Spec me a Bike...

PermaBanned · 17 Sep 2009 at 22:48

...Build. Yeah, the third generation hand me down mountain bike i'm using at the minute is pretty rubbish. Was good in it's day, but i'm getting new problems every other day. So i wanted to know if i could build a bike just for getting to school and back.

Preferably small
Suspension somewhere along the line, having none plays havok with my... lets not go there.
Disk brakes if possible
Don't mind if it's a single speed

About it, apart from one thing: CHEAP. The cheaper the better. I'm looking at a few sellers on the bay, but what i want help with is this: Can you give me a complete list of parts that i would need? And what would you recommend part wise? Any brands to stay away from etc.?

Thanks in advance

PermaBanned · 18 Sep 2009 at 17:37

Cheap is as cheap as possible. Disk brakes would be preferred because i can imagine uses for them in the city, like when a car comes from nowhere. Also it makes it easier to put the wheels back on, since i'm trying to make it very low maintenance. Although if something goes wrong with them it's harder to fix, so maybe you're right. As long as they're decent pads.

I've seen saddles with suspension underneath... one of those would probably do. But i've seen some stuff on the bay with suspension that's not too much more expensive than regular gear.

Tyres i would prefer 'mountain bike' tires to racing ones, mainly because of puncturing. I can pick up some kevlar reinforced ones, which i've used for a while now and are amazing. There's a good possibility of broken glass and the like, and i've just had two punctures in three days so i'd like to take measures to prevent that sort of thing.

On the size, it depends what's cheaper. I said smaller because it would just be more manageable, but since 26" is mainstream it might be cheaper. I think 20" might be too small, so 24" would be a sweet spot.

PermaBanned · 18 Sep 2009 at 18:50

Yeah, you're probably right.

What type of tires are you talking about? Racing Tyres? I wouldn't touch those with a barge poll.

As i said before i'm looking at parts, not the whole thing.

Yes, wheel sizes.

With that sorted, lets return to my original questions. What's the complete list of parts that i would need and what parts would you recommend.

PermaBanned · 18 Sep 2009 at 19:50

Hate it if you will, i don't really have much choice.

PermaBanned · 18 Sep 2009 at 22:19

Which is one of the reasons i want to build it myself. Frame = £10 on the bay. Fork = £10. Wheels = £20. Etc = £40. Kind of what i was thinking. Would like somebody to help with the actual items etc.

PermaBanned · 19 Sep 2009 at 22:51

Not worth it really? What are you talking about? It's a weekend project... you know, for fun. Besides, that's still way too expensive.

PermaBanned · 19 Sep 2009 at 23:49

Which is why there are permanent shops... besides, there must be some pointers you can give as to what i need to keep an eye out for?