Who's bought a custom bike "long distance"?

[SadieKate]

Triskeliongirl, you know I'd normally agree with you about cutting out the middleman, but, besides the obvious "no builders in my area" problem for a lot of folks, there is a huge increase in the number of new builders who haven't put in a lot of time doing fittings. They may be able to turn out a great bike, but I'd want to see their credentials and if they're being mentored by anyone.

A superb welder does not mean a good bike designer or a good fitter. But s/he can still set themselves up as a custom builder.

I've been looking lately at some newbie builders but I'm also looking at where and with whom they apprenticed.

[tulip]

Bad Juju, if you can get a stock bike that fits you well, it's alot less hassle than going custom. There are alot of very good stock bikes out there, and they may be more appropriate than a custom bike. Having a good fitter is just as important for choosing a stock bike, too.

If I the pre-built Luna that I bought had not fit me, I would have worked with my local shop, which is a Luna dealer and the owner of which is a fantastic fitter, to get a custom Luna. Margo of Luna is an experienced fitter, and she worked with me to tweak the pre-built, although it didn't need much tweaking. I would not have bought the pre-built Luna without going out to New Mexico to ride it and have Margo fit it to me. Luckily, I just happened to be there for another reason and decided to take advantage of the opportunity.

I know what I like in a bike after riding them for 25+ years, including a few racing years. I felt comfortable getting the Bike Friday remotely; I also didn't just send it the form, I talked to them alot.

[Triskeliongirl]

Tulip, I am so glad that got your PRP right the first time! I too know what I want in a bike, and even though I also talked with them a lot, and spec'd in writing a specific top tube length, the bike arrived with a top tube that was 2 cm longer per their 'formula', although to give them credit they did remake the bike correctly, and my understanding is have since changed the formula to better consider women's bodies.

You guys have made a a lot of good points that not all builders are good fitters. But I think the consensus is that you need both good fitters and good builders involved in the process (and sometimes they are the same person and sometimes they are not), and even for a stock bike a good fitter. All of that is difficult when you simply submit measurements on a website and a bike appears.

[7rider]

What BikerZ said.
My custom Seven, I suppose you could say, was bought "long distance" - they are in Massachusetts and I am in Maryland. I worked with a very knowledgeable rep at my LBS who knows me, knows my riding habits, my goals, and my cycling needs/wants. He knew my pet peeves about my old bike (also a Seven, and blissfully, those peeves were pretty minor and were all because of my health and not the bike at all).
It was fantastic to have a local rep working with me on the build...interpreting things I did not "get" and helping me to vocalize what I needed and wanted. It was like having a ringer beside me, making sure the bike turned out just the way I wanted. And, sure enough, it did. I'm very happy with my bike, and if I had a windfall of cash, I'd buy a custom Seven 'cross bike as my ultimate commuter!

[emily_in_nc]

Tulip, I am so glad that got your PRP right the first time! I too know what I want in a bike, and even though I also talked with them a lot, and spec'd in writing a specific top tube length, the bike arrived with a top tube that was 2 cm longer per their 'formula', although to give them credit they did remake the bike correctly, and my understanding is have since changed the formula to better consider women's bodies.

+1

My Bike Friday also arrived with too long a top tube -- I had specified an effective top tube measurement I wanted, and they just didn't do it. Even the redo, which they did do for free (and covered shipping both ways) was a little longer than I spec'd, and as a result, the stem is a little shorter than ideal. I still love the bike, but at the time I got mine (2004), they just couldn't believe anyone with my measurements would require a 19" top tube, but I knew it from my two other road bikes. I emailed and talked with them a lot both before and after the fact. I hope they "get it" better now!

Emily

[tulip]

+1

My Bike Friday also arrived with too long a top tube -- I had specified an effective top tube measurement I wanted, and they just didn't do it. Even the redo, which they did do for free (and covered shipping both ways) was a little longer than I spec'd, and as a result, the stem is a little shorter than ideal. I still love the bike, but at the time I got mine (2004), they just couldn't believe anyone with my measurements would require a 19" top tube, but I knew it from my two other road bikes. I emailed and talked with them a lot both before and after the fact. I hope they "get it" better now!

Emily

b

Maybe you ladies may have helped them get it right, and I thank you for that. My BF is quite comfortable and feels like the same setup as the bike on which the measurements are based. Granted, I've only ridden it twice, once for 30 minutes and once for an hour. This weekend I'll be taking it out for a 2-3 hour ride. I won't be surprised if I need to make little adjustments here and there, so I'll bring my wrenches with me.

[Bad JuJu]

Wow, what helpful responses--as I know we can always count on here at TE. I've got lots more to think about now, but that's a good thing.

I've got enough riding experience to know what I want in a bike as far as geometry and construction, and I haven't been able to find it in a stock bike. Though this does remind me that about 15 years ago I had a Terry that I loved and was the soul of comfort, but I lost her in a hurricane. Should've replaced her immediately, but didn't. The bike I did get--a pre-built Waterford that someone else had ordered then didn't buy for some reason, wasn't quite right then, but was OK. A couple of years ago I got a gently used Bianchi Veloce--great deal, but again, not quite right fit-wise.

Due to my short torso and short reach, I have always needed a mighty short top tube to be comfy. Another part of the problem is that as I've gotten older, I've experienced some neck and back issues that require a slightly more upright position. And...I want a steel frame. Hmmm, thinking this all through--with the help of all of your excellent advice--makes me think I ought to take another look at Terry bikes. I think Terry still uses steel.

But first, I'm going to get my fitting and continue to work on strengthening the core. Thanks a zillion to everyone for your thoughtful responses!

[Triskeliongirl]

The only stock bikes I can be fit on are terrys and I absolutely love them. This year they are making Isis in steel in the waterford factory, it doesn't get much better than that. If I didn't already have one steel and one titanium isis, I would take a very serious look at them. They also now use two 650cc wheels on the 19" and larger models. For me what works about the terry geometry is not just the short top tube, but the slack seat tube, since I have a long femur. You can also order Isis configured with two very different kinds of gearing. Isis also accepts a rear rack and tires up to 28c, so its easy to configure for light touring or go fast riding depending on the tiress and gearing you choose. Also, they usually do a guarantee where they will ship to the bike shop of your choice, and you have 30 days to ride and return it if you aren't happy (or something like that, check for exact specs). I also found if you ring them up they are flexible about componenet substitutions within a range (i.e. it needs to be something they stock), like if you need a diff. size bar or stem than is spec'd they'll ship to your specs within the same component group.

[emily_in_nc]

Maybe you ladies may have helped them get it right, and I thank you for that. My BF is quite comfortable and feels like the same setup as the bike on which the measurements are based.

Looking at your stem (noticeably longer than mine), I think they got your top tube short enough. I think mine is effectively like a 7cm stem, which is pretty short -- I had told them I wanted it to be a minimum of 9cm effective. My DH's stem is even shorter; his is almost straight up and down and hardly curves to the front at all, so is probably more like 5cm effective because they also made his top tube too long (but he didn't send his Crusoe back for correction -- he likes it fine).

Lucky you, and I am happy for you! If anything either Triskeliongirl or I told them helped other women get a better fit, I feel very satisfied indeed.

Emily

[Blueberry]

Emily-

I haven't measured my effective stem length, but it doesn't feel too short to me. That much was right.....of course, we had other issues

So...maybe they did learn something