What would you do? Building a new bike over a long period of time…

[DismalScientist]

Without a question, buy the bike you want off the internet, take it apart and put it back together again. The price of the complete bike might be close to the price of the component package. You can sell the excess frame and wheelset on craigslist, if you want different ones.

[hozn]

So this is essentially what I did for my road disc project this past winter: started in October, started doing research on frames and rims, used allowance (and saved allowance) to start shopping for parts. And then sold my other bike and finished up the build. So not quite the same timeframe, but same idea.

Of course Dismal is right; it’s always cheaper to buy the bike complete. Usually much cheaper. Unless you are trying to build something uncommon, as I was, in which case it wasn’t any more expensive to build what I wanted.

I think the real question is which upgrades you’re looking to do for the [eventual] new bike. Some lend themselves more to “all-at-once” than others. E.g. wheels (assuming you don’t change braking technology!) are an easy one to upgrade independently. Whereas if your planned upgrade is Di2 then you’ll need a frame that accommodates that, etc. Also things like seatposts and stems are frame-specific, so doesn’t make sense to upgrade those independent of the frame. Things like groupsets can be upgraded independently for the most part (though cable/housing lengths may end up being different), though this is probably one of the areas that has least return (assuming you’re starting from a mid-range or better group).

(P.S. Nice to see you on the trail!)

[vvill]

I would say “it depends”. If you’re looking for bang for buck, then yeah just wait until you get the whole bike.

But if you want special/boutique parts then I would go incrementally. Since the build is an upgrade to what you already have (and backwards compatible) I’m guessing this is going to be a fairly standard 10 speed road bike?

Personally I think it’s more fun buying parts separately, and have a more customized build (and it’s also more fun this way if you enjoy shopping for a bargain at all), although you probably need more patience doing it this way! I imagine the build experience will be more rewarding than taking apart and rebuilding a pre-assembled bike. Pedals and saddles are typically already individualized rider choices, and it’s quite easy to extend these preferences to bartape, hoods/levers, bar, stem, seatpost… etc. Bit part upgrades will also let you evaluate certain new parts (e.g. wheelset) on a rideable platform you’re already familar with.

[dkel]

@hozn 79938 wrote:

Dismal is right; it’s always cheaper to buy the bike complete.

I don’t understand this, though I have observed it. What happens to the cost of labor for the company that builds the bikes? Certainly, they get components wholesale, but is the markup for components for individual consumers so large as to offset that labor cost?

Not to hijack this thread, but the reason I’m curious is that I’m interested in converting my 1980’s Schwinn World into a fixie, but based on the very limited comparison-shopping I’ve done, the price of the components (and I would need everything: the frame is all I would keep from the original bike) could be way more than a brand new, pretty nice fixie built by a good company.

That said, I still haven’t finished my dissertation (thank you, BAFS!), and I’ve promised myself (and my wife) I won’t work on a fixie conversion until I’m a Dr.

[TwoWheelsDC]

@hozn 79938 wrote:

So this is essentially what I did for my road disc project this past winter: started in October, started doing research on frames and rims, used allowance (and saved allowance) to start shopping for parts. And then sold my other bike and finished up the build. So not quite the same timeframe, but same idea.

Of course Dismal is right; it’s always cheaper to buy the bike complete. Usually much cheaper. Unless you are trying to build something uncommon, as I was, in which case it wasn’t any more expensive to build what I wanted.

I think the real question is which upgrades you’re looking to do for the [eventual] new bike. Some lend themselves more to “all-at-once” than others. E.g. wheels (assuming you don’t change braking technology!) are an easy one to upgrade independently. Whereas if your planned upgrade is Di2 then you’ll need a frame that accommodates that, etc. Also things like seatposts and stems are frame-specific, so doesn’t make sense to upgrade those independent of the frame. Things like groupsets can be upgraded independently for the most part (though cable/housing lengths may end up being different), though this is probably one of the areas that has least return (assuming you’re starting from a mid-range or better group).

(P.S. Nice to see you on the trail!)

Yeah, it’s going to be a FG and complete bikes are pretty uncommon (at least for what I want), so buying everything separately is basically the only option. The big ticket components (wheels, cranks, saddle) will be compatible with my current FG, but stem/bars/seatpost/etc would probably just sit on the shelf until ready for assembly.

[ShawnoftheDread]

Buy the components one at a time , preferably as you find bargains. But don’t use them on your current bike so your new ride will be more novel and enjoyable once you’re done.

[dcv]

I buy parts whenever I find a deal, then move them between bikes every now and then. It makes me fall in love with the bikes over and over again.

[DismalScientist]

dkel:
For my conversion, I started with only the wheelset. I found a FG 700C set used on ebay (I went with 700 because of better tire selection. ) and just bought a new chain. I just used the inner chaining on the original crank. Later I changed out the crank and bottom bracket. A modern sealed bottom bracket is worth never having to adjust old style bottom brackets in the future.

[TwoWheelsDC]

Nashbar has a decent sale going on, so I picked up a nice front brake (Shimano 105), 3T stem, FSA bars, and a Selle Italia saddle for a great price. I’ll probably throw everything on my current FG for now, as I’m particularly eager to see how it rides with drop bars sans hoods. That pretty much leaves wheelset, crankset, and frame as the only big ticket items, and it’s going to be a couple months before I pick up any of those.

[vvill]

Oh, it’s for a FG build? Then definitely go part-by-part. FG/SS builds are so easy to chop and change since there’s barely any cabling involved.

I’m in the process of reconfiguring my SS/secondary FG bike. Threw on a different seatpost, and I’m planning to finally switch out the front fork, front brake and stem.

@dkel 79942 wrote:

I don’t understand this, though I have observed it. What happens to the cost of labor for the company that builds the bikes? Certainly, they get components wholesale, but is the markup for components for individual consumers so large as to offset that labor cost?

Not to hijack this thread, but the reason I’m curious is that I’m interested in converting my 1980’s Schwinn World into a fixie, but based on the very limited comparison-shopping I’ve done, the price of the components (and I would need everything: the frame is all I would keep from the original bike) could be way more than a brand new, pretty nice fixie built by a good company.

Surprised no one else has answered this… I’m not an expert but I would say “yes”. As far as I understand it, bike shops build new bikes as part of their role as suppliers/distributors for a brand. So the labor cost doesn’t really go on the manufacturer, and yeah markup on components is huge. That’s one reason why people will buy mostly-assembled complete bikes online, strip them for the groupset and then sell off the frame/wheels.

[dkel]

@vvill 80177 wrote:

As far as I understand it, bike shops build new bikes as part of their role as suppliers/distributors for a brand. So the labor cost doesn’t really go on the manufacturer, and yeah markup on components is huge.

So, does the experience of doing it yourself offset the cost of doing it yourself (given that TwoWheels and I are gluttons for this sort of thing, apparently)? Or should I quit kidding myself, just buy a new fixie for a few hundred dollars, and go for a bike ride? (Granted, TwoWheels has a stated interest in something a little more esoteric than the typical off-the-shelf model. Speaking of which, TwoWheelsDC, what are you getting that is uncommon? Do tell!)

[TwoWheelsDC]

@dkel 80185 wrote:

So, does the experience of doing it yourself offset the cost of doing it yourself (given that TwoWheels and I are gluttons for this sort of thing, apparently)? Or should I quit kidding myself, just buy a new fixie for a few hundred dollars, and go for a bike ride? (Granted, TwoWheels has a stated interest in something a little more esoteric than the typical off-the-shelf model. Speaking of which, TwoWheelsDC, what are you getting that is uncommon? Do tell!)

This will be my first non-off-the-shelf bike. It’s partly driven by necessity and partly by wanting the gratification of building up my own bike. My current FG was bought complete (and cheap) and I’m very happy with it, and I’m glad I bought it. In fact, my fancy carbon bike has been collecting dust lately since I ride the FG whenever I can. That said, I have my allowance money, so I might as well start a build project, and a fixed build seems like a nice compromise between build simplicity, cost, and fun factor…it’s either that or spend it on or gadgets or whatever. Bikes are more fun.

And I’m not going to reveal what I’m building until it’s done

[hozn]

Yeah, I think building it yourself is just an expression of bike obsession. Obviously plenty of people happily keep their obsession focused on *riding* their bikes, but if you are the sort of person that loves reading reviews, tweaking bike fit, shopping for deals, and actually bolting it together then a bike build is likely in your future!

I bought my first mountain bike complete and proceeded to upgrade all the components (either through necessity [they broke] or whim). I did the same thing with a SS commuter later. My other bikes have all since just started with frames. That has enabled me to just build them the way I want them and allows me to have bikes that also might be more expensive as name-brand complete bikes — e.g. my Habanero ti commuter/cx build or my new road-disc Chinese carbon bike. I have found that wheels are often some of the first things I want to replace (and that factory-built wheels that come on complete bikes are often terrible), so I learned to build my own wheels. So for me that is a significant aspect of a bike build and that becomes a special little addiction problem all of its own.

[dkel]

@hozn 80190 wrote:

My other bikes have all since just started with frames. That has enabled me to just build them the way I want them and allows me to have bikes that also might be more expensive as name-brand complete bikes.

I thought we just discussed how it’s cheaper to buy a complete bike than to build it up yourself! I’m so confused!!

[Geoff]

@hozn 80190 wrote:

… That has enabled me to just build them the way I want them.

There is also the theory that you aren’t a real Jedi until you have built your own lightsaber.

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