Mike Watson
Active Member
Hi. New here and thought that I would share my first ever self build with you. (A bit of self gratification I suppose but as many have discussed Ribble's frames, specifically the R872 I thought I'd share this;
A few weeks ago I set about putting together my own bike. A bike that I wanted and not one that I was steered towards by what the manufacturer considered best for me.
I wanted a bike that I had a full say in which components were used, how it looked and how it performed. Most of all I wanted a bike that I was able to set a weight limit to.
I live in Cornwall, and I’m lucky enough to be able to go to the French Alps each summer with friends for some truly spectacular riding and some truly challenging climbs, so this bike was going to be as light as my money could make it but within the UCI legal limit of 6.8kg and without spending stupid amounts of cash.
I’m not a light man, but at 13st I’m not overweight ether but my physique puts me on the border between ‘athletic’ and ‘well built’ I suppose. I’m fairly fit with a resting heart rate of 45 and a fairly decent VO2 max for my 43 years. (Yes I had that tested properly in case anyone asks.) These were all considerations when I chose the components and coupled with my riding style (a fair amount out of the saddle) I knew that a carbon cockpit wasn’t the best option as it needed to hold my weight well.
So I started with the frame. I looked at a number of options but settled with the Ribble R872 carbon frame. This has had some excellent reviews and I had no reason to question them. So with this as my starting point I set about building around it.
A few weeks ago I set about putting together my own bike. A bike that I wanted and not one that I was steered towards by what the manufacturer considered best for me.
I wanted a bike that I had a full say in which components were used, how it looked and how it performed. Most of all I wanted a bike that I was able to set a weight limit to.
I live in Cornwall, and I’m lucky enough to be able to go to the French Alps each summer with friends for some truly spectacular riding and some truly challenging climbs, so this bike was going to be as light as my money could make it but within the UCI legal limit of 6.8kg and without spending stupid amounts of cash.
I’m not a light man, but at 13st I’m not overweight ether but my physique puts me on the border between ‘athletic’ and ‘well built’ I suppose. I’m fairly fit with a resting heart rate of 45 and a fairly decent VO2 max for my 43 years. (Yes I had that tested properly in case anyone asks.) These were all considerations when I chose the components and coupled with my riding style (a fair amount out of the saddle) I knew that a carbon cockpit wasn’t the best option as it needed to hold my weight well.
So I started with the frame. I looked at a number of options but settled with the Ribble R872 carbon frame. This has had some excellent reviews and I had no reason to question them. So with this as my starting point I set about building around it.
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