Intro and Do up or buy new?

[richie244]

Hi Im a newbe to the forum and in some ways to cycling. Although I commuted for years on bikes in various guises Only recently am I looking to cycle for fitness/fun.

I currently have a Scott AFD road bike 2006, which on my last outing going down a steep hill was a bit scary, it will benefit from an extensive service with quite a few new parts I am guessing.

The Question is, is it worth it. Generally I look to buy mid range kit, never a pro but a firm believer in buy cheep buy twice so if I was to Do up my current bike I believe for a Group set not much change out of £300 and possibly new wheels required. I have the hand skills etc to do the work myself.

Im not bad at "making do and mending" but at what point do you stop? I have a habit (and I am sure I am not alone) of when doing something up going to the extreme that it would be more economical to buy new.

I guess the main question is, is this frame worth bothering with, with at least 10 years under its belt some harder than others (I bought it second hand from a team racer).

 

[Doobiesis]

No, it's not worth doing up an old ten year old frame. It'd be like putting fancy tyres on an old type car to make it have the power and performance of the newer model.

If you take into account all the time you're going to spend on it and the top components. It'd be cheaper in the long run to get a new bike.

Frames have moved on considerably in the last ten years, frames are lighter, and more aerodynamic.

 

[raleighnut]

No, it's not worth doing up an old ten year old frame. It'd be like putting fancy tyres on an old type car to make it have the power and performance of the newer model.

If you take into account all the time you're going to spend on it and the top components. It'd be cheaper in the long run to get a new bike.

Frames have moved on considerably in the last ten years, frames are lighter, and more aerodynamic.

Ahem, some of us do up 30-40yr old frames but admittedly steel ones.

 

[KneesUp]

No, it's not worth doing up an old ten year old frame. It'd be like putting fancy tyres on an old type car to make it have the power and performance of the newer model.

If you take into account all the time you're going to spend on it and the top components. It'd be cheaper in the long run to get a new bike.

Frames have moved on considerably in the last ten years, frames are lighter, and more aerodynamic.

Great if they have and you want a frame that is lighter and more aerodynamic.

 

[biggs682]

No, it's not worth doing up an old ten year old frame. It'd be like putting fancy tyres on an old type car to make it have the power and performance of the newer model.

If you take into account all the time you're going to spend on it and the top components. It'd be cheaper in the long run to get a new bike.

Frames have moved on considerably in the last ten years, frames are lighter, and more aerodynamic.

PARDON ME , are you being serious

 

[mjr]

PARDON ME , are you being serious

Oh yeah, the UCI minimum weight limit has dropped massively in the last ten years... oh hang on

I'd do up, but then my thirty three year old bike is currently keeping my twenty five year old one company in the shed.

 

[richie244]

Thanks for the replies.

I guess the Bloke/Engineer in me looks forward to this as a project but the realist says its probably cheeper to buy a new or a better second hand bike.

I'm not a dedicated follower of fashion nor do I intend to compete so a £1000 bike is not going to happen, Equally I don't want to spend £500 on this bike to find that I could have achieved a better bike for £600. Ultimately I think it will just be the Frame and folk/handle bar assembly that are kept.

 

[adamangler]

to me its important that you like the frame, if you do then upgrade if not buy a new bike or build one.

Another option is to build a bike from scratch using second hand but barely used items from ebay etc. I build an alloy bike a few years ago that came in at 7.4kg for £800. most of the stuff i bough was almost like new. Im currently thinking about doing that at the minute or buy a new bike. If i can find a nice frame soon ill build one if not ill buy another as money is burning a hole atm

 

[raleighnut]

to me its important that you like the frame, if you do then upgrade if not buy a new bike or build one.

Another option is to build a bike from scratch using second hand but barely used items from ebay etc. I build an alloy bike a few years ago that came in at 7.4kg for £800. most of the stuff i bough was almost like new. Im currently thinking about doing that at the minute or buy a new bike. If i can find a nice frame soon ill build one if not ill buy another as money is burning a hole atm

Do it, but get a nice steel frame this time.

 

[screenman]

There are plenty of very nice used bikes about in the £500 range, I prefer non steel myself.

 

[Dogtrousers]

If you enjoy building things then the "do up" option is very rewarding. It's not necessarily a lot cheaper, when you add up the cost of parts and tools (don't forget that!) but you get exactly what you want.

On the other hand, if you find building things a bit of a chore, but one that may save you money then it's not such a good idea.

You could do both. Buy new and take your time doing up your Scott

 

[goody]

If you like the frame and it fits you then you could stick on a Ten speed Tiagra 4700 groupset and a pair of cheapish shimano wheels for not much more than £300. Add a bit for decent tyres bar tape and it'll be like riding a new bike.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Chances are you don't need an entire groupset. Maybe just chainwheels, chain, cassette, jockey wheels plus cables and brake blocks. (plus maybe some tools - crank extractor, cassette thingy, chain whip, cable cutters). Then consider replacing the wheels as phase two.

But the lure if the shiny and new can be very strong. Sometimes it's just not worth fighting it.

 

[RegG]

I believe you can get a lot of satisfaction from building/refurbishing something, and the same goes for a bike. About 12 years ago I rebuilt a classic MG Midget and gained one hell of a lot of satisfaction from doing it, especially when it sailed through its MOT and I was able to take it out on the road for the first time.

As other contributors have said, you could end up spending as much as a new/good secondhand bike would cost, but you would have the pleasure of building it yourself and if that is what you fancy doing, then do it!

 

[GuyBoden]

The good thing about building a bike yourself is that you can learn a lot about each component's function and how it works, that's very useful knowledge when maintaining your own bike..........