where should i get my bike built up?

as much fun as a diy build would be and the satisfaction it brought, yikes! ill assume this might be a first attempt and thats not such a good idea on a frame that costs close to 2 grand with another, what, 2 grand worth of bits? aside from all the tools needed, theres the simple talent involved for such a job.

at the risk of soundin like a elitest shop geeek, which i am, please check out a good local shop. ill bet ya the $100 pro build charge theres a guy who would give a nut to do this job the best possible. its a world class rig afterall and it should look and work like one. that takes a professional pair of hands.

at least allow them to install the h/set, fork, stem and b/bkt. after that you could do the rest then take it back for a check up. ya might save close to 50% of a pro build and learn somethin in the prossess. that would be kinda cool. if ya go this route, please remember if somethin doesnt look or feel right, STOP, take it to the man for help and advice. the ass you save might be yer own.

congrats pal and have fun with it no matter what ya decide. bah humbug...... i mean, happy krismiss.

ok, diy is cool in theory. and i love 'net kids love to brag about how they don't need to take their bikes into a shop. cept'n the fact that a) i don't have space to have a tool shop in my small nyc apt. b) i don't have the money to buy all the necessary parts to assemble said tool shop c) i've never done this before and would rather not mess up a beautiful frame which i've dropped a good amount of money on. doesn't mean i don't want to learn. it's just not practical.

sorry if i sound bitter, but i asked what i hoped was a legit question, and i get a lot of flak about it. generally, people tend to be really wonderful on here - but c'mon. no one needs to prove how cool they are.
*end rant*

to those who suggested an lbs - which normally, completely would make sense - there aren't any turner dealers in manhattan! (i mean, c'mon!) it would be fairly difficult to take a frame + parts on the train to the closest turner dealer - which is about an hour outside the city.

that's why it would probably be easiest to send the stuff elsewhere. i know local shops who will do great jobs on standard tune ups - but for this, i'm not sure.

anyone deal w/ mtnhigh or go-ride?



-joshua...

cactus - no you and silverspot i think gave a pretty nice objective pov, which is appreciated. and metaldork is just giving me heck, but that's because he knows me. i'll admit, i'm a tad jumpy. i've just seen too many people on these boards scare off newbs because of the tudes. i was just overly annoyed because i thought as this is the turner section, there would perhaps be a bit more comraderie and patience.

thanks for the advice and yr offer is intriguing. i'll pm you for sure. not looking to build up immediately as it's too messy out here to ride. (and just in case the other wmba people see this. i'm sorry, i'm a wimp.) but i'd like to have it ready for spring.

-joshua...

QUOTE=cactuscorn]yikes! did we all miss the point or what? appologies mitch. larry at mt high and crispy at go ride are regulars here. ive never delt with either but i know both are well respected by many homers on mtbr, larry maybe moreso than any other. both im sure would do a outstanding job for you.

i also run a shop with one other homer and id love a shot at helpin you out. being deep into winter, im not that busy and could turn a super high quality build around for ya in record time. im also very close to most of my vendors wharehouses so any needed bits are normally 1 to 2 biz days away from my hands tops. if it makes any diff to ya i own 3 turners and ive been workin on them for over 10 years now so i suppose im qualified. ill do all the anal retentive work id do on my own bike for $100 labor plus parts. drop me a pm if this does ya well.[/QUOTE]

you don't need a turner dealer to do the build. any shop will do just as good a job and guarantee their work. the old dude at the hole in the wall place around the corner from me did a great job installing my new fork and strung my new rim this spring and i'm sure he'd do just as good a job on your bike as turner himself would do. if you're nervous about it, go to sid's on 34th st. they're a big shop with a good reputation. if you're really nervous, take pictures of everything before you take it to the shop so you have proof of anything they scratch. best thing is, their work area is right on the store floor so you can watch what they're doing. pay attention while they're working and next time you can try it yourself. many of the tools i have i bought over ten years ago. a couple hundred dollars in tools has paid back many times over the years. the only things i won't do now are forks cuz messing that up would be a really expensive mistake and i'd rather be able to blame someone else for it, and wheels cuz learning how to build a wheel properly seems like it would be really complicated.

jeez ... lighten up

you won't need to find a Turner dealer to build up a Turner frame. Any shop should have the necessary tools that you may not have, though there aren't that many speciality tools that you'll need in honest. A cassette tool, BB tool and some allen wrenches and a chain tool are all you should need. That is maybe $50 retail, tops. What else, a saw for your steerer tube, clipers for your cables ... basic tools there. Shoot, it takes more tools to disassemble a bike than it take to build one!

The cash you spend on a few tools, WHICH you should have and will need in the future anyway, is far less than what you should expect to pay for assembly by a competent shop, probably less anyway. When you add it all up and look at it as a small investment, it really is practical.

Don't assume that just because you have a shop employee do the job that they know what they're doing. I know of more than one person that had a BB cross-threaded into their frame by a careless shop kid. ("shop kid", it's just like a "'net kid" only he has all your new bike parts) Be sure the shop you choose has a good reputation.

I just re-read one of your other replies. If you just want to have the bike ready for Spring then DEFINITELY do it yourself. Maybe enlist the help of a friend that may be more mechanically savvy. You have lots of time to learn to do it right, and to buy or borrow the few tools you'll need to complete the job. It's fun to wrench on your bike!

Good luck, and post up a picture of your new bike when you get finished!

-nick...

it's not that. i just let the general 'tude get to me, which i shouldn't. but that was the point of asking - i know a lot of shops can do crap work, which i why i was hoping someone could recommend a place w/ solid workmanship skills.

i do have some tools, and i'm learning, but i'm definately not at a point where i could build the bike up myself. i do have friends who are very knowledgeable and skilled and are willing to help, but at the same time, i don't want to rely on having friends help me out everytime i need something done - i'll never learn that way, and it's not fair to them. but believe me, i definately want to learn how to repair stuff myself - and there are a few places around here that run workshops. but i figure for my first custom built bike, i'd really like to play it safe until i feel confident enough to do the work myself. i'm tech oriented - but not mechanically oriented, if that makes sense.

like i said, i shouldn't let the 'tude get to me. i've just seen too many people scared out of the forums because people here are too concerned w/ coming across as badasses. everybody was a newb once. it's a great sport and i love learning about it - and i've had a lot of help from people on here as well as some other boards. i guess i want to make sure other people in the same position also feel comfortable that they can ask a question, no matter how obvious or lame, and feel like they can get a mature, informed response.

but yeah. ill lighen up. i'm too old and been doing boards too long to let the kids get to me.
(kids, heh. i'm 27).

-joshua...

Nick. said:

jeez ... lighten up

you won't need to find a Turner dealer to build up a Turner frame. Any shop should have the necessary tools that you may not have, though there aren't that many speciality tools that you'll need in honest. A cassette tool, BB tool and some allen wrenches and a chain tool are all you should need. That is maybe $50 retail, tops. What else, a saw for your steerer tube, clipers for your cables ... basic tools there. Shoot, it takes more tools to disassemble a bike than it take to build one!

The cash you spend on a few tools, WHICH you should have and will need in the future anyway, is far less than what you should expect to pay for assembly by a competent shop, probably less anyway. When you add it all up and look at it as a small investment, it really is practical.

Don't assume that just because you have a shop employee do the job that they know what they're doing. I know of more than one person that had a BB cross-threaded into their frame by a careless shop kid. ("shop kid", it's just like a "'net kid" only he has all your new bike parts) Be sure the shop you choose has a good reputation.

I just re-read one of your other replies. If you just want to have the bike ready for Spring then DEFINITELY do it yourself. Maybe enlist the help of a friend that may be more mechanically savvy. You have lots of time to learn to do it right, and to buy or borrow the few tools you'll need to complete the job. It's fun to wrench on your bike!

Good luck, and post up a picture of your new bike when you get finished!

Click to expand...

Keep in mind that when you outsource the bike build to a place far away, you'll get it shipped partially diassembled. You hour's worth of train ride shop might be the best bet. Ship them the parts and pick up in person? Also, you should invest in Zinn's Art of Mountain Bike Maintenance. It is a bit dated as it talks about things as obselete as elastomer fork maintenance, but the basics translate into the paresent. It was what I used as a reference during my first repairs and even for my first lacing of a wheel. I've found better books for that, since, but that's well beyond the scope of what you want done right now. To be perfectly honest, the only tricky part would be installation of a headset and a fork (trimming of the steerer, punching in of a star nut) although with a little knowhow, it can be done pretty easily (cutting) and starnut problem avoided with a headlock or a similar device. At any rate, I would do it at a place which is within my radius of willingness to travel. You might also want to call up Brooklyn Machine Works guys and see if they have a recommendation for you for a shop to do the build. NYCbikes might be another lead (http://www.nycbikes.com/)

_MK