a summer bike..?...testing the water

[John the Canuck]

when i bought my bike, for my local country lanes, i decided on a TREX FX7.2 hybrid
it's now getting a bit 'urbanised'' with lights and panniers for the weekly shopping......and heavy
from Sainsburys with Merlot ...


so thoughts of a road bike to enjoy low-key summer days out.
i'd love a Triban 3 carbon but 54cm not available anymore and £260 is my upper budget

how big a job is a DIY build from an old frame - not a fixie [ from eBay ..?]
is it just a matter of buying wheels, brake system, chainset, stem/bars, saddle etc
and bolting it all together ----- I'm good at DIY, but i don't have a workshop/garage......

or would i be better off [ but not so much fun]... by just buying a retro
and restoring/replacing knackered components as required.....?

thanks

 

[young Ed]

when i bought my bike, for my local country lanes, i decided on a TREX FX7.2 hybrid
it's now getting a bit 'urbanised'' with lights and panniers for the weekly shopping......and heavy
from Sainsburys with Merlot ...


so thoughts of a road bike to enjoy low-key summer days out.
i'd love a Triban 3 carbon but 54cm not available anymore and £260 is my upper budget

how big a job is a DIY build from an old frame - not a fixie [ from eBay ..?]
is it just a matter of buying wheels, brake system, chainset, stem/bars, saddle etc
and bolting it all together ----- I'm good at DIY, but i don't have a workshop/garage......

or would i be better off [ but not so much fun]... by just buying a retro
and restoring/replacing knackered components as required.....?

thanks

either building from a frame or replacing components on an older bike is easy enough with the use of this form and youtube these days!
building from a frame you have to be careful to get all the right components that all fit with only the frame to measure!

if you could stretch your budget a bit i would look at building off a brand new ribble frame, one of these
http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/pp/road-track-bike/frames-frames-audax-winter/fraw
either that or get a frame off ebay, they go pretty cheap just search road bike frame or vintage frame or bike frame or what ever!
hope this helps a little!
oh one last thing it is well worth buying quality tools and spending the extra! i am currently saving to buy a un55 BB and parktool good quality tool for it

also what sort of spec you looking at if building from frame? ultegra, sora, tourney etc?
Cheers Ed

 

[the snail]

It's fun to build up a bike, and you'll learn a lot doing it, plus you'll know the bike intimately by the end. But it's not a cheap option unless you are lucky and spend a lot of time bargain hunting. There are also a lot of compatibility issues with components which could catch you out if you're not careful. The best way to buy components is usually as a complete bike - the component parts will usually sell for more individually. With your budget, I think your best option would be to look out for a 2nd hand bike in good nick, maybe a triban, carrera or similar. There are lots of budget bikes that get bought with good intentions, then don't move out of the garage, and get sold with low mileage. If you persevere, there are some real bargains to be had.

 

[John the Canuck]

..............building from a frame you have to be careful to get all the right components that all fit with only the frame to measure!...hmmm
if you could stretch your budget a bit .................no chance ATM
also what sort of spec you looking at if building ....... ...all a bit vague at present


Ed....thanks
upon reflection.. - I wont be able to match the buying power of LBS -- so I guess it will be a retro from here or the Bay

 

[young Ed]

like you posted on my profile but make sure it is the right size for you and the rear drop outs and front fork drop outs (is that the right terminology?) will fit any wheels you are looking at
also please please post a hole thread on here asking if the frame is any good before buying any frame as for example the frame you posted on my profile looks to have a fair bit of rust and may require stripping all paint off and repainting possibly powder coating and even sand blasting first which would further add to cost!

i realise that you would like an older bike and want to do some fettling but in the long run if you can find/save up the lump sum in one go you might be better off buying a triban 3 brand new for £250
http://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-3-uk-id_8274036.html
Cheers Ed

 

[John the Canuck]

[QUOTE="young Ed, post: 2979073, member: 30139"............................. you might be better off buying a triban 3 brand new for £250
....................Cheers Ed[/QUOTE]

none available in 54 or i'd be very tempted

it seems my best route is for a complete older bike - as per ''the snail''..^^^

cheers

 

[young Ed]

............................. you might be better off buying a triban 3 brand new for £250
....................Cheers Ed

none available in 54 or i'd be very tempted

it seems my best route is for a complete older bike - as per ''the snail''..^^^

cheers

£40 more? lay off the beer for a few days/weeks?
http://www.decathlon.co.uk/btwin-triban-300-road-bike-id_8239800.html
Cheers Ed

 

[young Ed]

or £20 more than your max budget?
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_888017_langId_-1_categoryId_165710
just either rebuild yourself your get LBS to rebuild as halfords has a tendency to assemble poorly but the bike it's self is great as @L14M will tell you!
Cheers Ed

 

[doog]

or £20 more than your max budget?
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_888017_langId_-1_categoryId_165710
just either rebuild yourself your get LBS to rebuild as halfords has a tendency to assemble poorly but the bike it's self is great as @L14M will tell you!
Cheers Ed

its a no brainer for the budget and can upgrade as required.

 

[L14M]

Yep my Zelos is great! Check out my thread.

I would say assemble it yourself, and generally maintain it to a high standard. Tbh some of the cheap parts e.g headset will last ages before they need looking at if you maintain them well. Y bikes been really reliable! Just replace te awful pedals strait away!
Liam

 

[John the Canuck]

thanks all

I'll read the thread and consider the Zelos
i would have to assemble myself anyhow as [with no car] it would be delivered

this sort of thing was/is my first thoughts though
eBay...
http://i.ebayimg.com/t/Vintage-Retr...00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/29MAAOxyeR9TIZry/$_12.JPG

 

[nazzurro19]

i also have the zelos i got mine for £250 by reserving online when they had a bike offer on, its a lovely light bike great for riding so far ive done about 200 miles and im still grinning ear to ear

 

[young Ed]

@John the Canuck are you set on getting a classic/vintage/older road bike or are you just continually poking that in due to price? remember most modern road bikes including the carrera zelos and the b'twin triban 3 will be lighter than most of the vintage/classic/older road bikes
but at the end of the day it is up to you and we can only recommend!

Yep my Zelos is great! Check out my thread.

I would say assemble it yourself, and generally maintain it to a high standard. Tbh some of the cheap parts e.g headset will last ages before they need looking at if you maintain them well. Y bikes been really reliable! Just replace te awful pedals strait away!
Liam

the bike been running well recently as i have noticed a lack of activity on your ticker in this good sunny weather? what's stopping the riding?
Cheers Ed

 

[John the Canuck]

@John the Canuck are you set on getting a classic/vintage/older road bike or are you just continually poking that in due to price? .................
Cheers Ed

1...on a Pension; so all expenses are carefully watched

c'est la vie

 

[srw]

none available in 54 or i'd be very tempted
cheers

None available or none available today? They're not the same thing.

If what you want is a reasonably decent bike for £250, I'd suggest posting a wanted request on this forum and not being too fussy about spec or type.