I started off planning a frame swap. Would have been so simple if I'd stuck to that. I don't mind waiting for a frame. That's due next month. But I decided I wanted lighter wheels too. I was going to build my own but couldn't find DT Swiss hubs in stock anywhere. Decided to go with Hope but then found a Europe wide rim shortage. Oh well, Mavic Crossmax XL purchased as a wheelset instead as a compromise.
Then I decided that rather than extend the travel on Rockshox 35s i'd get a better fork. No Pike Ultimates in stock anywhere, so pre ordered from r2 and should be here (in the UK at least) in a few weeks. No problem, frame is due around the same time. Hit on import duty and VAT due though.
Realised that the new frame takes a larger diameter seat post. Seems this is the only thing the worldwide bike industry has in stock, so ordered a PNW 170mm dropper which should arrive next week, just waiting for the hit on import duty and VAT on that too.
Then.... decided that I might as well upgrade my brakes from the stock SRAM Guide R that came on my Scandal. I like the feel, but power is underwhelming with a 14st rider (was 16st so braking has improved a little). Really want Code RSC but again, no stock anywhere. I could pre order from Germany but minimum 3 month wait followed by another hit at time of delivery. So may have to settle for my 2nd choice of Hope Tech 3 E4 if I can find them in black with braided hoses set up for UK way round (although hose swap and bleed should be simple). Just means a new bleed kit is also needed.
At this point I should really be done. But noooooo.... I decide if I buy a new groupset I'll be able to sell the Scandal as a complete bike rather than a rolling chassis or parts. So I begin the search. SRAM GX Dub boost groupsets due in maybe 6 months in most places, some not til March 2023! Upgrade? Hmmmm.... GX carbon cranks in 170mm sold out everywhere. Same with GX AXS upgrade kit. OK, X01 mechanical groupset? Not a chance!
I'm almost ready to give up. I can build a functioning bike once my existing orders arrive, but I'd really like to end up with a complete new build now. Should I be writing to the PM, the CEOs of SRAM, Wiggle, Sigma Sports etc with this moan about stock levels? Or shall I resign myself to a slightly less than dream Pace RC529 build for now and buy the drive train and stoppers that I really want as they become available?
Sorry, just wanted to rant.
Aaaaand breathe.
I have some small good news, if you bought from pnw direct all taxes are already paid. I had nothing additional on my loam that just arrived.
I did buy from PNW direct. That is a bit of good news at least. Now I just need the worldwide cycling industry to get back on track in the next fortnight 🙂
Sounds like Triggers broom, TBH.
As and when the parts arrive, build the new bike.
Ride the bike you have, and enjoy it - life is short.
Ride the bike you have, and enjoy it – life is short.
As thousands who've had Covid can testify.
I’ve been much happier riding what I’ve got. Unavailability of parts is quite nice as I’ve just thought “I’ll ride what I have for 2 years” and it’s a lot more relaxing than constantly thinking about upgrades.
Being content with your current bike is a good thing and I'm really happy with mine, but keeping it going for the next 2 years might not be so easy.
Trying to get hold of chains and cassettes will become more and more difficult. Shimano 12sp cassettes are already pretty hard to get hold of. I don't need one yet but I'm keeping an eye out for one so I'm not left high and dry when I do.
Realised that the new frame takes a larger diameter seat post. Seems this is the only thing the worldwide bike industry has in stock, so ordered a PNW 170mm dropper which should arrive next week, just waiting for the hit on import duty and VAT on that too.
Is there a worldwide shortage of seatpost shims too? If so I’m sat on a goldmine…
Also, you aren’t really taking a ‘hit’ on VAT, sellers shipping to here can/should remove local VAT (or you can claim it back) for you then to be charged it here, as you would if you’d have bought it from a UK retailer. The only extras you are charged is duty if it was made mostly out of the EU, and the handling fee.
Is there a worldwide shortage of seatpost shims too? If so I’m sat on a goldmine…
I've had issues with using shims in the past, they never seem to grip properly so I'd rather have the frame clamping directly onto the post rather than by proxy through another bit of metal.
First World problems huh?
It's not easy finding stuff, but it can be done. Excluding EU retailers it might be impossible though. It seems like the UK based websites and distributors are leagues behind those big boys now.
In May I managed to find all the parts for a new build (enforced by bike theft). It took two weeks from first order to first ride, and the only compromises were colour of forks and DT wheels and not Roval. I needed a spreadsheet to track all the orders. Parts were delivered from 8 different countries from more than a dozen different vendors.
I received a SRAM BB this week that had a manufacting date printed only 6 weeks ago, in Taiwan. Really shows how little stock there is out there.
Talking to the guy who owns our LBS a couple of weeks ago. He's had minimal stock since mid-2020 when everyone bought a bike during the first lockdown.
He reckons word from his suppliers is its going to take at least another year for this to settle down, so 2022 is going to be tough as well.
This is reflected in my industry (Engineering) there are global shortages of some items (electronics in particular) which don't look like they're getting resolved anytime soon.
Whilst the stupidity of Brexit hasn't helped us on a local level - the real issues are due to (ongoing) supply chain disruption due to COVID.
but then found a Europe wide rim shortage
FWIW, I bought a Kinlin 30mm ID rim (TL-29) a few weeks ago. It's very stealth and so far seems pretty decent. Eyeletted (no annoying washers!), 530g, so about the same as XM-481. It arrived from Cycle Clinic in a couple of days.
Loads of drivetrain stuff is in stock at Aliexpress quite cheap and it arrives within a few weeks with no duty (IME)
https://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?catId=0&initiative_id=SB_20210819005648&SearchText=m7100+cassette
Watch bikester for forks. I paid 630 for a Zeb Ultimate RC2, duties paid.
GX Carbon cranks in a 170mm?
I can help you out there!
if I can find them in black with braided hoses
Could I suggest that you don't opt for braided hoses? Yes they look cool, but everything after that about them makes them PITA. They're a bigger diameter so threading them through frames is a pain, bolting them to forks and frame mounts is a pain. They can and will rub through soft metal and plastic if they're not secured down hard enough to stop them moving. But the most painful part is reserved for if you have to shorten the hose at all, getting a cut clean enough on hope braided hoses to re-join them is an exercise in frustration. Plus at the end of it all, there's no difference to the performance. Get regular hoses, trust me
This will not help LBS have a frame for someone to build up most of the parts are in shifters are August next year nightmare best to have a few bikes these days.
If you think it’s bad now just wait…
I’ve ordered some more high tolerance 20mm 7075 bar for making thru axles and hub axles. 2000kg Nothing available off the shelf in U.K./Europe and spring next year delivery maybe summer. Same story on most things, even basics like 6000 series bars on backorder. Oh and Everything has nearly doubled in price, getting the same messages from my manufacturer friends worldwide.
So I’ve got a list of bike manufacturing clients who want thousands of parts made and I’m turning down most of the work as volume materials aren’t available unless you want to pay insane prices. I’m sure some will come back in a few weeks and accept that costs have gone up 50% everywhere.
We have plenty of materials forward planned in for SuperstarComponents but I can’t plan for clients. It does mean holes in ranges, but there’s nothing we can do. Ive just cancelled the order of a robot loaded CNC because what’s the point if it’s going to sit for 9-12 months waiting for metal to arrive.
I’m expecting across the board 25-50% price rises on top of what has already happened. And availability to nosedive further. It happened 10 years ago and it’s happening again
Neil SuperstarComponents
Thats worrying reading...
I know it's a "first world problem" but that's where I live. I work bloody hard in a minimum wage job cleaning coaches and buses and have scrimped and saved for a long time to be able to afford this build. The way things are looking I'll have to use parts from the Scandal, sell what's left as a rolling chassis/parts and just wait for parts to become available again. It's not what I wanted, but at least I'll be able to ride and I'll still be on a new frame, fork, wheels and tyres so the bike will feel VERY different.
I struggled to piece together an 'Enduro' last week. Managed to find a 213mm Bikeyoke dropper and had to drive far to get it. My fork vendor was out of most stuff so had to pull a 160mm DVO from my RIPMO. Needed some spares for a Box groupset but SOL so its back to the trusty, well beaten 1x11XTR/E13.9-46 combo from my 2018 capra. Managed to find new SLX 2 piston brakes as I could not find the brakes I wanted. Pleasantly surprised by how good they are. Wait weren't we all using 2 piston brakes for big mountain riding once?
Being content with your current bike is a good thing and I’m really happy with mine, but keeping it going for the next 2 years might not be so easy.
sits back smugly how riding his fixed gear brakeless bike means the only consumables I have are tyres and single speed chains which are all readily available.
I can't believe what's going on! I ordered a Ribble CGR Ti frame in June with an ETA of October and it turned up on Thursday. It's still August for goodness sake!
To be fair, I'm just glad I'm swapping everything across from my road bike as I can't see when anyone is ever going to get Ultegra disk brakes and shifters back in stock
I’ve had issues with using shims in the past, they never seem to grip properly
I find the opposite. Shims don't slip in the seat tube because they have a lip at the top, the problem is just the post slipping in either the seat tube or the shim. Without a shim, you need to grease the inside of the seat tube to prevent the post from corroding in place. This makes it difficult to stop them slipping. With a shim, you grease the outside of the shim so that it won't corrode in place, but sand the inside of the shim to get ride of the shiny surface and roughen it up a bit. If you do have any problems with slipping, mark the post where it enters the seat tube and use very fine grit paper to lightly sand it to remove the shiny surface below that point. Make sure the post and inside of the shim are properly degreased. It doesn't matter if the shim gets stuck to the post, it's easy to remove the shim from the frame and then pry the shim away from the post. I've had zero problems with slipping using shims. Many problems with both slipping and sticking in the frame without shims.
My LBS is really struggling too.
Selling out of bikes by mid-2020 was a minor inconvenience since most of his work is repairs. But now he can't get basic spares - BBs, cassettes etc all in really short supply. Hope are quoting lead times of up to 15 weeks on some stuff due to raw material shortages.
Quite by chance, I found an XT cassette, 11-36, 10sp for my CX bike and snatched it up quick. It'll need one soon and at the moment, 10sp cassettes are rare as hen's teeth - CRC have none in stock in any brand, my LBS couldn't get any either.
I'm ordering off AliExpress now.
Got some knock off Clarks M4s on the way.
Thoughts and prayers for my teeth x
Settled on the GX alloy cranks (Wiggle) and managed to get a new BB and chain ordered from Decathlon. Will take the Eagle cassette off my turbo to fit to the new wheel and sell the turbo so haven't got to hunt for one of them. Also got Matchmaker X clamps coming from Wiggle so just shifter, mech and brakes to come off the Scandal
My wholesalers haven't had a single cassette in stock for months on end. With no sign of the shortages improving and with me unable to make money on parts sales when servicing bikes, or resorting to trawling obscure corners of the internet for every last item I need, I've decided to pull the plug on my bike repair business.
I know it’s a “first world problem” but that’s where I live.
I agree. Pointing out someone's problem is less important than someone else's existential plight must be one of the daftest observations on a forum populated by some of the world's relatively richest folk.
@neilthewheel sorry to hear that. I'm sure a lot of businesses are going to end up pulling the plug over the next couple of years sadly. I really hope we don't end up in a country full of online bike superstores with the minimum wage paying slave drivers like Halfords to rely on for repairs
I’m ordering off AliExpress now.
Got some knock off Clarks M4s on the way.
I've seen this mentioned a few times but is this like a consortium/platform of Chinese manufacturers going direct to market complete with Google app?
I agree. Pointing out someone’s problem is less important than someone else’s existential plight must be one of the daftest observations on a forum populated by some of the world’s relatively richest folk.
Yup, the same folk that bought lots of spares at the height of this, but slaughter the bogroll panic buyers! 😂
Sorry to hear that @neilthewheel. You won’t be the last, the current supply mess is going to take a lot of companies under. Not having easy access to alternative suppliers in the EU for small/spare parts on top of everything else is a pain on the butt.
On cassettes, it’s the same for everyone. I’m building the singlespeed back up for the winter.
the same folk that bought lots of spares at the height of this, but slaughter the bogroll panic buyers!
They probably killed them in order to steal their bog roll.
Worth noting on the whole bikes/ bike parts as well that some of these things are relatively basic spares that people who use their bikes for transport need - it's not just your gnarduro pilots who need to fix and replace stuff.
My wholesalers haven’t had a single cassette in stock for months on end. With no sign of the shortages improving and with me unable to make money on parts sales when servicing bikes, or resorting to trawling obscure corners of the internet for every last item I need, I’ve decided to pull the plug on my bike repair business.
That's a real shame, I'm sorry to hear this has effectively ended your business.
You hear a lot about the covid fueled "boom" in the cycling industry, but I think it's actually only served to strangle supplies to the 'little guys' and in so doing will ultimately only be to the benefit of the bigger outfits that can last through a parts supply drought...
Worth noting on the whole bikes/ bike parts as well that some of these things are relatively basic spares that people who use their bikes for transport need – it’s not just your gnarduro pilots who need to fix and replace stuff.
And therein lies another big issue. There are more cycle commuters and riders of cheaper bikes than there are enthusiasts. Most of those will rely on bike shops/Halfords to keep bikes going as they don't have the knowledge to carry out repairs and a set of tools to do it all will cost as much as their bike did. A lot of bikes will end up going to waste or being scrapped and bike shops will go out of business.
It's not just "first world problems" as was said before and "ride what you have" will stop being possible as well. It's a part of the economy that will die, not just the enthusiasts being unable to complete a new build
Tweed Valley Bikes in Inners have loads of drive train components on the shelf. They also have several GX AXS upgrade kits as well.
Studio Velo in Castle Douglas also seemed pretty well stocked when I was in there last Monday.
The parts shortage poses me an interesting dilemma.
I am about to sell a 4 month/less than 10 rides old HT, with 1x12 slx and Deore groupset (Sensa Merano Evo race), nice wheels and the rest is standard. I was planning to sell as a full bike, it’s a bit big for me in the seattube so I can’t get a dropper in, but am now wondering about splitting it as I may get more of my money back..
Can I join the disgruntled. Bike ordered in April, early September build date I could live with. This was even brought forward to the end of August. Quick check now has it at November. Realistically I'm not going to get any use out of the bike till next year should it even arrive in November. I realise that the shop is not in the business of not selling bikes but the shot in the dark build times are quite vexing.
Can I join the disgruntled
Welcome to the club
Bikester showing 12spd Sram GX shifters and mechs in stock and lots of options on brakes
Well now, after massively overspending/expanding from my original plan of just a frame swap, I am a rear mech and 2 brakes away from having a complete build on order.
Parts I have in my possession:
Wheels
Tyres
Brake rotors
Dropper post
Cranks
Chain
Cassette
Bars
Stem
Saddle
Grips
MMX clamps
Parts ordered:
Frame (Pace RC529)
Headset (Hope, being fitted by Pace)
Fork (Pike Ultimate)
BB
Shifter (X01)
Parts still to order:
Brakes (undecided)
Bleed kit to match brakes
Derailleur (X01)
I can't wait to start building when parts arrive. Got to spend the bank holiday cleaning and servicing the Scandal, taking pics of that and my Tacx Flux 2 and the smart steerer block and putting both up for sale. Money from them will be welcome after all the outgoings. Might mean I end up without a bike for a while but the first ride on my first bespoke build will be so sweet.
I found a split in my Hunt rear rim at the end of July. Hunt have agreed to replace the rim under warranty but due to shortages I won’t be getting my repaired wheel back until November. Just in time for winter ☹️