Upgrading on a Giant Defy 3

Foghorn Leghorn

Hi,
I have a Giant Defy 3 for about a year now, I like the bike, find it comfortable and read somewhere that the frame is good qty.

I'm thinking of spending a few quid on upgrading the groupset and pedals. (I currently have the existing sora groupset and caged pedals it came with)
I was hoping someone could recommend a good qty groupset and perhaps pedals which would be compatable with the giant defy 3

Thanks in advance for any advice given

rothar man

used to have the defy 2, and your right, good quaity frame,

re: upgrades, sora aint bad so would prob leave it on, may be worth upgrading wheels and tyres which will make the bike feel nice on the road...

i changed to speedplay zero pedals sometime back and will be staying with them for good, little expensive but with double sided entry and exiting there a great addition

csb1989

I used to have one, and I extensively modified mine and agree that the frame is worthy of upgrades

I presume you mean moving to clipless pedals when you say you're going to upgrade them ? In which case definitely a good investment

Re groupset, the only thing I didnt like about Sora was trying to use the shifters while in the drops; thumb lever was very difficult to reach and the shift lever had to be moved so far to actuate a shift that it was very difficult to do from the drops
So you could replace just the shifters with something of Tiagra or 105 level, But you might have to replace the rear derailleur/ cassette in this case too- still cheaper than a whole groupset tho

Also, the standard Kenda tyres that came with my Defy were awful- something like Continental, Vittoria, etc might be another upgrade to look at

briano

I'd go pedals -> Wheels -> Sadle (Maybe)*

And then instead of upgrading bits, maybe look at a computer or whatnot

(I actually didnt do this, unfortunately it went pedals -> crash -> pedals,wheels,gruppo,handlebars,stem,helmet-> then pedals again. Then Saddle)

Chartsengrafs

I have a Defy 4 that I use for commuting. I'd agree that tyres will make a difference, the ones you get with it are awful. They'll improve the feel a lot and decent ones will puncture less. I'd go with clipless pedals too. The bike will feel a lot different with those two changes.

murph226

How much cycling are you doing OP?

I presume you have the following, saddle bag with spare tubes and tyre levers, bike pump, track pump, bottle and cage, bibshorts and jacket.

Some Spd shoes and pedals should be first on the shopping list, difference between them and standard cage pedals is night and day!

If you are using the bike for commuting, you might want to consider some lights, some winter clothing would be a good idea aswell!

I wouldnt worry about tyres, you can replace these when they are worn out, I have a Defy2 and have had no issues yet, keep the pressures up good and high!

As for the saddle, I'm still using the standard one, does the job at the moment, I'll let you know how I feel about it after the 100k in Castlecomber next week!

A computer would be a nice addition also, must pick up one shortly myself.

Foghorn Leghorn

Yea, I'm fairly well kited out in terms of water bottles, pumps computer etc
I'm more interested in improving the bike itself rather than more add-ons,

A few people said to change the saddle but I find it comfortable so I'm going to stick with that, In terms of pedals what would you recommend (bearing in mind the bike cost less than 800euro)

Also when people say to change the wheels do they mean just the tyres or the whole thing rim included (the tyres that came with it are on there last legs and will have to be changed soon)

Thanks again for all the advice given.

murph226

Well if the tyres are on the way out, thats a start, couldnt tell you what to go for though, sorry!

For pedals and shoes, I would look at the shimano Spd range and see what takes your fancy, I have spd sl's and ultegra pedals, great job but useless if you have to walk anywhere!

What is your budget?

Wheels and groupset upgrades would be fairly expensive if you ask me!

English Bob

Continental gp4000 are a great tyre that always gets the best reviews.
If you're prepared to buy on line you'd be able to pick up a set of mavic askiums fairly reasonably at the mo. You'll love the clickety click sound when free-wheeling!!!
Wiggle to a good set of cycle shoes in their dhb range which are worth checking out.