I’ve possibly got my hands on a cheap brand new cross frame & fork (including headset). Before I say yes, I am wondering how much it will cost to build up.

On x bikes I am not that clued up on specs, I was thinking around Shimano 105 level, but do you need to ? Also how much are wheel sets (none disc).

I want to use the bike for commuting on/off road, occasional off road use and occasional cross race.

Looking at EBay I could get a complete 2nd bike for around the £400-£450 mark, for a 1 to 2 yr old bike, and I wonder if that would be cheaper..

Ta

Almost certainly

Can’t see buying parts individually being a cheap option,, like MTB’s and road bikes, getting a complete package is almost always cheaper than individual parts, add to this CX parts are lower volume, and some are unique like the cranks, and a CX specific crank set isn’t cheap.

There are a lot more CX bikes on ebay now at the price(£400-£450) you are looking at than there were a few weeks ago, but stating price has little relation to finishing price.

Ok frame idea kicked in to touch!

I am keeping an eye on Ebay, and you can get some nice stuff on there but I need a smasl frame/50cm, and they are pretty rare!

True answer – It depends! I can generally do better spec than a complete bike, new or used, for less money

If you’re like me and you swap and trade, and do bike servicing for people, you find all sorts of things come your way. I’ve just worked out that I’ve got all the bits to build a bike. Quite a decent rigid MTB commuter/tourer for the princely sum of £10. £10 for a chain. The rest i already had, or swapped, or scrounged. That’s Deore group with XT shifters, Magura Louise brakes, hand built (by me) wheels. The chain/cass/rings are all brand new too.
But to do that you have to be a bit of a hoarder and a handy mechanic 🙂

I don’t need this bike. It’ll be for sale soon. 🙂

a CX specific crank set isn’t cheap.

Setting aside the fact that any compact double will do the trick… http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=70118

Also how much are wheel sets (none disc).

I started out with a set of these, which are stiff and light. I killed them by using them for touring but that’s not really what they’re for.

http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/WPSHRS10/shimano_rs10_clincher_wheelset

The expensive bit of my build was the STIs.

i bagd a giant ocr3 on ebay for 80 and tricross frameset with headset brakes ect off here for 120, 10 for conti speed king tyres off gumtree, its only 2×8 but douse me fine as i prefer the shift setup to new ones

As a mechanic who has done a few seasons doing neutral support for cross events I would be wary of 2nd hand cross bikes they get ridden very hard. Seeing the same bikes season after season and during the seasons they deteriorate pretty quickly. I would also be looking at basic Sram groups the sl’s tend to put up with the dirt a little better and the 1 to 1 pull ratio can be more tolerate to the poor conditions. If your on a budget you could think of a 1 by 10 system more options for cheap cranks one less sl one less mech.

I got a Kinesis Crosslight on ebay for £200 (I’d actually offered more to buy outside ebay but was turned down!)

It was pretty much unused, 105 kit, road tyres plus cross tyres, immaculate condition. I think it went cheap as it was a a dark colour and not ‘flash’ looking so got overlooked by most bidders. Basic Sora road bikes were going for more.

Absolute bargain spooky!