[jeffersonduang]

I always bought the whole bicycle in stores.

I want to know is there anybody didn't buy the whole bicycle, just buy frame and other parts and built them by self?

Is that hard?

 

[jeffersonduang]

I also curious about is that would be cheaper?

 

[LyNx]

The last bike I bought complete was my Giant Trance back in 2005, since then I've built all my bikes myself.

Unless you know all about the different standards and have been around bikes for a bit, it most always works out cheaper to buy a complete bike than to build. If however you've had a few bikes, learned a lot about them and are up on all the new standards and have some patience, then you can sometimes build cheaper than buying complete.

I also curious about is that would be cheaper?

 

[huckleberry hound]

It's cheaper to by a complete bicycle than it is to build one. Bike manufacturers get volume discounts on the components necessary to build the bike. The reason most chose to build a bike from the frame up is so they can chose which components they want to use. For example the may want a complete XT groupset but the manufacturers bike mix and match there groupset, i.e. XT crank and rear dérailleur, SLX front dérailleur, hubs and brakes, Deore shifters and so on. They may also want to use a different fork that what the manufacturer offers.

 

[eb1888]

Manufacturers get big discounts but you are buying from a shop with a 40% markup.
If you know your components and can shop for deals from British and German parts sites and off ebay.
If you can lace your own wheels and do some bike maintenance and assembly.
You can have a shop as a backup for a couple things.
You can end up saving money and getting a better bike for you and your riding style and conditions.
Those are my reasons for building.

Some bikes are unique and only offered as a complete. For those you can still negotiate with a good shop manager to swap parts off to reduce the price and get what you want. Starting with a frame and negotiating a good price for it is going to be cheaper. But by cheaper I mean for top endish components. 2-3k for a carbon hardtail and another 1k for a fs.

 

[keen]

I purchased complete bikes, until one day, I realized I was beginning to replace half the components. If you are happy w/ a complete bike's component spec. you can save $$. Now if you look and a complete bike and say I want different tires, cockpit, drivetrain etc. it time to go custom build. A number of years ago my buddy decided he wanted to do his first build. He made the majority of the component purchases online & Ebay. He ended up @ the LBS a few times (small parts) and my house for brake bleeding, headset installation, steer tube cut. He definitely hit a number of bumps in the build but overall he felt accomplished but he did end up spending more than he thought he would.

 

[HEMIjer]

If you have any kind of mechanical skill building up a bicycle is not hard. As mentioned you do need to understand the standards and what your specific frame needs. For frame as long as you go with a major manufacturer that data is usually available, if not can always contact them. You should have the right tools or be willing to go to a Bike Shop to do some work though.

To better understand your situation might describe:

Your riding Experience?

Your bike mechanic experience?

What your riding now?

What frame are you considering?

What is the bikes intended use?

 

[Rogueldr]

Started with just a frame and built it to MY standards and put the parts I wanted on it. I love it even more because of it. It now has a Thomson post since I took that pic.

 

[Nubster]

I've build several bikes and while usually more expensive, it can be cheaper if you take your time and shop smart. Especially if you buy used, take off parts, or take advantage of buying overseas.

Thing is...even if it is more money, you get what you want 100% and there's no cheap suspect parts (unless you put them there) in the build to help cut costs. I did buy a complete bike last summer but it was such a deal I couldn't pass up and no way I could build for what I paid complete. But vast majority of the time, I build and will continue to do so.

I also find there's a sense of pride riding a bike that you specced out and built.

 

[Jovian]

I am capable of building my own but typically find buying complete to be more cost effective. Eventually through maintenance I do take it all apart and replace things.

Wheel building is the only thing that I have not attempted yet, sometime I will though.

 

[06HokieMTB]

I'm a component snob and like to spec everything, down to hubs/rims/spokes/nipples

 

[Impetus]

I've never bought a complete bike. I always buy the frame and add components to it.

I don't even always buy complete wheels, but I haven't tried to build a wheel myself.
I have in the past bought a rim and hub and told the builder I wanted a certain color nipple and he could choose the spokes based on what I needed the wheel to withstand.
I'm fairly particular about stuff and am never happy with a 'stock package'

 

[JoePAz]

I also curious about is that would be cheaper?

I built my current bike by buying a frame and then all than all the parts. Was it cheaper? For me yes for two reasons. 1) I bought the parts I wanted not the one the big mfg put on so I could build it just right at not buy parts that I did not like. No paying for XTR rear derailuer just to get the XT front one.

2) Bought as many parts as I could on sale or special.

The downside is that it took time to acquire the parts and time to build. Plus you need time to select which parts and which ones are really compatible. If you want a bike spec "Just so" and don't mind putting in hours to determine you desired spec and seek the best price then building a bike is very nice. If you just want to ride then buying complete is much easier and can be cheaper.

 

[HitmenOnlyInc]

I've built lots of bikes "frame up" and I can say it is a most satisfying experience. No, generally not less expensive than buying a fully built bike.

The beauty is that you can customize every part and have a truly unique ride. The downside is that if you are on a budget, this can take time and if you have patience it's worth it!

 

[Procter]

I've built about half my bikes from frame up, each at about 40-50 pct off retail when I added it up. You can get huge deals when you do this, if you are patient and check prices fanatically across many sites. It's hard to find that kind of deal in a full bike, but not impossible.

Buy frames at end of season in oct/Nov sales. They tend to sell out after that.

Buy components Jan through March, before tax returns come in April. Components don't tend to sell out, and you can get new old stock and open box stuff for suuuuuper cheap if you don't care about the latest top end tech.

 

[HitmenOnlyInc]

^What he said!

 

[06HokieMTB]

I've built about half my bikes from frame up, each at about 40-50 pct off retail when I added it up. You can get huge deals when you do this, if you are patient and check prices fanatically across many sites. It's hard to find that kind of deal in a full bike, but not impossible.

Buy frames at end of season in oct/Nov sales. They tend to sell out after that.

Buy components Jan through March, before tax returns come in April. Components don't tend to sell out, and you can get new old stock and open box stuff for suuuuuper cheap if you don't care about the latest top end tech.

Yep. I've built a couple bikes this way.

 

[Hawgzilla]

I not buy whole bicycle no more. I buy only pieces and build all up to complete bicycle. Is fun.

 

[Fleas]

I've built about half my bikes from frame up, each at about 40-50 pct off retail when I added it up. You can get huge deals when you do this, if you are patient and check prices fanatically across many sites. It's hard to find that kind of deal in a full bike, but not impossible.

Buy frames at end of season in oct/Nov sales. They tend to sell out after that.

Buy components Jan through March, before tax returns come in April. Components don't tend to sell out, and you can get new old stock and open box stuff for suuuuuper cheap if you don't care about the latest top end tech.

^^^True!

Also, I will quietly argue that you can often build a bike cheaper than retail for a different reason: Most complete bikes are not exactly how you want them, so you will spend more above the original purchase price to customize them to your liking. This often makes the complete store-bought bike more expensive than even the hastily-purchased pile of custom stuff for which you were too impatient to shop for any deals.

The hard part, though, is making sure you have all the compatible bearings, hubs, brake mounts, suspension parts, etc. for the frame. It's very rewarding to me to build a bike - even for someone else.

-F

 

[natrat]

I built bike by self and it was awesome. A slippery slope as far as budget went though. I intended to use a new light weight carbon frame and then various components off a 5 year old stumpy. When i got it put together as such it was good, then i noticed that that beautiful race face crankset would be 500 grams lighter than the ancient hollowtech and while the aluminum thompson bar was nice enough that ritchey carbon was really nice. And on and on until the thing was basically all new. It is perfect though.