For many years I bought bits for my mountain bike to make it ‘better’, carbon shiny bits, better forks, etc etc.

But now, since I’ve given up MTB and moved onto just commuting and BMX I don’t want/need to buy anything other than bits that wear which is mainly brake pads now.

I think I concluded that buying shit doesn’t have any effect on my ability and this conclusion was the final nail.

Am I enlightened? Who else has reached the same conclusion?

I’ve just bought some anti-vibration pads for my foldie,…..

Let me know how you get on, I could be tempted to get back on the wagon

Me! Can’t remember the last thing I bought as far as cycling goes, nowt needs replacing so why bother?

My bike is so out-of-date I can’t get replacement bits for it anyway.
Seems a waste to buy 26″ straight steerer QR forks for instance.
Had some new grips earlier in the year.

APF

Agreed. I bought a Charge Plug for £100 and love it. 10 years ago I would have spent that on titanium inner tubes if that was the Dish of the Day.

Yup.

I find theres an inverse correlation between how much I ride (the majority being commuting or locally on a single speed) the less shiny tat I buy for my less well used buy for some reason more bling bikes.

My MTB is set up perfect for me now so the only thing I buy are bits that wear out.

Can’t help it. The bike I use the most has the least spent on it ( commuter / hack road bike ) and the mtb I use occasionally gets all the shiny bits despite being 26″ wheeled

I got to thinking my bike was on the way out having spent nothing on it for years, except a small spend and that was on some 2nd hand wheels to go tubeless. Then having tried a potential replacement and hated it I splurged £118 on new to me Pike fork, short stem, wide bars and a new gear cable. The difference was astonishing so I then invested in a dropper post and it’s perfect. I ride faster than my young mate with his carbon Transition Scout. My bike is a 26″ 2*9 Mk1 straight steerer Cotic Soul and I love it.

My mountain bike is a mk1 BFe (battleship grey) so from ca. 2007 or 8

other than getting rid of some hateful avid brakes about 6 years ago and putting on some xtr , all I’ve done is change the chain and brake pads

it works so why p155 about with it

I’ve stopped spending on shiney stuff and although it’s enforced through childcare costs, I have the same realisation. I did buy a new bike before the enforced situation kicked in and it has entry level SRAM kit on but because I’ve never had a SRAM bike I’ve no idea how it relates to Shimano Deore/SLX/XT. Makes no difference, bike rides fine. It’s nice not to have the stress of constantly wanting to tweak.

oh yeah and the BFe is a 3×9

Some stuff doesn’t make any difference, especially in the aspirational middle-ground category which is significantly better than OE tat but still (in absolute terms) no more than mediocre.

The bug bites hard when you get something *really* good and it does actually make you ride better

Still using a 2009 Iron Horse 6 point (off eBay in 2010) and a circa 2005 Orange Evo HT that I built from the frame up with mainly used bits for around £150. A few years ago, someone gave me a 25yr old Raleigh USA rigid bike. Both my bikes were out of action so I took it out on the trails – and had a blast!

2/3×9 and 26″ all the way.

Whilst I know all the latest designs probably work a little better, unless you’re competing at a high level or you have world class skills – you don’t need them.

All the different wheel sizes are just ways of the industry selling more bikes to more people.

In the past, buying new kit would encourage me to go out and ride more. But now I probably ride more often than ever.

For some, the enjoyment comes from choosing and buying kit, building bikes up etc etc. I can understand that, having done that in plenty of hobbies over the years – but the purest fun is in the doing.

Some stuff doesn’t make any difference, especially in the aspirational middle-ground category which is significantly better than OE tat but still (in absolute terms) no more than mediocre.

Which applies to life in general. Once you accept you don’t need to compete with other people and lives values are all about the ones you love and you’re own wellbeing it removes a lot of angst from your life.

Cheap vintage hard tails / commuters can be awesome. I’d much rather ride my 20yr old Zaskar worth about £200 than a cheap double suss or supermarket special.

That said, when hitting roots, jumps and drops I do really miss my Pike up front when relegated to a cheaper bike on the trails.

I’m kind of in the same boat but mainly due to a total loss of interest. My main bike does everything I want from it to the point I never rode my others so they’ve been sold and the Alpine is a decent but workable spec so I see no point or urge to upgrade any part of it.

This whole world of ever changing standards, e-bikes (yes, I see the point, its the spirit of having a leccy motor on your bike which isn’t in the spirit of the sport I fell in love with which I don’t really get), eye watering prices for kit and events etc has just made me lose interest vs my other hobbies.

Since buying a rigid SS and upgrading it a bit my MTB spending has slowed to a trickle. Mostly just brake pads and bottom brackets now and again. Spent nothing on the full-susser as it hasn’t been used for a year.
No knee replacements needed yet though!

it seems i hemorrhage money on bike bits. However recently ive been riding with a chap whos a damn sight better than me and hes got the attitude of were doing this for fun. Its reduced my spend and im having more fun now.

I still want a new carbon stumpjumper though…

Pretty much the same as the op but really fancy a new to me commuter as my current done is a bit small.! And 1″ thread etc

I’ve always taken the middle ground on this – I’ve run decent stuff that works, but never had 4 way adjustable shocks that I don’t have the time to set up properly or anything like that.

I also straddle the middle ground with new “standards” – some are a bit better, but I’m not going to sell my old kit to buy into them, and I find them a bit of a pain (trying to get the part you want in the standard you want… Fun!). Some of course are a bit useless.

I also like riding full stop, across a whole range of stuff, but do get a bit competitive with my mates. Maybe wouldn’t go full yumeya carbon to beat my mates, but having a vaguely appropriate bike helps.

Anyway, I can totally understand it, if your bike is comfy and does what you want it to, why go and change it to try and find out why you used to like it?

Some stuff doesn’t make any difference, especially in the aspirational middle-ground category which is significantly better than OE tat but still (in absolute terms) no more than mediocre.

The bug bites hard when you get something *really* good and it does actually make you ride better

True, but then I find some bits are more worth spending on than others.

I’d happily ride a 1×10 bike with no carbon on it. But it would probably have RCT3 Pikes and a CCDB or similar as those bits both make the bike faster and if they’re wrong, the bike feels wrong. Most other bits though are just tiny incremental differences.

Having said that I pretty much exclusively use Hope hubs, as they just work and last through several bikes so I tend to sell frames, forks etc but keep the hubs and re-use them which saves money in the long term.

Always upgrading or changing bits on my MTBs, never on my road bikes – apart from wheels every few years.

Who else has reached the same conclusion?

Me, I buy very little trinkets for cycling or anything else. I’ve realised I just don’t need things. It’s funny but when I didn’t have much in the way of disposable income I bought a lot more than I buy now.

Can’t remember the last time I bought anything for a bike that wasn’t needed, apart from another bike 🙂

I still have my 853 SS and Geared frames going with 2012 drive trains where appropriate

Last thing I bought was a front hope brake for the SS in 2013

Less interest by the year – I like riding but not the bollocks that can sometimes go with it

For where I am now I can see a gravel bike of sorts in my future but nothing else

I like the (idea of) correlation between actually riding time and almost procrastination of upgrading / fettling… guilty.

Less interest by the year – I like riding but not the bollocks that can sometimes go with it

I’m the same, ride lots, spend little. Used to subscribe to about 3 bike mags a month and cancelled them all last year. Was on holiday last week and bought one but I barely picked it up, just doesn’t do it for me.

I like the (idea of) correlation between actually riding time and almost procrastination of upgrading / fettling… guilty.

I ride around 6000 miles a year and generally only spend on consumables, can’t remember the last time I bought something trinket like. Garmin packed up last September, still haven’t got round to replacing it.