Just looking for rough estimates or experiences on the cost of a good LBS taking the parts off one bike and putting them onto another*?

It’s so I can budget for the forthcoming Patriot build 🙂

* obviously not all parts will fit etc

It’s gonna take a few hours and there will probably be issues along the way. I’d say between 2-3hrs labour, maybe a bit more. So what’s bike shop labour rate? £40/hr? So £80-£120 would seem fair

You really should be thinking of DIYing it or at least paying a mate to do it IMO.

A couple of years ago I was charged 100 quid to build up a frame and box of bits, they would have done it for free if I’d bought the parts from them

You can pretty much do all the stripping/re building yourself, i would say. The only things you couldent do with a multi tool would be the bottom bracket and headset. Could save you enough cash for a shiny bit..

Depends on the shop, any issues encountered along the way (non-compatible bits) and how clean the parts are. You’ll probably find if the parts are worn/covered in mud and oil, the shop will bang a hefty charge on top.
I’d reckon up to £120 labour plus whatever other bits you may need to buy en route.

At least strip the old bike down yourself, it’s really not difficult. An hour with a multi-tool should see pretty much everything except the BB and headset removed. That’ll allow you to clean everything up properly, sort it out then deliver it to the bike shop and it’ll probably knock a good £50 or so off the price.

We’d do it for a ton unless problems/dirt etc were involved.buy lots of stuff and it would go down….simples!

My local shop does it for £65! Mellow Miles in Horley.

😀

£65 for a frame swap here

Course 2is looking good value if you want to learn more

Mike Cookson’s did if for me for £40 – mind you, i had just bought a new front triangle through them 🙂

I love all the smart arses on here. £65? Someone then claims to have paid £40? Don’t be so **** ridiculous; do you really think that’s a fair/realistic price to pay for the labour on that?

£80-£120 is a fair price.

£35 an hr. Bout just under 2 hr job so £60/65 at my lbs in notts

Thank you oh wise bikers – very helpful. Based on this, I’ll clean it first, strip the original bike as far as I’m able, and then take in 🙂

Cheers people.

Where is your lbs?

wysiwyg – in the expensive sarf 😉

Invest the money in the tools for the job and MTFU and DIY it man. 😀

I love all the smart arses on here. £65? Someone then claims to have paid £40? Don’t be so **** ridiculous; do you really think that’s a fair/realistic price to pay for the labour on that?
£80-£120 is a fair price.

I guess it depends on the shop then. £65 in my local LBS for a hardtail, and £40 as a regular customer. Not sure that makes me a smart arse.

As said, for the cost of a few tools and a maintenance manual, you can do it. If you want it checked take it to lbs to do that. If you are not so handy the it’s potentially £150 well spent. Just make sure the lbs deserve the

Seriously for that money you can buy the tools and do it youself.

The only specialist tools you’d need are a bottom bracket spanner (£20) and a headset press (£30ish), and maybe some decent cable cutters (£20).

Nothing is difficult to do either.

Seriously for that money you can buy the tools and do it youself.
The only specialist tools you’d need are a bottom bracket spanner (£20) and a headset press (£30ish), and maybe some decent cable cutters (£20).
Nothing is difficult to do either.

But is there anything wrong with not wanting to spend your time on this and being happy to pay someone else to do it? If everyone did all the maintenance on their bikes themselves I doubt any LBS would still be in business!

I hate working on bikes, I either break something or it’s not set up right. I’m more than happy to drop a bike into a shop tp get it done properly. The only bit that gets my goat is shops lying to me about timescales.

nothing wrong with getting the lbs to do it but they might not do a better job than you and they might not magically be able to get it all done in 2hrs if they find out they need to still order you some cable outer to match as your is too short/split, or new seatpost as yours wrong size, or your brakes posts are the wrong type etc.
if your going to ever have to do this again learn it, its an extra skill to your belt and will save you money in the long run.

I’d do it for beer 😀

The only bit that gets my goat is shops lying to me about timescales

I phones my LBS (I use that term loosely) about swapping my head set over to a new frame and was told to drop it in and they will do it. When I got there they wanted my number so they could contact me when it was done.! When it was done FFS.! It’s a ten minute job at a push. After a bit of a moan they did it. The mechanic was ok but the shop assistant had’nt got a clue. I love the idea of a LBS but in reality round here they are shite.

I love all the smart arses on here. £65? Someone then claims to have paid £40? Don’t be so **** ridiculous; do you really think that’s a fair/realistic price to pay for the labour on that?

£80-£120 is a fair price.

£40 was the price Cooksons quoted to me when i took my bike in. £120 for a new front triangle for my Mount Vision and £40 to swap it over.
Don’t really care if you think i’m talking poo, it happened.

Nothing wrong with having the LBS doing it, if that’s what you want. But making that decision with the knowledge that the work is fairly easy to do yourself and that it’s not that expensive to aquire the relevant tools is surely better than from a position of thinking you *have* to get them to do it.

£25 here in Cod Head land.
Plus the invitable front mech

bollox to that make your own headset press from threaded spacers and nuts only one u need to worry about is the bb tool thats about 5-15 depending on fitment if external if even easyer,cable snips all of a few quid aslong as sharp will be fine will cost u all of about £30 and you will learn all about it on the way seriosley check youtube ul see how easy it is.

I can (and do) do most of my own spannering on my bikes, most of it is easy stuff, after all they’re bicycles not fighter jets.
I took the decision to let the shop do the work because they already had the bike and i don’t have a torque wrench for the swingarm bolts.

That’s next on my list! 😆

I have just un-build my bike today and if I can do it, anyone can (I did need some help from Mr. Orangina though …). Only had to take the frame to the LBS to get the headset out, costed £2.
Will have the frame re-sprayed and plan to build the bike up myself again – for learning purposes, not that I particularly enjoy that kind of thing. And then spend the saved money on some other bike bling ;-))
Photo of the heap of bike:

Orangina did all this ^^^^^^ and she’s a Laydeeeee…

There is only about 8-12 bolts to undo to strip a bike down to the headset and crank in frame only (depending on if you leave the shifters on the bars and the cables intact). Oh and then break/undo the chain.

Cranks are then easy, BB needs a special tool and headset needs removing.

tbh I would only remove the headset if it was expensive or the frame was knackered. Cartridge bearing ones are not expensive.

Wow orangina, that’s a proper strip down, whole back end taken to pieces as well!
Can’t even criticise the garden, that’s some very neat edging, the grass is cut, the paving is clean.

What will become of STW if we can’t even criticise the garden? 😯

What will become of STW if we can’t even criticise the garden?

Ooh, dunno. Lawn spoiled by someone dumping bike bits all over it…

😉

from the right edge – edging stone slightly out of place and 7th one along looks loose 😉

Just out of shot, abandoned burnt out car, skip full of assorted building detritus and a caravan, no wheels and no windows….

At least the grass is cut, ho um…

Mike Cookson’s did if for me for £40 – mind you, i had just bought a new front triangle through them

***** charged me £120 just for a ‘build’…guess they were reclaiming the profit on all the parts I’d bought from them at a discount (Revelation Forks, XT disc brake set, Hope headset…). Still think they were taking the pish as they had already previously fitted the fork and headset (and didn’t touch the suspension, wheels or my gash hose routing)…oh god you got me started on this again.

Just did this. Took no time at all. Am relieved and delighted all at once. STW win.