Building my own bike

[JackOfSpades]

Hi all

 

I am looking to build myself a bike. Does anyone know where I can find cheap parts. Frames, groupsets, Shocks etc.

 

If someone can give me any advice or any info that would be awesome....thanx

 

 

TARO

[Guest Latent Blue]

You are already there bro...

[King_Crispy]

OLX

[Guest Latent Blue]

I built up a whole bike from the hub for cheap cheap

[gpcar]

One thing I can tell you it's going to cost a lot more than buying a bike already made. I was also wanting to do that but then I started doing research. I would rather buy a bike already made to your specs.

[urbanroyal]

One of life's joys....building a bike....

[Guest Latent Blue]

One thing I can tell you it's going to cost a lot more than buying a bike already made. I was also wanting to do that but then I started doing research. I would rather buy a bike already made to your specs.

 

No way! Itll maybe be close, but not more... and its way more fun

[JackOfSpades]

Its def more fun. And its everything I want. Haha

[hayleyearth]

I thought Specialized and cheap doesn't go??

[ACM]

I'm building a bike at the moment. It really depends on what your goal is in terms of money vs time vs new vs weight vs etc. Buying all parts new (out the box) is more expensive than buying a bike from the floor. But, building is fun. If you're prepared to wait for bargains, you'll find most of what you need on this forum's classifieds. I found a descent 18-month old fox fork for a third of the price of a new one (just as example). But you need to watch the classifieds and ack quick and know exactly what you're looking for. My advice is, read-read-read, find out what you need vs what's nice. Plan and stick to the plan; changing plans half-way through the build will result in 'school fees' :-).

[gongmech]

make sure you know the parts you want before buying them. Things that give problems are which Sram parts are compatible with which Shimano part, tapered or straight frame ,headset and/or fork, 15mm through axle or Qr,BB30 or BSa or GXP depending on your frame, brake adapters and rotor size. anyone else 2cents worth??

[cadenceblur]

Definitely not more than buying a bike. If you're patient and diligent in your research and mining for deals, you will find many a bargain. A plus will be that you will exactly what you want on the bike. I recently finished a build for +- R20000. The

[cadenceblur]

Sorry, meant to add, recently had the bike valued at more than R40000, and it's in showroom condition. Virtually all the parts are brand new, including the frame.

[ACM]

I see you're in capetown area, there's a number of importers of Chinese carbon frames in CPT - at good prices. BOOTH - www.carbon29er.com and tri-cycles (www.tri-cycles.co.za).

[Padawan]

Nothing like a build it's defiantly a very rewarding process. However be prepared for a few hidden costs. Check out http://www.rapide.co.za/ dealt with a Hubber named kiwi.

[shaper]

With a build, you can spec the bike as you want rather than compromise and upgrade parts with a complete bkle from a LBS.

 

Money factor, I would say cheaper than a complete bike. It depends on your time frame for building, if you want it urgently it may cost you more as you need the parts now, if you are not in a hurry, you can pick up parts cheaply, either here on the hub or when the online stores have sales, just look to see what CWC, Easybike, EvoBikes etc do quite often, let alone the likes of CRC or Wiggle etc from overseas.

 

A cost factor to consider when building your own bike is that you learn how things are installed and how they work, which also means that when they break or need repair you know how to fix or services them, so ultimately having built your own bike, you will know how to service it, which is a cost saving to consider

 

Plus you have the satisfaction of riding something you built

Edited July 29, 2013 by shaper