What's the perfect road bike in your mind's eye?

[terry]

Whatever it is it has to have lugs

[ltwtsculler91]

I own all 3 of them... yet I still want another bike to race, thinking aero but that's a tool not something that will be in the garage forever like these.
I'm also on the younger end of the forum, so the older 80s and 90s lugged race bikes don't move me. I want a classic, put together look with any of the modern materials.

[Coluber42]

If this is a "mind's eye" road bike and not a real tires on the ground road bike, I would say that my ideal would also have a multi-speed fixed (i.e, non-coasting) drivetrain with no backlash and none of the extra friction you get in planetary hubs.
It would also weigh no more than two pounds even with four pints of beer in my saddlebag, and the beer would stay cold all day.

[lorenbike]

Steel frame and fork, neoretro style with lightweight tubing. Maybe a couple degree sloped TT to get the bars up. I like the ease of thread less stems, but a nitto quill just looks so good and 1" steerers with 25.4 or 26.0 bars just feel smoother. Clearance for 32mm tires and obviously rim brakes. And Shimano releases some sort of anniversary dura ace groupset that's mechanical, 2 x 9 gearing with a compact crank and 11-34t cassette.

[dcowboys31]

This bike is it for me. Was into BMX as a kid, GT was my first real mountain bike (1994) and when I got into road cycling in 1998 I saw Mark McCormick from the Saturn team at a local race on this bike and it has always been something i just loved. Simple, steel and just brings back good memories from U.S. domestic racing.
Saturn GT.jpg

[rothwem]

I know I'll be the minority here, but I've been pretty happy with every road bike I've owned. Its mostly the comparison to what other people are riding that makes me unhappy with it--it bugs me when other people have aero or lightweight **** that makes it harder for me than it is for them. I remember in college, one of the private Universities bought a size run of Trek Speed Concept TT bikes to loan out to their team and they dominated the time trials because we were all running CAAD7s and 8s with clip-ons and open pros. I suspect this is what led to collegiate cycling banning TT bikes, but that was after I was already done with school.

I'd be 100% okay with a well fitting steel or aluminum frame with box section wheels and sensible tires if that's what everyone else had and it didn't put me at a disadvantage in a group setting.

[ridethecliche]

Originally Posted by ltwtsculler91

I own all 3 of them... yet I still want another bike to race, thinking aero but that's a tool not something that will be in the garage forever like these.
I'm also on the younger end of the forum, so the older 80s and 90s lugged race bikes don't move me. I want a classic, put together look with any of the modern materials.

I'm on the younger side of the forum too...atleast I used to be when I first joined...but I'd kinda agree. I love the look of many of the bikes posted but I don't think I'd care to ride one.

I did own a 1984 Trek 760 which was a wonderful bike, but these days I'm on the hunt for something aero, disc, and comfy which can take 30-32 tires. I'd probably ride something like that for a good long while.

I've been through a few bikes lately, but I honestly hate the process of getting set up on and dialed in on a new bike. As much fun as it is to tinker, sometimes it's nice to just have something you can get on and go ride without thinking about it.

Originally Posted by rothwem

I'd be 100% okay with a well fitting steel or aluminum frame with box section wheels and sensible tires if that's what everyone else had and it didn't put me at a disadvantage in a group setting.

Welp. This is certainly magical thinking haha.

[flying]

What's the perfect road bike in your mind's eye?

Pretty much everything in this thread qualifies
Rim Brake Perfection, lets fan boy yours..

[Elefantino]

Originally Posted by ridethecliche

I did own a 1984 Trek 760 which was a wonderful bike ...

I had a 1986. Full Superbe Pro. I was an idiot for selling it.

[Alistair]

Lugged steel frame and fork. Modern geometry. Classy paint. Clearance for 32mm tires. Sram AXS build for a nice clean look without stupid integrated cables.

I'd say disc brakes too, but I'm not sure you can put discs on a lugged steel fork without totally overbuilding the fork and ruining the ride.

[ltwtsculler91]

Originally Posted by Alistair

Lugged steel frame and fork. Modern geometry. Classy paint. Clearance for 32mm tires. Sram AXS build for a nice clean look without stupid integrated cables.

I'd say disc brakes too, but I'm not sure you can put discs on a lugged steel fork without totally overbuilding the fork and ruining the ride.

Have you called Dave Kirk yet? You just described most of my bike (and others on here), except I went for mechanical unlike madsciencenow and a few others here.

Originally Posted by ridethecliche

I'm on the younger side of the forum too...atleast I used to be when I first joined...but I'd kinda agree. I love the look of many of the bikes posted but I don't think I'd care to ride one.

I did own a 1984 Trek 760 which was a wonderful bike, but these days I'm on the hunt for something aero, disc, and comfy which can take 30-32 tires. I'd probably ride something like that for a good long while.

I've been through a few bikes lately, but I honestly hate the process of getting set up on and dialed in on a new bike. As much fun as it is to tinker, sometimes it's nice to just have something you can get on and go ride without thinking about it.



Welp. This is certainly magical thinking haha.

I agree, it's why I've built up my "keepers" and have rotated the other bikes around it when I want to tinker. That, and I've swapped wheels and parts quite a bit on a few of them.

[kiwisimon]

Originally Posted by ltwtsculler91

That Kirk looks a bit like mine. And it's the only road bike I have now.

[ridethecliche]

Originally Posted by Elefantino

I had a 1986. Full Superbe Pro. I was an idiot for selling it.

Mine was superbe pro as well. I sold the parts and built it up with a shimagnolo setup and raced it in college.

I sold it to a teacher friend of a teammate early in the pandemic build up with 11 speed 105. I had one of those headset conversion things that let me use a modern stem and bars with it.

I really did like that bike. I owned it for 15 years. It was bright purple as well and was my favorite color scheme for it.

I had that bike built up like 5 different ways over the years and commuted on it in Boston for some years. I also had a 520 from 84 that I built up as a commuter and sold to a friend when I was in grad school since his bike got stolen.

Edit: found a picture of the college race setup. Ugh seeing this is making me miss it.

[Alistair]

Originally Posted by ltwtsculler91

Have you called Dave Kirk yet?

No, I'm at N+1 and if I sell another one of my wife's bikes to make room, she'll divorce me!

I should probably sell my All-City and order something custom, just hard to bring myself to spend the money when my primary focus these days is gravel. And I'd really hate to spend $$$$ only to rip around on chunky gravel and ruin the paint.

[d_douglas]

Originally Posted by fa63

This:

This is a beautiful bike, but those stems are awful looking in my opinion. Just a plain old round tubed stem, please.