righto - we all remember back when we were 14, 15 with low-mid end bikes.... like diamond back topangas

we were all obsessed with cutting weight wherever we could, but doing it on paper round money gave companies like Kalloy and Tektro their marketplace

so in the spirit of those times, myself and t1nt1n and his 29.76lb of topanga have a target of 27lb to reach as cheaply as possible

we are setting a low, low ceiling of about £3 a part for parts purchased (on here that'll only really cover postage). the bike is only going to be used for short road runs and will be left locked outside so we're steering clear of bling and flash

current spec is something like this
Frame: 1992 diamond back topanga

Fork: oem purple

Headset: Tioga
Stem: twice as heavy as half its weight
Handlebar: made of some kind of dark matter...
Grips: rubber
Barends: No

Brakes: Kind of (plastic exage cantis....)
Brake Pads: after a fashion
Brake Cables: need replacing
Cantilever cable hangers: yes
Brake Levers: Exage push-push STI

Shifters: Exage push-push STI
Front Derailleur: 300LX
Rear Derailleur: M550 LX
Derailleur Cables: yes
Cassette: 7 speed
Chain: yes
Cranks: 300LX
Crank Bolts: it has some
Chainrings: Shimano
Chainring bolts: and some of these too
Bottom Bracket: Yes
Pedals: Tioga Surefoots (replaced since pics)

Hub Skewers: shimano
Rims: Mavic rear, rigida front
Hubs: Exage
Nipples: Yes
Spokes: one is broken on the rear.....
Tyres: Continental
Tubes: Yes

Saddle: Selle italia
Seatpost: Yes
Seatpost Binder: Yes

Weight: 29.76lb

i reckon a change of stem and bars, plus swapping the crank arms (something like a 550LX) while keeping the rings should see us well on the way to 27lb.

should be a good opportunity for doing some parts restos! if anyone has anything they think may help in exchange for good karma, wine gums, pocket change and sexual favours (if you're a girl) then please pm myself or t1nt1n (if you're a girl and want sexual favours, pm me first, i'm better looking)

that's got to be the first spec list I've read from beginning to end

how about drilling out a few parts and aiming for 25lbs?

yeah, 27 is far4 too easy. i have a pair of sugino (i think) cranks you can have for postage if they can be of any interest. do you want me to drill them before i send them or shall i let you boys do that?

Lewis - that's very good of you - it's t1nt1n's call on the drilling (he's going to be riding the thing), but if they're 110/74 PCD they could be a good start

BB, Cassette and Seat QR will all be fairly heavy and cheap to replace.

Inner tubes may be industrial as well...

Oh, and break a few more spokes - that'll help!

BB is knackered so it's going anyway i have a few parts lying about we may be able to employ

Hi guys, thanks for the replies so far. I'd like not to have to resort to drilling if possible! This was my first mountain bike and I always wondered what it would be like if it didn't have it's own gravitational field!

I remember beating my mates downhill despite their new fangled suspension forks - though that was mainly due to not really having brakes

Thanks once again.

sadly cranks are compact. me and my mates used to run 24" inner tubes to save weight

skewers have been changed for generic bolt-up allen key ones. total weight is now 28.8lbs

I recon i'm going to have a bash at this with my tip find sarcacen. Need some cheapo wheels and tyres to get a starting point first though. Fancy a weigh off?

1) All 3 of them, if not change the seat one for a allen nut and bolt, even better if the binder holes havea nut shape to fit one in recessed.


2) Take out ALL the bolts for bottle cages, or similar unused one's and look around for some old bic pens, stick the endcaps from them in the holes.

3) Take the plastic spoke protector off.

4) Take the thick heavy rim rubber rimtape out (assuming there is some) and use black electrical tape. Works very well and is much lighter.

5) see if anyone has and old worn kevlar light tyre to ship you for £3.99. Two of these and the weight will drop... and drop where it's needed.

i have a pretty well worn folding Fire XC pro i'm going to take down next time i go to t1nt1n's house, so that's a start

those 300LX cranks will be a lot lighter with alu rings instead of steel and while you're at it - replace the bolts with alu ones.

Uno stems are very light and very cheap.

single speed!






that is all.

single speed isn't a bad idea....but less invasive would be to lose the granny/big rings and the FD. 1x7 is great for around towning. if anyone had a right thumbshifter laying around you could swap some lighter levers and ditch the push-push too