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Almost finished building my bike which is made up of classified parts, well I say almost finished it is the LBS waiting to be picked up - I did not want it to be there so this is a carthatic piece. Let me go back to the start...
Tired of trying to convince the wife that I need a new bike I decide to go down the route of buying secondhand bit by bit to spread the cost and keep it at around £400.I see a Chameleon frame with assorted bits for a good price. I obatain these but also purchase brakes, bars, wheels and other bits at the same time, so not really spreading the cost. At this point I have spent about 300 pounds. I then need a fork - after a week or two of searching I purchase a set of All Mountain 2's for 120 pounds (total now 420. It is about now that I start to put it together . oh, need longer brake hoses, cannot get the crankset of my old bike need a new set (thanks to Yossarain this was much cheaper than it would have been 😉 )need a new BB, gear cables need new outers, cannot fit the headset, need some more rotor bolts, dont have enough time. The bike goes into the LBS - the stem is knackered, took longer than we thought (no problme there, I guessed this would be the case). Before going into bike shop cost was approx £460 - cost after £567 and I still need a couple of bits!!
The point of this post? You probably are already aware of it - dont assume because you buy second hand and that you "are going to do it yourself" that you will get a cheaper bike because things will keep biting you on the ass (and pushing your budget higher!! Still, thanks to all those that have supplied parts and bits, I couldnt have done it without you 😕
Wouldn't it have been easier to get a new wife that accepts you need a new bike?? 😛
Perhaps its also a tale of an unrealistic budget and considerably over estimated bike building skills. But it'll still be great fun to ride and now spring is upon us you can get loads of sunny rides in.
Many have been there!
Sounds like an Eco-friendly Grand designs project.
Kevin - "whats your budget?"
House Builder - "350k in 6 monthsn, no worries"
Kevin (6 months later - no roof) - "so how's the budget now?"
HB - "my wifes now pregnant and we're a bit over"
Kevin (13months in and house finished) - "Very nice, how much?"
HB - "erm about erm 10 to 50% over budget, if it wasn't for (insert random building/planning/supply issue) we'd've been fine"
I reckkon I could have stuck to the budget if I had had more time and patience as the LBS would probaly have done the little bits for nowt but to be honest I couldn't be bothered to spend evenings and weekends effing and blinding whilst trying to sort little problems out!!! I like to think that I enjoy bike building etc and that I am ok at it but I think it is time to own up to the lie!!! Indeed I am looking forward to getting out on it this summer - I hope it does not disappoint!
oh, need longer brake hoses
First thing to check when buying brakes s/h.
gear cables need new outer
Always factor new outers in anyway, & while you're at it make them full length, save hassle of lubing too often.
cannot fit the headset,
Wooden mallet ? Always worked for me.
Dont beat yourself up over it mate, most on here will have been there at some point. It will all fade away on your first decent ride...
Does your wife know how much you spent though?
No?
Mission accomplished!
A couple of years ago, i set out to build a total nail of a hack bike. i'd get stuff from ebay and spend a couple of hundred quid. the bike would be one step up from a skip reclaim bike.
I ended up with this: -
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chakaping - that is my biggest fear!!! I am sure if she questions me I can blag my way through it. Certanly a few lessons learned (although I went through the same process with BMX's a few years ago so should have remembered - I reckon I was trying to kid myself!!)
trick is to buy a bike as similar tot he one your building as possible, then buy all the big bits and use the other one to donate small parts like bolts, clamps etc
Then sell the bits of the other bike and make 99% of the money back. Its worked twice for me. Once with a trailstar that became a switchback (both DMR's so everything fit). Second with a yeti ASR-sl, which i fell in love with and very nearly kept! That became my sanderson life, no for sale if anyone wants a steel frame?
It will all fade away on your first decent ride...
I read that as 'it will all fail on your first ride'.