I've been asked to write about my bike here. Can't say it's super exciting, but here goes anyway.
The bike is a sports-touring hybrid, Scott Sportster P4. A hybrid is a cross between an MTB ("mountain") and a Road bike. The wheels are 28 inches in diameter, like on a road bike or on old Soviet bikes, but the rims and tires are almost like on a mountain bike (well, narrower and not as knobby, yeah)
Overall photo.
The front hub, Shimano Deore LX. Bought it cheap, on sale — for around 14 quid, I think. XT was way too expensive, so my inner cheapskate got the better of me.
Mavic A719 rims, 36 spokes. They often come with 32 spokes, but I went with this one because I'm heavy and I don't go easy on the bike. These are practically top-tier rims for hybrids, they weren't cheap. I swapped them out from the previous ones because I wanted a second set of wheels — one for tarmac and indoor trainer workouts (the previous ones), and this sturdier set for off-road. Overall, the plan worked out, though not without issues (see below).
Integrated crankset and crank arms, Shimano DeoreLX. The "system" (crankset) is the front chainrings, and "integrated" apparently means the chainrings are fixed together with the bottom bracket, meaning the pedal axle. The crank arms are the sticks the pedals attach to.
Replaced it from the bike's original stock crankset because I wrecked the thread on the crank arms when I was flying to Turkey. Didn't screw the pedal in all the way. Be careful with threads — I'm not the only one, I know people who screwed things in cross-threaded and stuff like that, ending up having to buy new crank arms, which you can't always buy separately. As a result, you have to replace the whole crankset, which ain't cheap.
Near the crank arm you can also see the sensor for the CatEye CC-CD300DW wireless bike computer. The computer is expensive and good (bought on eBay from Japan), has survived rains and crashes, works reliably and doesn't glitch from electrical interference like Chinese knock-offs. One downside — the sensor is a bit fragile, so the little leg responsible for reading the cadence ended up snapping off. Cadence is the pedaling rate, so I can live without it. On brand-name batteries, the computer worked for over half a year; I have to change the Chinese ones from dealextreme every month, alas. The ones sold in our local shops are garbage too, maybe they lasted two months, and their price is 10! times higher than the Chinese ones.
WellGo BMX pedals, meaning for bikes used for tricks. Your foot needs to stay firmly planted there, so the pedals are wide and spiked. Heavy, of course. I haven't matured enough for clipless pedals yet (where the shoe attaches to the pedal with a cleat), especially with my torn cruciate ligament.
Topeak top tube bag near the handlebars. Good thing, comes with a rain cover (not visible in the photo), they don't sell it here in Daugavpils. One downside — it attaches with Velcro, which can't withstand my furious riding style and the fact that the bag is stuffed to the brim. As a result, it slides to the side. It holds off rain well, but in a downpour, a few drops still manage to get in. Just remembered another downside — the protective cover is hard to fasten quickly; if you opened it, you then have to stretch it over the edges.
Aerobars. Very useful thing, though heavy. Lets you drastically reduce air resistance and change your posture. I often ride keeping my back straight and holding onto the elbow pads (the flat platforms on the right) with my hands. I bought the aerobars used, quite cheap, for about 6 lats I think, because one of the pads was a bit broken. That's the one I glued with epoxy. It turned out solid, so I'm using it again now.
The only downside — I've started getting occasional pain around my shoulder blades, probably part of the shoulder joint. Especially when I reach out for something. That's not just from the aerobars, of course, but from the fact that I spend way too much time sitting at the computer, especially at work. At my job, everyone, myself included, sits with terrible posture — by the time we're old, we'll all have back problems, etc. I've had problems for a long time anyway, so whatever.
Bar ends. Don't remember the brand, a decent one. Hardly ever use them, probably should take them off, otherwise I'm just hauling dead weight. The fenders (mudguards) are SKS, the most universal and popular model everywhere.
Stock saddle, already pretty torn up, I'll replace it when I get the chance.
Mount for the taillight. My headlight is a SpiderFire from DX with an SSC P7 LED. When I bought it, it was the absolute cutting edge of LED technology; maybe they've come up with something better by now, I dunno.
My taillight is a BlackBurn Mars.
Remember the American saying — Safety First! Always use lights, reflective clothing, and ride on the roads carefully and unhurriedly. If you're not afraid of dying, like me, consider that it's actually really scary to become disabled instead, and it's easier than ever, given the amount of moron drivers on our roads. Don't multiply the risk with your own behavior.
Stock seatpost. If I get rich, I'll buy a suspension nitro pro.
Stock shifters, some kind of Shimano Series 8. They still work for now, I don't see the need to change them. I like that there are gear numbers — you instantly see what you're riding in. The brakes are also stock, I just swapped the pads for cartridge ones. There's no need for disc brakes yet — they're better, of course, but I don't ride in the mountains and in the rain often enough to justify their price and the extra weight. Then again, the rear rack isn't designed for them, so I'd have to replace that too.
The brake levers are already rattling somewhat; if I can't tighten them up, I'll have to replace them.
Axiom rear rack. Relatively heavy, but reliable; they promise it can handle a load of 75 kg.
Bike-pants bags, aka 'camel', aka "Pannier" (as a western-minded guy, the English name is closer to me, since it's immediately clear what we're talking about). Brand is Dawes, cheap and cheerful. I'm going to upgrade to the waterproof (and ridiculously expensive) classic Ortlieb; I thought I'd do it soon, but that's not a given.
DeoreXT rear hub. You shouldn't skimp on the rear hub, I figured, so I bought the XT. I will never buy XTR, unless I get completely filthy rich.
The old no-name Shimano hub on the stock wheelset lasted about 2.5 years, then crunched and stopped turning the wheel. The mechanic fixed it, which was enough for another year, after which it died completely, and I replaced it with a Novatec for 17 Ls. We'll see how that works out.
My semi-slick tires are badass, Continental TopContact, touring ones, which means rolling on tarmac is easy, they're hard to puncture, but the weight isn't exactly low. It says, "Hand-made in Germany". Might just be. Unfortunately, one tore on the sidewall, even though there's no other visible wear on it. I probably rubbed it against a curb myself.
Right now, for off-roading, these wheels have a Maxxis Crossmark (front) and Kenda Claw (rear, because the Maxxis didn't fit width-wise) mounted.
The Continentals are on the old wheels, mainly for spinning on the trainer. A trainer is a stand you mount the bike on to turn it into an exercise bike.
What else haven't I mentioned?
The fork is stock, a crappy elastomer one; it helps with bumps, sure, but only somewhat. I'll replace it with the top SunTour model for hybrids, or maybe a Marzocchi, when I can; they're both air forks. They don't make sick forks for hybrids, which is actually a good thing — won't blow extra money. You can't install a fork meant for a 26" MTB bike — it'll ruin the frame geometry. A 29" fork might be doable, but I'd have to look into that.
The Tacx bottle was pretty, but some punk rolled it over the gravel, so it ended up all scuffed. I also want a green bottle for the gym, but there's nowhere to buy one. The bottle cage was from "Maxima" for 1 Ls, but yesterday I swapped it for a plastic Tacx one. Unfortunately, a clear one; they didn't have black.
The rear derailleur is stock, an Alivio. But I've got a Deore XT sitting on my closet, and this spring I'll probably get around to installing it, because the shifting has gotten pretty crappy.
Front derailleur is a Deore LX.
Wippermann chain with a Connex quick link, a bit cheaper than SRAM, and good quality (supposedly). The quick link lets you take the chain off quickly and without special tools, in case anyone didn't know. You need this for repairs or for cleaning.
Overall, my bike doesn't look very presentable, there are way too many paint chips on the frame. On one hand, I don't care, since how it rides is the main thing. On the other hand, you feel a bit inferior when you see people with brand new beauties. On the third hand, a scuffed-up bike doesn't catch the eye of thieves and thugs as much. Thankfully, we don't have it like in Russia, where thugs are constantly hassling you, including wanting to take your bike, but there's still no need to draw attention. However, if I get around to it, I'll find some paint and touch up the chips.
I like my bike, it rolls well, and I don't plan on replacing it in the coming years, unless it gets stolen or the frame breaks, which is highly unlikely.