frame or full bike

andy610
andy610 Posts: 602
edited March 2008 in Road beginners
im thinking of getting another road bike to use in summer, i have a trek pilot 1.0 at the moment, i was wondering if its best to buy a frame and build it up to my spec or buy a full bike, would building a bike cost a lot more then one already built.

Comments

  • geoff_ss
    geoff_ss Posts: 1,201
    If you don't have any special requirements, and a standard road bike offers everything you want/need then buy one off the shelf.

    I chose to build my own because no-one makes one to my requirements; lightweight road bike with clearance for mudguards and carrier eyes; straight bars; and ATB triple chainset for low gears. It probably cost more than if I could have found a ready-made but I've got what I wanted and I'm pleased with it. Plus I got the satisfaction of doing it myself :)

    Geoff
    Old cyclists never die; they just fit smaller chainrings ... and pedal faster
  • gkerr4
    gkerr4 Posts: 3,408
    generally it does cost a lot more - bike maufactureres get much better deal on that 105 groupset than you ever could.

    as Geoff has said - there would be no point building your own bike if it one s available off the peg to your spec - in my case, I wanted a roubaix frame cos i like the fit and i wanted campagnolo to see what all the fuss was about - this isn't available from specialized so i built my own.

    you do get to put together a build of all the bits you want - rather than a manufacturers compromie
    you do get to break the bank by doing the above
    you do get the satisfaction of building it yourself which cannot be measured in ££'s alone

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