Less is more

There are whole corners of the cycling web devoted to weight reduction. Go on, Google "weight weenies", I'll wait.

Quite a rabbit hole, isn't it?

Now I'm not going to get into a bespoke set of bike-weighing scales (yes, they exist) but I have been quite inspired by the thought of upgrading my trusty old road bike, in part inspired by this excellent video. The final push has come from the recent spate of punctures though, prompting me to replace my somewhat worn tyres. So out go the brilliant (until this week) Schwalbe Durano Plus, which have put in well over 2,000 miles in the last nine months. And in come... what?

After extensive Googling, in will come Hutchinson Fusion 5 Kevlar Pro Tech. Yes, you read that right. Kevlar! Whereas the Durano Plus relied on an extra 5mm of rubber on the outer surface to provide sterling puncture protection, the Hutchinson have Kevlar. That, and the fact that they're foldable tyres, rather then the wired Schwalbe, should equate to a fair weight saving. Ditto the new Schwalbe extra light tubes I'd ordered.

That's what I thought when I went to bed last night. This morning, I got the scales out, to see whether this was rational in the cold light of day or whether I was falling down the weight-weenie rabbit hole. The results are in:

Part-worn Schwalbe Durano Plus 700x25c wired	494g	(Unscientifically weighed with, er, kitchen scales)
Hutchinson Fusion 5 Kevlar Pro Tech 700x25c folding	215g	(Claimed)
Potential weight saving of (494g-215g) x 2 tyres =	558g
Schwalbe 700c 18-28c 60mm Presta tube	113g	(Kitchen scales)
Schwalbe Extra Light 700c 18-25c 60mm Presta tube	80g	(Claimed)
Potential weight saving of (113g-80g) x 2 tubes =	66g
Potential total weight saving =	624g

Now part of me thinks brilliant, that's a great saving! And part of me looks at my old-man's paunch and thinks that there are much bigger weight savings to be made, if I could only stay off the flapjacks and Minstrels. But the point is, I may save nearly two thirds of a kilogram just by judiciously replacing things I needed to replace anyway, and without breaking the bank. That's a win, surely?

Next consideration - the wheelset. I weighed the Giant IOU333 front wheel that came with the bike, twelve long years ago, and it clocked 865g with the quick-release spindle in. That's not bad, actually. But I've been looking at the Prime Baroudeur SE Road wheelset from Wiggle (Prime being one of their in-house brands), where the front wheel weighs in at 661g. Assuming a pro-rated saving on the heavier rear too and I could be looking at another 465g of weight saving, just by upgrading my wheels. Except, brilliant value though the Prime wheelset is in the Wiggle sale, it's £175 that I don't actually need to spend...