Halford bike build £40 vs Evans bike build £110

daniel_b

Whether you can run the steerer without cutting it, is easy enough to figure out.
Pop it through the frame, and see how many spacers you have - if the spacers + stem do not cover the steerer, than no you can not do it.

There was no way on my 54cm Scott that would have been possible - as the steerer was huge, IIRC, I had to lop about 5-6" off. On the plus side, that gave me plenty of leeway to make full practice cuts, so across two bikes I think I ended up making 4 practice cuts, and then got the actual ones spot on first time which was nice - one of them I had to do a small amount of sanding to make it ultra neat.

Personally, I am pretty cautious, so I bought a dedicated carbon saw for £7, and a steerer cutter guide thing, for about £10 - for me, that £17 to work on two frames worth in theory 4K, was a small price to pay - plus I have the tools there ready to lend to anyone who needs them, or for when I build up my next carbon frame (Though the guide would work for any fork) - might be a way away of course!

renevat

:idea: Not sure where you are in the country but if you live anywhere near Cambridge have a look at the 'Outspoken Cycles' site. They have a scheme where you can join their workshop scheme whereby you can use their workshop, tools, bike stand, and greases etc with an instructor on hand to help if required.

dinyull

JGSI wrote:

Have we not had this argument before about a general unwillingness to pay a correct rate for mechanical expertise?

I'm with you. If they fucx anything up they'll be on the hook for replacing it.

£110 seems quite cheap considering it'll take best part of a day for a half decent mechanic. Just £13 an hour for 8 hours, then consider the shop will need to make some off that.

Having said that, best thing I did was go on maintenance course. Saved me £'s and more importantly time wasted waiting for LBS to fit me in. Mate has just been told the next spot to book his bike in is 3rd May - add in a few days to order any new pats needed and he's looking at a 3 week wait. Luckily I've said I'll sort him out one night next week, it would have been this weekend if not for a stag do.

Vino'sGhost

Building a bike properly is simple IF you have the tools, skills knowledge and aptitude.

My experience is pressure on the mechanic (and getting the right mechanic) is critical. As in if theyre busy the pressure is on and its not great for the end result. I build probably 5 or 6 bikes a year (rebuilds or new) and some mechanics would do that in a couple of days or less. It takes me five or 6 hours because im doing it for fun and i have to think about it. I wouldnt do it if i didnt get a great deal of pleasure out of it AND i have all the right tools which ive enjoyed collecting.

I have club mates who are clueless and always get the LBS to do it for them. Horses for Courses


FWIW a saturday teen at Evans wouldnt get my money. Halfords even less so.

odessouky

Well, I decided to go with Sigma Sport in Hampton Wick.

They charge £150.

Fingers crossed

vrsmatt

My advice is if you don't have at the very least a stand, a bearing press and a torque wrench you're best off finding a decent LBS, Halfords and Evans can both be hit and miss or excellent depending on who is running the franchise. Not worth the risk IMO.

grahamcp

for those trimming their own carbon steerer tubes, be aware of the health warning in this link...
http://road.cc/content/feature/172770-h ... eerer-tube

torquerulesok

odessouky wrote:

MrB123 wrote:

Are Halfords and Evans your only two options? Don't you have a reputable LBS anywhere near you?

I live in WImbledon area, South West London.

Any suggestions?

Pearson in East Sheen

Matthewfalle

Grahamcp wrote:

for those trimming their own carbon steerer tubes, be aware of the health warning in this link...
http://road.cc/content/feature/172770-h ... eerer-tube

Oh - utter bollox.

Just don't sniff or lick whatever you're cutting off and it'll be fine. For maximum safety do it outside.

It's a fork steerer not a vat of mustard gas from a Edwyn's.

odessouky

torquerulesok wrote:

odessouky wrote:

MrB123 wrote:

Are Halfords and Evans your only two options? Don't you have a reputable LBS anywhere near you?

I live in WImbledon area, South West London.

Any suggestions?

Pearson in East Sheen

It's been done at Sigma Sports in Hampton Wick

andydr2wheels

Sounds like you're nervous about doing it yourself. There's no shame in getting it done for you even if it is a good learning experience. But if you do LBS is definitely the way to go and any good LBS will be happy to take this on, generally be reasonable about the costing and you'll have more comeback for any issues, or tweaks. My local LBS does its own maintenance classes - and maybe some would help you do a supervised build.
If you're looking for recommendations on local LBSs try contacting your local cycling clubs as well as message boards.
Good luck!

Matthewfalle

How did it turn out?

odessouky

Matthewfalle wrote:

How did it turn out?

I'm very happy with how the bike came out...Its truly comfortable and still very very stiff...

I asked Sigma to leave the fork length at max, till I find my best ride position, and in my 6 weeks service, they will then chop it down to the required length..

Sigma Sports have been very pleasant to deal with...The BB30A issue with the SRAM RED BB30 crankset was a non issue, and the chap who built the bile knew already everything about it..

And its 6.9kgms without pedals... :twisted:

Pleased...