A little while back i had the idea to build an XC trail/race that it would be as light and high spec as possible for as little money as possible, using ebay and trawling the online forums and shops for the best deals.
I worked out that with a little luck i could scrape together about £500 by selling odds and sods on ebay, well this just wasn't enough (fine for a single speed though) so i sold my Fixie (which i was using to commute on, i'll use the new bike from now on anyways. So and extra £270 was added to the pot.
I then drew up a spec sheet, all of the items i wanted with no compromises. Number 1 on the list was a carbon frame and i bough an old Alan semi carbon (3lbs dead on) for £70. This was quite old and after getting a rolling chassis togther it didnt have the geometry i was looking for, so i sold this on ebay & made proffit (£100). The Final frame is a JBC carbon (1300g) which was a bit of a bargain at £195 as it came with the seatpost and headset.
Its been a few months but i've just got the last bit (the rear xt disc) on order this morning, and i'm just waiting on the rear wheel to be built.
The result is the spec sheet below:
frame. JBC Carbon: £195 (ebay
fork. Carbon Cycles Excite 44.5cm: £70 (ebay)
headset. Woodman: £- (came whith frame)
stem. WTB TXC: £10 (stif)
Bar. Easton Monkey Lite CNT SL: £25 (private sale)
Grips. THE £8 (chain reaction Flood sale)
seatpost. Control Tech £- (came with frame)
Saddle. Fizix Gobi Wing Flex £- (already had)
bb. UN71 sq taper £6 (ebay)
Cranks. Middle Burn RS7's £12 (ebay)
Rings. Middle Burn 20,32,42T £36 (private sale)
Cring Bolts Steel £- (thanks to Bike UK Bristol)
rear mech. XT Shaddow £22 (ebay)
Front Mech XT £25 (merlin Cycles)
Cables Goodridge £- (already in tool box)
Shifters XT rear / temporary Deore Front £35 (crc)
Brakes Xtr calipers, XT levers Goodridge Hoses £140 (ebay/crc)
Discs 160mm XT £30 (ebay)
Chain Sram PG90 £- (in tool Box)
Rear Cassette XTR £- (in tool box)
Wheels XT hubs on Mavic 717 Black rims £140 pair (merlin cycles)
Tyres Conti Speed King Semi Sonics £- (Spare set)
Tubes Unknown £-(tool box)
Total £746
The best bargains were the cranks, i bought them on ebay listed as Cranks with E13 bash, and recognised them as RS7's, i bought them with teh bash and a chain ring for £26, sold the Bash for £14 so £12 RS7's BARGAIN!
Its looking like the best value for money bike i've ever bought!
(pics will be added when built)
heres a half built pic:
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