Buy cheap new bike or build from parts?

tonysj

Hi All,

I regularly read about electronic groupsets, Di2, etap etc, and all things being good with the other half I would buy another bike fitted with electronic, the old N + 1.
I ride a 2016 Boardman Team Carbon with Tiagra groupset and have covered about 3000 miles although I've changed the wheels which included an new cassette and to be honest I have had very few issues with it and the Tiagra is running almost like new.
I fancy the N + 1 and keep reading about Di2 and how sweet it is to use etc, I would prefer etap but its not as common to find second hand and seems more expensive that Di2, so I would ask you guys a couple of options on getting my next bike.

1) I could buy a second hand bike kitted with electronic, probably Di2 which would be cheaper, and easier to get past the OH.
2) take a while in finding parts/groupset at the right price and building one from scratch, I'm retired so have time on my hands especially over winter.
3) Buy a last years New reduced bike with electronic with a typical price reduction of 30 to 40%, seen ones at £1700 as that may be cheaper.

I appreciate I could end up with Not the idea bike I want, wrong colour, have to upgrade lower quality kit etc.

What do you think is a viable option and probably the best way to go about this.

I dont have a big pockets so spending over £2000 is over budget and the OH will want blood....

T

daniel_b

What kind of bike is it you are after?

Endurance stylie or something else?

tonysj

Race or endurance as Im a leisure rider and only do Club rides and the odd Sportive.

Im looking at the cheapest way to go electronic really as if I were to upgrade to Ultegra mechanical would I really find it worth the money doing over my current set up.

cougie

It's only a gearing system. It's not going to change your life. Wil you be faster ? No. I'm happy with mechanical. One day I might go etap but I'm in no rush.

It's not worth getting into trouble with your other half for.

shirley_basso

Check you have a di2 compatible frame with internal routing or it looks a mess.

tonysj

My current road bike is not an option to change over to Di2 as I dont think it would be worth it as its 10 speed anyway.
I appreciate whats been said but I'm still thinking about possibly doing this so whats the cheapest Di2 kitted road bike that I could buy, maybe second hand?. Would that option be worth looking into?

mroli

Personally dude - always build bikes. Much more fun, you have all the enjoyment of making a list of what you need, tracking down the parts, trying to get the best price on them, them all arriving separately, getting cross because the day after you buy them, you find them cheaper, starting to assemble the bike, buying all the tools you need to assemble the bike properly, assembling the bike, buying the things that you've forgotten to buy, assembling the bike, buying the right parts you need, assembling the bike, fettling and eventually riding your bike that you built over a period of time ranging from 4 hours to 4 months. Will it be cheaper? Probably not. Will it be more enjoyable - yes, undoubtedly.

IMHO the only exception is buying the bike of your dreams, which you want assembled and fitted for you like a glove. That's a lovely feeling too.

daniel_b

Just dropped you a PM Tony.