Building a bike or pre-made

You'll generally get a better deal by getting the complete bike. If you buy the frame, components, wheelset, etc., and look for deals (i.e. 9-speed, last years stuff) online and on ebay, with a LOT of time investment, and including the price of tools req'd to put everything together, you might be able to do better. But why?

It's another matter if you are talking about a $5000 frameset and want to spec out a different set of brakes, crank, BB, shifters/derailleurs... the dream bike where money isn't an issue.

RC2 said:

You'll generally get a better deal by getting the complete bike. If you buy the frame, components, wheelset, etc., and look for deals (i.e. 9-speed, last years stuff) online and on ebay, with a LOT of time investment, and including the price of tools req'd to put everything together, you might be able to do better. But why?

It's another matter if you are talking about a $5000 frameset and want to spec out a different set of brakes, crank, BB, shifters/derailleurs... the dream bike where money isn't an issue.

Ok i get your jist of things. I was just wanted to know from a more experianced rider(s).

CHeers

Im all for starting off with a base model(Giant makes a pretty decent frame) and building up the components. Not only do you not have to shell out a ton of money right away, you get to learn about how the components work by changing them yourself.

Then in years to come and when your a little better off financially.....upgrade to a completed higher-end bike.

smeg said:

Ok i get your jist of things. I was just wanted to know from a more experianced rider(s).

CHeers

me to i built a bike worth over £4.000 for under £1000 a frame from Ebay wheels and a brand new Dura Ace groupo from wiggle 🙂 Doesn't hurt to shop around maybe even pick up stuff from ebay. you could find exactly what your looking for at a fraction of the cost.

mikendres said:

Im all for starting off with a base model(Giant makes a pretty decent frame) and building up the components. Not only do you not have to shell out a ton of money right away, you get to learn about how the components work by changing them yourself.

Then in years to come and when your a little better off financially.....upgrade to a completed higher-end bike.

I purchased a second hand frame, not the lotus sport that i have always dreamed of but a very similar frame plus wheels, seconds but perfect only raced 5times so in near new perfect condition for a fraction of the retail price from Ebay, i then fitted it out with the Dura Ace groupo from wiggle, buying the groupo components new is handy since they come with fitting and explanation instructions.. So i now am the proud owner of over £4000 worth of bike costing under £1000 by shopping around, holding back and waiting for the things that i so desired.

😄

smeg said:

I was just wanted to know from a more experianced rider(s).

😕 Now you've hurt my feelings. 🙁

mikendres said:

Im all for starting off with a base model(Giant makes a pretty decent frame) and building up the components. Not only do you not have to shell out a ton of money right away, you get to learn about how the components work by changing them yourself.

Then in years to come and when your a little better off financially.....upgrade to a completed higher-end bike.

Sounds like a lot of money to spend to learn how the nuts and bolts go together, especially if you make a newb mistake like cutting a steer too short, overtightening a headset/cranks, stripping a BB, etc. The more experienced forum users might also note that it is generally agreed that putting more dollars into a higher-quality frame/fork is consider a wiser investment than putting those $$ into, say, ultegra over 105, or buying a more expensive wheelset (expendable).

If you're not already cycling I'd suggest you go buy a complete bike, get some time on it, then maybe look at building one up to suit your needs. Building something up is fun but if you shop around looking for good deals on parts it could take months to get all the parts you need, wouldn't you rather be out cycling! If you're careful and buy a bike second hand you should loose little or no money in the process.

886014 said:

If you're not already cycling I'd suggest you go buy a complete bike, get some time on it, then maybe look at building one up to suit your needs. Building something up is fun but if you shop around looking for good deals on parts it could take months to get all the parts you need, wouldn't you rather be out cycling! If you're careful and buy a bike second hand you should loose little or no money in the process.

I agree, if you're new to riding, you're likely to fall into some traps trying to build a bike up (no offense, maybe you're great with that sort of thing) but I would get a complete bike as a first step. I recently bought my second bike and focused on buying a good frame. I will now progressively upgrade the components over time. The deals on some complete bikes are just too hard to beat unless you can access very cheap parts.

Walrus said:

I recently bought my second bike and focused on buying a good frame. I will now progressively upgrade the components over time. The deals on some complete bikes are just too hard to beat unless you can access very cheap parts.

Yes that was a clear incentive for me to purchase my bike with the new Ultegra gear. As I know stuff is getting close to needing replacement I'll keep an eye out for Dura-ace replacements and swap the Ultegra for Dura-ace. If I get the D-A gear on special it shouldn't cost any more than just going to the LBS and buying Ultegra.

Speaking of which, time to go wear out some components now 🙂

886014 said:

Yes that was a clear incentive for me to purchase my bike with the new Ultegra gear. As I know stuff is getting close to needing replacement I'll keep an eye out for Dura-ace replacements and swap the Ultegra for Dura-ace. If I get the D-A gear on special it shouldn't cost any more than just going to the LBS and buying Ultegra.

Speaking of which, time to go wear out some components now 🙂

I'm with you, but good luck on wearing out Ultegra components. With reasonable care, those are going to last a long time.

The "upgrade" to DA isn't really anything to dream about anyway. It's no big deal, and certainly isn't going to make you a better cyclist or add to your enjoyment of the sport long-term.

I built my last bike from a bare frame, selected the components I wanted, and have had over two years of fast and trouble free cycling on that bike. It also helped to have had several years experience as a bike mechanic while and shortly after I was in college.

However... as others have said, it's an expensive way to build a bike. I built mine up from a new but out of production carbon frame, new Campy Chorus group, used Rolf wheels, Cinelli bars, Selle SLR saddle... ended up spending around USD $2000.00.

You build your own if you know exactly what components you want, can't find a bike already built that way, and just want the satisfaction of riding a bike that is uniquely you. Bikes can be a very personal thing.

Otherwise, if you're on a tight budget, you're better off with a factory built bike. They get better deals on components because they buy in bulk. In your price range, Trek, Cannondale, Giant, LeMond, etc... all have very respectable bikes. And they will go just as fast as the custom built bike... assuming the engine is the same...

RC2 said:

Sounds like a lot of money to spend to learn how the nuts and bolts go together, especially if you make a newb mistake like cutting a steer too short, overtightening a headset/cranks, stripping a BB, etc. The more experienced forum users might also note that it is generally agreed that putting more dollars into a higher-quality frame/fork is consider a wiser investment than putting those $$ into, say, ultegra over 105, or buying a more expensive wheelset (expendable).

I dont know about the more experienced forum users, but the more experienced cyclists might disagree with you.

Sounds like you are not very personal with the sport, or you would realize that a bike is a very personal thing, and that many take pride is building something unique to them.

mikendres said:

I dont know about the more experienced forum users, but the more experienced cyclists might disagree with you.

Sounds like you are not very personal with the sport, or you would realize that a bike is a very personal thing, and that many take pride is building something unique to them.

But the original poster isn't an experienced cyclist yet. It's one thing to build up a unique bike when you know exactly what you want. It's another thing to build a bike with parts you think you want only to end up spending even more money to switch them later. I would recomend doing what I did. Get a cheap used bike to start out on. Put in some miles to get a feel for what you like about certain components and why. Learn how to wrench on parts you can afford to break. Save up your money until the day when you know exactly what your dream bike is. Then build it.

artmichalek said:

But the original poster isn't an experienced cyclist yet. It's one thing to build up a unique bike when you know exactly what you want. It's another thing to build a bike with parts you think you want only to end up spending even more money to switch them later. I would recomend doing what I did. Get a cheap used bike to start out on. Put in some miles to get a feel for what you like about certain components and why. Learn how to wrench on parts you can afford to break. Save up your money until the day when you know exactly what your dream bike is. Then build it.

I know he is not an experience cyclist yet. This is why I suggested to start off with a lower-end bike and building on that to learn and become experienced.

Arent you just suggesting the same thing as I did in my original post by telling him to start off small?

And what other parts on a bike are affordable to break beside the water bottle holder and seat post?

Thanks for all the advice guys.
Anymore discussion or opinions would be helpful
Regards sam/smeg

mikendres said:

Arent you just suggesting the same thing as I did in my original post by telling him to start off small?

Your original post implied buying a new bike and throwing away perfectly good parts to upgrade. I suggested getting an older bike, not replacing anything that isn't broken, and saving the money to build a new bike later.

artmichalek said:

Your original post implied buying a new bike and throwing away perfectly good parts to upgrade. I suggested getting an older bike, not replacing anything that isn't broken, and saving the money to build a new bike later.

Im sorry, I never said/implied anything about throwing parts away. Show me my quote where I said that.

As a relatively inexperienced cyclist I built up my own bike from a good frame I found going cheap. I took about 3 months to get all the parts together and got the LBS to do the trickier stuff like the headset and cables. The rest was really quite straightforward and I learnt loads about bikes along the way. I spent quite a bit of money in my LBS (about 50:50 between it and ebay/online purchases) and they gave me lots of advice about what parts to buy.

Whether or not it was an expensive way of building a bike is hard to tell, because the bike I ended up with is not for sale anywhere. And that's the beauty of building your own.

My advice is to be patient and do a lot of research before buying anything. There are lots of interesting frames out there which aren't necessarily the ones that you see on built up bikes too often, so shop around. Remember that you won't be able to test ride your frame (unless the shop have one already built up) so do as much research as possible into fitting and sizing.

Make good use of your LBS and be prepared sometimes to pay a little over the online price to buy from them, because the advice they can give you is usually more than worth the price difference.

Enjoy!