Frames

simonp123

18 months ago I coverted to fuss suss buy buying a used 2006 (or 2005 still can't decide for sure) Stumpjumper FSR120 frame, and transferring a lot of bits from my hardtail as I hade heavily upgraded that. It has been good, but there are a few niggles such as the frame is a tad on the small side if I'm being honest, the BB height is a bit low for my liking a sthe pedals bottom out on things quite a bit, and the clearance round the rear tyre is tight in muddy conditions even on 1 2.1 tyre. Also the frame is quite old and well used and I am not a lightweight.

Amyway, all this has set me thinking about getting another frame at some point. It seems daft to me to buy a new bike and then rip most of the bits off to fit the good stuff I have (nice forks, wheels mechs etc), but some of the frame prices look pretty hefty. I would be looking for something 120mm travel again as it seems to work well for what I ride, and my Reba Team Dual Air forks will fit. I also believe it would be possible to my Pushed Float rear shock modified for a different fit, but it looks like most frames come with a rear shock.
I can't say I've seen a massiveselection of frames out there, unless I'm looking in the wrong places. Are there many frame only choices out there?
Am I mad for thnking about doing this, should I stick with what I have, buy a bike and flog the spares?

Opinions appreciated.

1mancity2

Ebay, I got my Reign frame for £400 2010 model and just last night I bought a dmr sidekick2.

supersonic

It seems daft to me to buy a new bike and then rip most of the bits off to fit the good stuff I have

This is usually the best way to do it, as frame only can be very expensive as you say. Also some of your old parts will not fit (most likely ie cables, seat post, headset), so you have a good platform to start with and lots of old bits to sell to recoup money. In addition you may be able to try the bike for size too.

simonp123

supersonic wrote:

It seems daft to me to buy a new bike and then rip most of the bits off to fit the good stuff I have

This is usually the best way to do it, as frame only can be very expensive as you say. Also some of your old parts will not fit (most likely ie cables, seat post, headset), so you have a good platform to start with and lots of old bits to sell to recoup money. In addition you may be able to try the bike for size too.

Good points certainly, though more difficult to agree the finances with the missus on a larger value Also the space taken up by spare wheels etc. Would you really get much worthwhile cash for standard fit wheels if I bought a bottom range model on a good frame perhaps? To make things more complicated I bought an I-beam seat and post (cheap deal) so would want to keep the seat which would mean a new post any probably.

Just looking at options at the moment, I'll probably wait until I lose all the weight I need to and then have a "treat". I usually do months of research before doing anything anyway

simonp123

1mancity2 wrote:

Ebay, I got my Reign frame for £400 2010 model and just last night I bought a dmr sidekick2.

New i take it? Good deal if so, I paid £200 for the used Stumpy!

1mancity2

simonp123 wrote:

1mancity2 wrote:

Ebay, I got my Reign frame for £400 2010 model and just last night I bought a dmr sidekick2.

New i take it? Good deal if so, I paid £200 for the used Stumpy!

Second hand but still a good buy, only problem is you can't try it and you need to know what type of bike you want to end up with, like SS says buying new its has a warranty, you can try it out (in some cases).

The Rookie

Buy new and sell the parts off it 'as new' to get the best value for them, get the right donor and you'll end up with a very cheap frame!

Simon

supersonic

I've done it a few times, and not only ended up with a free frame, but a profit!

1mancity2

Yep it does work, just the inital outlay but if your sensible and do sell the parts you can make a profit, some of the prices bike parts go for on ebay are beyond me.

The Rookie

As have I, but it doesn't always work out that way!

Simon

supersonic

A good example was the Anthem X5, Pedalon were knocking them out for just £799. Probably wouldn't make a profit, but the frames were selling for £1099! Albeit a better shock.

simonp123

supersonic wrote:

I've done it a few times, and not only ended up with a free frame, but a profit!

OK, that's a surprise, worth considering then for sure. I probably bought me previous front fork from someone doing exactly this, mind you I paid little money for that.

Any good candiates?

simonp123

supersonic wrote:

A good example was the Anthem X5, Pedalon were knocking them out for just £799. Probably wouldn't make a profit, but the frames were selling for £1099! Albeit a better shock.

Crazy. Like I say it seems nuts to pull a bike apart and re-build it rather than fitting to a fresh frame to save money, but if it works...

supersonic

Take a look at this:

http://paulscycles.co.uk/products.php?p ... Suspension

120mm of travel, full bike with Fox back and front, definitely some potential there!

The Rookie

I recently took apart a low end HT, RRP about £350, sold the bits on for near enough that, paid a bit less than that for it and ended up with some spares that were free.

Simon

supersonic

I still cn't believe I got my Mongoose for £400!

benpinnick

If you do go down the whole bike route - reseacrh parts sizes first so you know what you'll need to replace, and stick to the game plan. Its too easy to think well that new stem/bars/saddle/forks/drivetrain/whole bike dies all match/work better/newer etc.... and not make the money back. Last month I got a 2011 Cube in the sales, stripped and sold no hassles for what I paid for it. I kept the frame, headset, saddle, stem and bars

simonp123

So, going back to this after some research, the most sensible options (as some bikes and frames are just too much money or you'd wait for ages to get one) seem to be:
Giant Trance X - some good deals to be had on 2011 bikes, and some reduced price 2011 frames around.
Orange ST4 - a few reduced 2011 frames around, bikes not so much in good deals.
Trek Fuel - No frames around, but some 2011 bike deals to be had.
GT sensor - As already posted, some good bike deals around. Seems to be some disagreement over the suspension system, some claim they bob like crazy.
Giant Anthem - Good bike deals around. Can get frame but not cheap. Maybe 100mm rear to little for my 120mm fork, like my Stumpy?
Lots of reduced Kona frames in CRC, but there doesn’t seems to be much love for the Kona full suspension bikes.


I'm compiling a list of things I should go and see/try so i can see if there is a benefit in changing. Anything else I should consider?

I need a bike that is an all rounder (no room for 2!) so it will get used for cross country, trail centres and also the mid-week tow-path & bridleway spins. I like the fairly rigid feel of the rear on the Stumpy, but as I went full suspension to help with neck issues a little plushness won't go amiss. I don't do much jumping etc, too old (45) and fragile for that LOL!

The only issue with whole bikes is that I would want the RP23 shock (as my tweaked Float R will not fit any of these bikes now I have found out my current bike is 100mm not 120mm) as these have compression adjustment - handy for a heavier rider like me to be able to tune a little. The models with this shock are the expensive upper end ones and so would mean major outlay initially before selling the parts. Definitely hard to justify to the other half!
It is a shame you can't buy most frames without a shock, then you could just buy a custom tuned one to fit. I have seen some Commencals that come like this, but none of those look to suit my needs.

1mancity2

Trance X for me, will do anything your doing with ease and don't worry about an RP23 the Trance suspension (maestro) system is very good at reducing pedal bob.

I had one before getting its big brother (Reign) great bike you will love it.

supersonic

Trance, Sensor or Fuel would be my order of choice. Though some of the Scandium Konas are nice and light, but the sus is rather basic.

simonp123

Hmm, this plan is starting to look not so good. Not sure abou the others, but the Trance X takes a press fit bottom bracket, which messes up my plan to use my Hope BB. Presumably the press fit BBs require a different carnkset as well? :roll:

Edit: Ah, but on the plus side it looks like the frameset comes with the headset and reducer for a standard fork steerer, so not all bad. Extra money one way, a bit saved the other.