Building Bike From Scratch

Hi All,

I'm new here (been lurking for a while...) so a bit of background...started cycling about 2 years ago after getting Trek 1.2 WSD. Now that I ride quite a few times a week I feel like its time to upgrade to a lighter/better bike. I'v looked at all the women's bikes that are in my price range and, well there aren't many, and also none of them really have the spec I'm after so I'm considering buying all the parts myself and building up a bike just how I want it. I already do most of the maintenance on my trek so know how to do most things. Setting up the gears is the only tricky bit and I have a good LBS. I was just wondering if anyone has done this? The thing that concerns me is that I won't be able to test ride the bike to make sure I get the right size frame, and it's tricky to track down women's bikes as a frameset only. The advantage is I can spec the bike how I want. I have a budget of around £1500 and realise it probably won't be any cheaper than a bike of the peg. Sorry it's a bit of a long post and a bit of a ramble....I guess I'm just after a bit of advice/to hear experiences from you guys (oops i mean girls :p)

Cheers, happy riding

Sarah

I've built myself a few bike frames up from scratch. I've also swapped a ton of parts around on bikes that I've kept. It always ends up more expensive than you think it will be. Bike components are expensive, I shop around, get used pieces, use my spare parts, whatever...

ONe of them did end up to be too small in the top tube for me. I thought it would be fine because I was just going to commute on it - but it wasn't a bike that I wanted to keep long term. Bottom line is I've learned a lot about bike fit and what I want out of a bike... And it's worked for me. I can now look at the measurements and specifications of a frame and know whether I am going to like it. Does your trek fit you well? You can base what geometry you need off that. You could pay for a professional fitting that determines the optimal geometry of a frame for you... And you can work on getting a bike that matches those measurements yourself. They will probably suggest some that work. Test ride a lot of bikes.


I don't know how the used market is over in the UK... but what I've done sometimes is get a used bike that has the components I want (shimano 105 or ultegra level, whatever) at a good price. Then I wait for the frame I want to pop up... And swap all the components from the donor bike onto the frame I want - and sell the donor bike frame. Check ebay and craigslist or smugtree (is that the one that's popular over there?)

Thanks for your reply.

I think my trek could do with being a size smaller to be honest but I have measure it and compared it to the geometry of some frames I'v been looking at. You're right about the cost, I'm likely to get carried away and end up spending all my savings for uni on bikes bits. Probably not a good idea! :) I'm not sure yet if it's the right way to go but I like the idea of a project over the summer! It's good to hear what others have done. I was planning on hunting around for a bargain on a groupset (possibly sram rival or force) and then sourcing other parts on ebay/gumtree (you were close! :) ) or from classifieds on some UK bike forums.

Anyway, will have to research a bit more and see what happnes. Thanks again for your reply. Hopefully in a few months I'll be able to start one of those really exciting 'new bike!' threads :)

Sarah

Probably my expenses start when I decide to bling it up - it must have pretty tires, etc. etc.

It can always be a gradual process - you don't have to make it the perfect bike instantly. YOu can start off with parts that work but aren't quite what you want long term and replace it when you find something that works.

yes that's a good idea...i was thinking of using some parts from my old bike to start with eg handlebars, seatpost, possibly wheels etc

Oh yes it's got to look pretty ;)