2kg is very lardy for a road frame.

I have 2 road bikes,one a high end aluminium frame and the other a Scott carbon.I can’t tell any difference in ride quality and the alu bike seems to handle slightly better.The carbon frame weighs less ,but thats about it.
Buying again it would be an aluminium frame with a higher spec for me.

c. 1kg frames with ultegra and basic but decent wheels being 7.5kg

Must be very light wheels 😉 . My Defy SL with Dura Ace is 7.3 kilos. That’s an 850g frame. Wheels are Dura Ace hubs, sapim spokes and CXP33’s with 25c vittorias. I could lose a bit more in the wheels and 100g for the saddle but not much elsewhere. My Propel SL Ultegra is 7.7 kg stock. And my Alloy Defy is 8 kg with Ultegra, a very light fork and Ksyrium Elite wheels.

Anything sub-eight kilos will feel light. That is still only 17.6 lbs remember.

Wheels are Dura Ace hubs, sapim spokes and CXP33’s with 25c vittorias.

Not light wheels at all!

Anything sub-eight kilos will feel light. That is still only 17.6 lbs remember.

Just having a play with CyclingPowerLab.

An extra kilo on the flat at 300 watts will take you from 38.315 kph to 38.295 kph (assuming 85kg baseline and CdA of .350 – typical hoods, default environmental values.) Basically costs you about 0.5 of a watt.

On a 10% grade, the extra kilo will take you from 11.814 kph to 11.687 kph. Or about 3.5 watts.

However if that extra kilo makes you a little bit more aero (e.g. deeper section wheels, frame) and takes your CdA down by 0.01 then on the flat you’ll go from 38.315 kph to 38.649 kph. Still be a tiny bit slower on a 10% grade though. Tipping point with those values seems to be about a 3% grade.

But then there is something about a light bike with light wheels that is nice to ride, especially in the hills when speeds are lower and the bike more responsive. But then a heavier bike with deep aero wheels feels great when ridden at speed 🙂

Oh and don’t forget to have a poo before you ride 🙂