Rebuilding a bike

[Acidfreak]

Can anyone give me some tips op rebuilding a bike? As I mentioned I bought a new frame but I am still a newby...  What is the basic tools that I will need and what is the hardest challenge that I am going to come accross when rebuilding on the new frame?

[Eugene]

If its carbon, use a torque wrench, otherwise normal spanners and allan keys will do the trick.

 

It's actually quite easy, oh ja......you will need a specific tool for the bb too, but if you are building just one bike rather take it to a bike shop than buy a tool. They will charge about R20.00.

 

The same would apply to the cassette.

[Acidfreak]

Thanks Eugene... 

[Acidfreak]

So.. I started rebuilding my bike... This is going to be a lot of work actually... Anyone know what my LBS will charge to do it ... I already have two stupid examples why rookies should not be buying new frames 1. The pipe on the top of my shock (Not sure what the term is yet) is to long..? Can they just saw off a piece so that it fits?

2. My Seat post is to thick to fit the new bike!

 

Q: Should I remove my grips from the handlebars to remove the shifters and resemble on the new from or should I remove the cables and reassemble on the new frame?

 

Thanks for any help or direction!

[Mudsimus]

So.. I started rebuilding my bike... This is going to be a lot of work actually... Anyone know what my LBS will charge to do it ... I already have two stupid examples why rookies should not be buying new frames 1. The pipe on the top of my shock (Not sure what the term is yet) is to long..? Can they just saw off a piece so that it fits?

2. My Seat post is to thick to fit the new bike!

 

Q: Should I remove my grips from the handlebars to remove the shifters and resemble on the new from or should I remove the cables and reassemble on the new frame?

 

Thanks for any help or direction!

 

I would recommend taking it to a bike shop. They shouldnt charge you more than R250.

[Tumbleweed]

1. The pipe on the top of my shock (Not sure what the term is yet) is to long..? Can they just saw off a piece so that it fits?

it's called a steerer tube' date=' and yes there is a tool for it.

 

Q: Should I remove my grips from the handlebars to remove the shifters and resemble on the new from or should I remove the cables and reassemble on the new frame?

 

[/quote']

you should be able to leave the grips and shifters on, but it may depend on whether the cable routing is the same on the new frame.

[Slowbee]

HR is gyrating today !

[Edge_Design]

Ask first about costs, wish I knew someone who would do it for R250! Last time I had a bike built, labour was R550 and then they still had a list of parts they had used and hadn't mentioned to me so cost me closer to R800. The time before that at a different shop was R350 and with parts ended up costing about R600...

 

If someone knows a shop in CT that will do it for R250, please let me know, I have 2 new carbon frames waiting to be built up!

[Mudsimus]

If you have the right tools a complete build shouldnt take you more than an hour. Anything more tha R250/h is a rip off. Thats just for labour.

[Edge_Design]

I am very tempted to do it myself, it just means investing in a torque wrench which is worth a few complete builds itself! But as I need to do 2 bikes now and the one will probably be rebuilt again in a little more than a month (SRAM X0 and SID Team hopefully by then!) so the R750+ should hopefully cover it...

Does anyone know of a bike maintenance workshop or something similar where I could get some training in cape town or is it really simple enough to just get stuck in? (obviously not talking about wheel building and things like that here, just assembling bikes and basic maintenance). Unfortunately I don't have a "cheap" bike to practise on so really don't want to damage anything, but would like to be able to do it myself.

<Sorry for the hijack, but hopefully this helps you out too!>

[kosmonooit]

Get a book like 'Zinn and the art ofMTB maintenance' and DIY - but be prepared to invest in some specialist bike tools, Park Tools are good. Otherwise Google and U Tube - its all there! Good luck.?

[Acidfreak]

Just as I was building up some convidence and placing the parts on the new frame in my head you come and talk about a torque r, what do you need it for?

[blockhouse]

Bud, do yourself a favour take it to a bikeshop, it'll save you in the long run

[Acidfreak]

Hahaha.. I think I should... maybe in a year or two when I know more I can "try this at home"...

[Eugene]

Don?t take it to a bike shop, rather persevere. Unless of course your fingers are bleeding and you are at the point of throwing the bike out the window. As you come across problems, ask them here, someone will be able to help you. You learn so much about your bike when you build it yourself and you get that sense of accomplishment. That is my opinion anyway. Leave the technical stuff like wheel building and truing to the experts, but a normal bike is as easy as bolting on the parts. Gear setting and chain length may be tricky, but Johan Bornman had a really nice post a few weeks back explaining how to do it. Just do a search and you will find it.<?: prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

 

Torque wrenches are tools that allow you to tighten nuts and bolts to a certain setting. Carbon can shatter if you over tighten anything connected to it, so it is highly advisable to use a torque wrench to prevent the over tightening. Most carbon parts (seat posts, steerers, stems etc) will have the torque settings written on them somewhere.

 

You get different diameter seat posts, if yours is too big for the frame, you can do nothing except buy the right size. I?ve heard that you can get shims (I think that is the term) if the seat post is too small.

[blockhouse]

Eugene, I'm all for perservering but as with anything you need to have a basic understanding, not knowing the necessity for using a torque wrench before you get start can result in terminal damage. Acidfreak, maybe look at going on a maintenance course with Johann