look at your list and weight weenie it up, but if you drop it in a Google docs spreadsheet I am happy to contribute. We need to know the parts you have for compatibility... basically, what are your drivetrain/brakes, etc.

Also, where are your weights coming from? Did you Google or weigh them all?

Quick examples.
24g grips 2 dollars

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Unfortunately not really true. There are very few "wear parts" on a bike. Let's see: grips, chain, chain ring and cassette, and tires. Am I forgetting something? Of those the only ones that can provide significant weight savings are the cassette and tires.

Whiterabbit: the 9-10 cog is not very much narrower than an 11 cog, and both should clear the chainstay.

 

Yes sir, I cataloged all the parts weights for the express purpose of putting into excel to track possible gains from any swaps. I started this thread because the good folks here can recognize a pig when they see it by weight. For example, I know my shock is heavier than it needs to be, and ditto on tires. What I wouldn't know is handlebars, cranks, many and frankly most other parts. The guys here zeroed in on SO many good suggestions just by looking at the existing list. It's been super helpful so far!

I'm not so google savvy for doc sharing, but I can try to paste here. The dollar estimates are VERY rough, take that with a grain of salt.

The weights are NOT paper values. I said before, the fun here is in the wrenching. I spent an evening and disassembled every nut and bolt off the bike and weighed each piece, the whole kit and kaboodle. Some parts are lumped together, such as handlebars and grips. Or derailleur and cable housing. However from a systems point of view, the divisions are sufficient to determine where the low hanging fruit are. That is, with the great guidance given in this thread!

Any predicted gains ARE using the published value of the replacement part. And don't factor in the obvious grams from cable housings, clamps, etc. Until I make the change, and measure the exact change. For example, going tubeless I measured the exact weight on the fluid I put in there. Same with the 11-46 cassette I had laying around.

Part	Weight (g)	Tubeless + smaller cassette	Seat bars shock cage	Drivetrain	Fork	BB? Tire?
Tool	61​	61​	61​	61​	61​	61​
R brake rotor	101​	101​	101​	101​	101​	101​
Saddlebag	119​	0​	0​	0​	0​	0​
Bottle cage	125​	125​	35​	35​	35​	35​
Rear shifter	161​	161​	161​	161​	161​	161​
Stem	216​	216​	216​	216​	130​	130​
Bottom bracket	238​	238​	238​	238​	238​
Chain	261​	261​	261​	261​	261​	261​
Rear derailer	288​	288​	288​	288​	288​	288​
Seat	302​	302​	202​	202​	202​	202​
Front brake	310​	310​	310​	310​	310​	310​
Rear brake	337​	337​	337​	337​	337​	337​
Rear tube	337​	123​	123​	123​	123​	123​
Pedals	369​	369​	369​	369​	369​	369​
Handlebars	413​	413​	121​	121​	121​	121​
Seatpost	556​	556​	556​	556​	556​	556​
Cranks	615​	615​	615​	615​	615​	600​
Cassette	631​	490​	490​	339​	339​	339​
Shock 7.5/190 - 2/50	698​	698​	240​	240​	240​	240​
Front wheel	868​	868​	868​	868​	2905​	2905​
F Tire	1385​	1385​	1385​	1385​
Front tube	298​	123​	123​	123​
F brake rotor	142​	142​	142​	142​
Rear wheel	1225​	1225​	1225​	980​	980​	980​
R Tire	1415​	1415​	1415​	1415​	1415​	900​
Fork	2153​	2153​	2153​	2153​	1832​	1832​
Frame	2877​	2877​	2877​	2877​	2877​	2877​
Total Weight, kg	16.501​	15.852​	14.912​	14.516​	14.496​	13.728​
Total Weight, lb	36.385​	34.954​	32.881​	32.008​	31.964​	30.270​
Cost
		Seat	$125​
		Bars	$130​
		Shock	$320​
		Cage	$35​
		Cassette		$200​
		Rear Wheel		$300​
		Fork			$350​
		Headset			$100​
		Stem			$50​
		BB
		Cranks
		Rear Tire				$80​

I do value continued advice. For example, the $300 wheel is factoring a DT swiss wheel built from Germany, using that DT 370 hub and DT 533 rim. Since I don't know what I don't know, the advice you guys gave me warning me of buying discontinued parts (370 hub) is well taken. Still lots more to consider for each decision.

 

I see a few nuances with your table/build:

• Are you able to move to tubeless without changing tires?
• You have 2 listing for tubes in the Tubeless column. Is that the weight of fluid and tape all-in?
• Your chain weight stays the same throughout, and you likely have to change this with a drivetrain change.
• The cranks have lost 15g somehow in the last BB/Tire column.
• Unsure if I missed the fork detail, but is a modern one compatible with your frame?
• Call it a saddle vs seat.

 

2nd column I've done since starting this thread.

The tires are Michelin DH34's, tubeless ready (thus the weight!). I've never been motivated to go tubeless, the tire sidewalls are so stiff I had no danger of pinch flatting. After weighing the tubes, I was motivated!! I couldn't believe tubes were 300g each. The 123g is all-in, fluid and tape. The weight savings of tubeless are HUGE! Since I had the fluid already, it was just 25 bucks for some stems and tape, and I dropped over 1/2 lb!

I hear you on the chain. I haven't modeled any weight change with that yet. I probably won't plan around it, just change when the time comes, weight it, and put in whatever the new weight is. The truth is, the existing weight includes a thick layer of crud, so washing it would be a weight savings too, technically

Cranks I have done near zero real research on, it's at the very end. I just got a sense of todays crank weights and put in a somewhat representative number. When I get through the first two columns I'll put more effort into crank research.

I can install any steerer size in my frame. Most are tapered, I can use that no problem. I'm targeting a Pike or Fox 34 @ 140 or 150mm of travel to get the right geo. "the internet" tells me I can find a Pike or Fox 34 that is <1800g. Basically I'm just hoping to stumble on a PinkBike take-off from 2017-2021 in the $250-$350 range. There are plenty of options with the right travel and axle. Some in the right price range. The real trick is finding one with a long enough steerer, my frame is an XL so I need a long steerer. I'll find something there eventually.

Saddle. 10-4! haha

 

Gotcha. Didn’t catch we were dealing with a lefty. But that will force you to go new hubs. So you need a boost front hub and the 141 rear?

My fox 34 was 1785 with cut steerer. Make sure you buy a Kabolt axle. It saves 40 grams!

You could go light stem/mt zoom combo, but you could also do something wild. I’m actually going to spend a little extra and so am integrated stem/bar. Synchros one is sweet but a little more spendy than a stem/bar combo.


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