"Paul" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...
Quoted message said:Well, now the big question for me. How difficult is it to build up a bike?
I'm fairly new to cycling and have been seriously bitten by the bug. My mechanical skills are
fairly limited but I am toying with the idea of buying a frame and building up a bike. I enjoy
putting computers together too but there seems to be something of a differance between a computer
failing to boot because a card isn't seated properly and your bicycle wheels falling off in heavy
traffic!
it is true that your computer doesnt carry your life in its hands (though it did seem that
way during finals last year). but that is not to say that you shouldnt try working on a bike
of your own.
Quoted message said:I suppose one advantage is that I know my limitations and fitting the headset and bottom bracket
would be beyond me (not having the tools doesn't help) and perhaps fitting the forks also but I
have a great LBS who could do this - they'd build the whole thing of course but it seems a good
way to learn some skills.
agreed. building the bike from components will be one way to really ramp up the learning curve. i
knew a deal about bikes before i did this, but it was all a lot of work on old junkers, and 80s
POSs. i bought components, built it from the ground up, and learned a lot.
Quoted message said:
I have a reasonable set of tools and a torque wrench and so could probably fit the componetry,
chainset, bars, gears etc. and am bright enough (I hope) to buy compatible kit.
you will always need a few more tools. bikes have their own proprietary spline tools, use metric
bolts and allen keys, and such. but nothing that will cost you an arm and a leg. the 50 dollar
mostly Lifu brand kits sold (or rebadged and sold) by most mailorder bike places will take you
through any basic bike build with nary a problem.
its nice that you have a torque wrench. components bought separately come with detailed directions
smattered with various appropriate torques. in addition, there are lists of appropriate torques in
the RBT FAQ, etc. over or under tightening a fastener is one thing that a mechanically
not-so-awesome individual might do that coudl result in pain at a later time. with a manual and a
torque wrench, and care, you can do no wrong.
Quoted message said:
Does this seem a reasonable proposition or is the whole endevour best left to the professionals?
absolutely. i absolutely think it is a reasonable proposition. if you are not confident in your
mechanical skills- so what? go slower. read the directions. buy a 20 dollar book that covers basic
stuff like the bicycling magazine guide and you will have there more than enough to walk you through
the basics of putting a bike together. i dont think any perceived mechanicla incompetence shoudl
turn you off. not that you were saying you were incompetent- im just taking it to the extreme.
further, i truly believe that given enough time you could do every step of the build on your own. it
just takes time, patience, and the appropriatge research either in books, or this newsgroup from the
google archives. if you wanted, you could press your own headset, build your own wheels, and
anything else you wanted if you just take the time to do it right.
an added advantage to building a bike from new components is that they are new.. new parts go
together so beautifully well. it is when one is dealing with old bikes, with issues, with rusty
parts, with questionable histories, that things get iffy.
another poster mentioned ebay. i dont have the patience for ebay. for me, whenever i try to find
something i wanted on ebay, i cna always find it just as cheap from some discount place somewhere
else. perhaps if you troll the auction search for months youll happen to find all the partgs you
need for cheap, but it hasnt worked for me. sometimes i find stuff on ebay for a small percentage
off the lowest price i can find on the web, but that small margin isnt worth it for the wait, the
questionability of the seller, and the fact that it is simple to return something to an internet
store, and difficult to return it to an individual.
if you want to build from components, buying from an LBS is wallet-death. sorry LBS's. best bet is
to buy from intgernet discount joints, or huge sellers like nashbar, et al. the trick is to know
what you want, which you presumanly dont. you could just check out the component list of a bike you
were intersted in trying to make something similar to. or you could buy that 20 dollar book, read
it, and then you'd have an idea.
alternatively, you could buy a bike, break it down to its bearings and spokes, and put it back
together. you wont get a custom build, but you will get the full experience, save a packet, and its
likely it will be better when youre done with it than when you boguht it.
i say go for it.
-anthony
