Hi, I hope this is the right place to ask. I decided to start commuting by bike as it’s only about 15 minutes each way. So I got my first bike and learned how to ride. It’s a cheap Chinese MTB from my country’s version of amazon. This was a few months ago now. Since then I’ve been riding almost everyday and taking longer trips along the river trail near my home.
So I’m thinking about getting a lower end Shimano groupset. But I’m wondering what I’ll get out of upgrading. Will there be a noticeable difference in performance? Smoother shifting? More speed in top gear?
Thanks for any insight you can share :) any essential gear recommendations would be great too!
Depends on how it compares to the current drivetrain.
Performance between various drivetrains doesn’t differ much. The gear range and realistic top speed depends on the ratios that are possible between pedal and wheel.
How smooth the shifting is, is up to the shifter, derailleur, and cassette combination you have.
Depending on the rear wheel, you could even get more gears in general, if you’re replacing the entire groupset.
Generally though, nicer parts are mostly just nicer to maintain. A hollowtech II BB does perform better than a square taper BB, but the difference is a single digit percentage. To me, the main advantage is that it’s easier to keep clean and replace the bearings.
If what’s on there is truly just the bare minimum though, the main advantage of a shimano groupset will probably be nicer shifting.
Once you have a nice drivetrain, though, you can modify the gear range and speeds in which it works well, by switching out the cassette and/or chainring. Bigger chainring means more top speed (but harder pedaling in all gears) and a “wider” cassette means a bigger difference between the lowest and highest gears, but the jump between each gear being bigger.
As you consider upgrading think about what you want not what an upgrade offers. Do you need smoother shifting now? If you do all the work yourself and buy used, upgrading just the group on a cheap bike can be fun and worth it but usually it’s cheaper to just buy a nicer used bike than your current one. Speed is a function of gear ratio and cadence so not unless you add higher gears.
I started thinking about it because I thought going to 1x would be simpler for me. I was leaving the front chainring on the highest gear for a long time before I ever heard about cross chaining. Once I was looking at options I was thinking it might be worth getting a full set of nicer parts since I’m commuting every day but I wasn’t sure what the benefit would be. Reading comments now makes it seem like it’s not going to change much for me as everything I have still works fine. Maybe I’ll see if I can just change the chainring
What is your original bike? As long as the frame is solid and the standards aren’t weird you should be ok to upgrade part by part.
What type of riding do you do? Trail riding will have different needs than full on downhill racing. My first recommendations for upgrades on a lower end bike are pedals and cockpit. A new handlebar and stem will change the most about your riding and new pedals will make you stick to your bike over rough terrain. Also a new saddle isn’t a bad idea if you’re riding for long distances. make sure you measure your seat bones in order to get the right size.
The brand is called tragen and the drivetrain is all sunrun. After some googling it seems like a knockoff of a brand called sun race.
I’m just commuting through the city mostly. I figured a mountain bike would be most beginner friendly and good for going over curbs and speed bumps and the like
If you’re just using it to commute you won’t get a lot out of replacing the drivetrain. You’ll just end up paying more to maintain it. Replace the drivetrain when it breaks.
New tires and hubs/wheelset are going to get you the most bang for your buck. If you can find a local wheel builder you can upgrade your wheelset for fairly cheap by buying a new hub, spokes, and rim. Better quality hubs will make your bike roll much faster and you’ll notice it immediately. If you want to splash some cash or can’t find a wheelbuilder you can buy a whole wheelset with better quality parts.
As for tires I would suggest something fast rolling like a Maxxis Pace or Ardent. That will have a little bit of tread in case you want to go roll on light trails but it will still roll really fast on pavement.
I would also suggest upgrading the handlebar and stem as that can also improve your comfort and maneuverability.
If you’re just commuting & riding flat, even-ish trails, you maybe don’t need a MTB at all. You’ll get much bigger changes in handling/comfort/speed from changing the style of bike than the marginal gains from upgrading individual parts.
What are you hoping to gain from a drivetrain upgrade? It might make more sense to look at changing the type of bike you have, rather than trying to transform a MTB to act like a hybrid/gravel/road bike
If you’re riding for exercise, it’s all the same. A worse bike is going to give you more of a work-out. That’s the fundamental difference.
If you’re commuting or going long distance, and you find yourself exhausted by the end of it, you might want to consider upgrading to a hybrid or even a road bike (depending on the quality of your bike trail). Thinner tires, lighter frames, and more gears will mean less effort peddling. That makes the ride easier and allows you to go farther without tiring or sweating as much. EV Bikes are also great if you do deliveries or need to go long distances / high speeds in a hurry.
I’ve had a Trek hybrid that I’ve been using for the last… 15 years, I think? It was actually my brother-in-law’s bike before he moved, so the vehicle is ancient. $50 for a tune-up every couple of years and it runs perfectly well. So even if the initial price tag is intimidating (this one was in the $500 range, although I’ve seen vehicles go up north of $2500 back when the bike market was particularly tight) a good bike will last you a lifetime.
But, at the end of the day, the real question you have to ask yourself is whether you like your MTB. If you’re uncomfortable or you’re getting winded riding it or bits of it are falling apart on you, then absolutely. Upgrade. But if you’re not really having an problems with the bike right now, you’re likely not going to see a big different in a higher end model.
Post pics, but if you know how to work on your own stuff and the bike uses standard parts: Sure, why not?
If the cheap bike fails, you can always rebuild with a better frame later and reuse the parts you already got. The only reason I’d say don’t bother is if the existing parts work fine already/are well made enough that they aren’t a safety hazard.
I upgraded the brake rotors on my shitty Engwe EP2 Pro and I wish I’d upgraded the fender (but then it failed and broke my arm because it was faulty and the company didn’t give a fuck, thanks so much Engwe!).
You might also have some luck asking over at !micromobility@lemmy.world
