How 'built' is a new bike when delivered to a shop?

A friend has just taken delivery of a new bike and asked me to help put it together. Obviously happy to help as I assumed it would be a case of putting pedals on, straightening handlebars and checking everything is done up nice and tight. Turns out she got it through a trade contact so it is as it would be when delivered to a shop.

How much more involved will this be, I don’t have a clue what state of build a bike is at when delivered to a shop?

It can be as little as you’ve described. Some are shipped needing brake rotors to be attached etc. However, dealers will learn where any little issues can occur during factory build and will take the time to resolve these before supplying to customers. That might be straightening rotors, checking bearings, topping up fork oil etc, etc, etc.

Can be as bad as components applied to a frame.

Thanks, so could be nothing or everything!

Its a Genesis by the way.

Very unlikely that its ever going to be bad as components applied to a frame.

With a genesis it will be putting the wheels on, put the stem/bars on, tunes up the brakes and gears and hey presto…put the pedals on.

Thanks Joe, that is a relief, time is a bit stretched at the moment and I wasn’t relishing the prospect of spending ages on sombody else bike (especially when it is better than mine!)

It can vary hugely – at one extreme there’s things like the Brompton (take out of box, unfold, done), at the other end is things like some recumbents I import which have the frame in the box, and another box with the components. Nothing fitted at all.

make sure to check the cranks. can come pretty loose out the box.

Have seen the lads at the lbs unpack a few new bikes. The std routine seems to be put the front wheel in, attach the brakes to the bars and put the pedals on. Sometimes the bars/stem are aligned

The gears need little or no adjustment.

10-15 mins from being in a box to being ridden.

Of course what you’re not seeing is the mechanic running his experienced eye over the thing, to make sure it all looks okay. Sometimes little details can be wrong that need a tweak.

Just doing my bit for LBSkind 🙂

I built a saracen out of the box and they come from the same distributor as genesis (so may have the same level of build).

It was a case of putting the rotors on, attached saddle to seatpost, seatpost in frame, pedals on, and align/tighten stem and headset. But what took just as much time was removing all of the protective packaging around the frame and forks etc.

30min to 1 hr tops.

With a genesis it will be putting the wheels on, put the stem/bars on, tunes up the brakes and gears and hey presto…put the pedals on.

Bell and reflectors too, obviously. What bike is it out of interest?

What bike is it out of interest?

Core 26.5

If she’s fit, I’ll build it for her.