[anirban]

hey guys, I have a 06 Trek 4900. I am a complete newbie to mountain biking, and this was the best bike I could afford. It is serving me great- and thats an understatement. Its a really good bike- a bike who can actually get things done!

I was wondering if you guys could tell me if there is a way to shave off some weight off the bike by upgrading to some lighter components- such as wheelsets... seatposts, saddle, handlebar... stuff like that. Also, can I put a 9 speed cassette on my bike? It came with an 8 speed one.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Rickster]

You can change all those things you listed, just depends how much you want to spend, lightness costs alot. You can't go to a nine speed cassette without changing the shifters also.

 

[anirban]

You can change all those things you listed, just depends how much you want to spend, lightness costs alot. You can't go to a nine speed cassette without changing the shifters also.

I dont mind changing the shifters/deraileurs. I just want to know if the frame is going to be compatible with a 9 speed cassette.

Thanks a lot for your reply.

 

[sungchang]

Change to 9 spd cassette - YES! Since you have 8 spd hub, you can use the same wheelset; however, I believe you have to change the right shifter, cassette, chain and rear derailleur. It's going to entail changing quite a bit which might not be worthwhile in terms of $$$.

For my wife's Trek 4100, I swapped out the stock tires, saddle, stem and handlebar as I had them lying around. Those changes shaved off about 2 lbs.

Good luck.

 

[TREK 4 Life]

Firstly...are you upgrading to 9 speed cause you want it (fad value) or because you actually NEED 9 speed?

I used to be able to ride just as hard and fast on my 8speed as my friends with their 9speeds. Mind you I now ride SS, but thats beside the point. Ask yourself this...Do I want to spend the money on new shifters/Derailers, Chain, Cassette because it's "cool" to have 9 speed, or is it because your current gearing isn't getting the job done?

As said above, shaving weight=money. Sometimes lots of it. If you bought a 4900 cause you couldn't afford a more expensive one, then I would wager that you don't have the cash flow required to make a Weight Weenie bike. BUT, for relatively cheap, you could do a few things. Mind you I'm not up to date on the specs of your bike, but you could swap the fork, and wheelset. Thats a huge first step. If your serious about it, piece by piece buy XT or XTR stuff as the cash allows. Like you I love my bike. A Trek 4300. So what if the frame isn't the top of the line, if we chose, buy whatever you want for it. Ignore the haters who say to buy a better bike. They base the "better" on the components, and if you are replacing the cheap junk with the good stuff, then yours is just as good as theirs.

Sure it's WAY WAY more expensive to do that, but if it's what you want to do, then ignore the BS that "certain" people here will produce. But if your ever lucky enough to get insight from Shiggy, take it for everything it's worth, the Dude is an Icon here. And man, does he ever know his sh!t.:thumbsup:

 

[DoubleTrek]

I also have a 4300(DISC), check my profile for the list of upgrades. It is also a 27 speed. To save weight you could go with a carbon bar and seat post. A Bontrager Race XXX Lite is about $140 CDN, and a seat post is around $90. You could also go with some thinner tires(yours comes with the Bontrage Jones ACXs) downsize your tires from a 2.2 to a 1.9.

 

[trekboy79]

Save Weight

The easiest way to save weight is to change out the wheels. However, it does not make much sense to put $1,000 wheels on a Trek 4900. My advice is to ride the hell out of the bike, save your pennies and buy a lighter and more versatile FS mountain bike such as a Trek Fuel EX 7 or 8, a Stumpy Comp, a Fisher or maybe one of the Jamis FS bikes, and then upgrade components from LX to XT or XTR, carbon fiber bar, lighter wheels, tubeless tires, seatpost, stem, fork, etc. to save even more weight. Happy riding. :thumbsup: