What should I upgrade?

[011y]

I've got a 4-5 year old khe flatliner I've just dug out of my parents shed, it's a -£250 bike so you can imagine non of it's components are anything special. It's perfectly rideable but if I did feel like upgrading what in your opinion are the most important parts?

I'm currently thinking wheels, crank or forks, but which single part could I get the most benefit from by upgrading.

[Hugo @ Portugal]

Cranks won't save you much weight (I'm thinking the bike is a bit heavy no?) nor the fork so a good pair of modern wheels should be the best upgrade I believe...

[SnowFlat]

possibly a frame? or if that is too big, mab bars. they make the bike feel the way it does

[TJ Perry]

Just ask yourself what feels comfortable and what doesn't. Then upgrade as nessicary. It's pointless to try and fix what's not broken for the sake of spending money. 

[leeroy002]

f*ck changing the wheels,as long as its got a free coaster your set-if i remember the flatliner is quite heavy,buy a fly simple of flatland fuel theres aload of older ones super cheap and there all less than 5 pounds that should make the most difference

[011y]

Just ask yourself what feels comfortable and what doesn't. Then upgrade as nessicary. It's pointless to try and fix what's not broken for the sake of spending money. 

This is pretty much my issue but I'm very tempted by the fly simple frame for £60. Can you help me with a couple of technical things:

My flatliner has a single piece crank and I'm guessing I will need to get a spanish bottom bracket for the fly frame, will I need to replace my crank to?
And I've got the coke can head tube internal gyro thingamejoo, can I just get a new headset and everything else will fit fine?

[FreeEnterprise]

the bike doesn't matter. Grease it up, and make sure everything works well. If something breaks then replace it. Learning how to work on your bike is almost as important as knowing how to ride it. Pick up any pro's bike, they are super dialed in...

If you have to buy something, get some good gloves, and a pair of knee pads, shin guards, and a helmet.


Practice is the key to flat...

[Andras]

The bike DOES matter, but it is not everything. Even if everything is super-well adjusted, the equipment level of a cheap bike is not that good. I doubt that you can make everything dialed, especially the brakes and the SD system on a 5-year old bike taken from the shed.
You will need to see what is not working, I guess the rims and brake pads would be the first things to change if you want them to work fine. As far as I know, the Flatliner is equipped with some chrome plated steel rims that are quite heavy badly shaped.

As for the pads and gloves, I only recommend wearing shinpads. I think wearing kneepads will just make you move slower and that can be a dangerous thing.

[out~riding]

Try new tires, thats always improvement and its a cheap upgrade.
If you feel the pegs are large, get smaller diameter pegs (saves some weight and is also cheap).
More expensive improvements would be wheels including a good freecoaster.
Bars and a zero offset fork can also make a big difference.

[Hugo @ Portugal]

Considering what he asked I believe the wheels are the thing to change, of course, if he has the money he can get a frame but that fly for example won't work with that single piece crank, he'll have to spend alot more than just the £60 on the frame...

PLUS! Will that light modern frame hold up to the hold heavy parts? I have my doubts...

[011y]

Thanks for all your opinions, I think I'm just going to get a good service and stick with what I've got, maybe some new tires. I'm liking the ride it till it breaks philosophy.

And besides when I rode serious for a year I could never get the hang of the start of mega spins, after a 4 year break I just landed my first one on my second day of riding, it was only a 540 but I'm happy.

[JIMBO420]

Ijust ordered a new DK signal yesterday and while I was at it I also ordered:
SUELO 9b bars (lime green)
SUELO stem
wantabe seat (ti rails)
prismatic seatpost
slim jim clamp
I also have arestic pegs

With the parts that I bought, I hope to get the weight down into the 28 lbs. range(its 30.5 stock)
I also plan to get phat widow cranks, khe folding tires, and khe pedals.

[TJ Perry]

Just ask yourself what feels comfortable and what doesn't. Then upgrade as nessicary. It's pointless to try and fix what's not broken for the sake of spending money. 

This is pretty much my issue but I'm very tempted by the fly simple frame for £60. Can you help me with a couple of technical things:

My flatliner has a single piece crank and I'm guessing I will need to get a spanish bottom bracket for the fly frame, will I need to replace my crank to?
And I've got the coke can head tube internal gyro thingamejoo, can I just get a new headset and everything else will fit fine?

You will need to replace your crank, and your headset. Everything else should work fine HOWEVER... I'd double check with pat on the compatability of everything you want because I have no freaking idea how those headtube tin can things work.