My $1417.49 budget build!

[Bender]

I have been mountain biking for over 15 years. That includes a few XC races, 100+ mile rides with slick tires and countless miles on the local single track. My MTB is a sub 19 pound Turner Nitrous so you can imagine the funny looks on a century ride. Its a kin to showing up with a hummer for the Indy 500. It was about time to give in and build a road bike. I wanted to budget $1000 but after a few tweaks the total was $1296.13 and $121.36 for shipping & tax for a grand total of $1417.49.

Some components are new and some used. The biggest score was $30 for a pair of Sram Rival double tap shifters from Craigs list. The shifters were crashed and had no hoods. I took a file to the levers and was able to smooth out the scrapes. After some fine sand paper and aluminum polish they look awesome! For hoods I used 2" heat shrink like I have seen here on the forums. The Prologo c.150 saddle was also a great deal. It was only $26 but scuffed up and well used. Some calf skin and contact adhesive were all that was needed to reupholster it! The KCNC CB1 brakes killed the budget but got it closer to the sub 14 pound barrier. None of the inexpensive brakes are much under 300g. Ride impressions: the bike feels like a rocket ship! Handling is quick but not twitchy. Comfort is fine but I haven't done any very long rides on it. Being an MTBer I have little to compare with.


Critique the build

Bottom Bracket: Crank Brothers Cyan Titanium without center tube 142 $50.00
Rear Brakes: KCNC CB1 & SwissStop Green Pads 167g $87.50
Front Brakes: KCNC CB1 & SwissStop Green Pads 0g $87.50
Cables: Yokozuna Reaction housing & cables 166g $44.21
Cassette: Dura Ace CS-7800 12:27 195g $81.00
Chain: KMC X10 256g $0.00
Crankset: FSA K-Force ISIS 53:39 172.5mm Alloy Bolts 525g $51.25
--Crank Bolts: FSA Aluminum 21g $3.95
Derlr (Front) Sram Rival 102g $23.00
Derlr (Rear) Sram Rival 189g $10.00
Fork: Hong Fu FM015 367g $0.00
Frame: Hong Fu FM015 55cm 3k 1124g $277.00
Grips: Scattante Cork tape 54g $6.39
Handlebar: Syntace Racelite 2 42 cm 202g $62.02
Headset: Hong-Fu Integrated 73g $0.00
Headset Cap/Bolt: 0g
Pedals: Bebop Stainless 195 $34.99
Quick Releases: eBay TI QR no springs 47g $19.99
Seat Binder: KCNC SC11 34.9mm 11g $17.95
Seat: Prologo c.one50 reupholstered calfskin 170g $26.00
Seatpost: Hylix Carbon 31.6 cut to 330mm alloy brake nut + steel bolt 149g $60.00
Shifters: Sram Rival with 2" Heat Shrink Hoods 310g $30.00
Stem: Ritchey WCS 4 Axis 120mm 123g $24.95
Tire (Front) Michelin Race Pro 3 Light 23mm 181g $32.97
Tire (Rear): Michelin Race Pro 3 Light 23mm 182g $32.97
Tubes: Michelin Latex 161g $23.78
Wheelset (Front): Complete with veloplugs 547g
Wheelset (Rear): Complete with veloplugs 718g
Wheelset: 0
--Rims: Kinlin XR-200 20h 376g & 24h 381g 0g $70.00
--Spokes: DT Revolution $34.76
--Nipples: Alloy $3.95
--Front Hub: BikeHubStore 66g 20 hole $35.00
--Rear Hub: BikeHubStore 211g 24 hole 16:8 $65.00
Misc Option: BB Cable guide & Inline cable adjusters 12g $0.00

Weight: 14.09 lbs or 6389g

[bicicleta]

You're a CHEAP, LUCKY bastid

That's a very nice looking bike regardless of the great deals you
scored online, well done.

[wojchiech]

total weight? i'm too lazy to add it all up

also, is the price for that hong-fu frame correct? was that for the frame and fork? how long did it take to ship to where you are? that's a good price, I am also on a tight budget and am considering getting one of those x-fu frames.

[Bender]

total weight? i'm too lazy to add it all up

also, is the price for that hong-fu frame correct? was that for the frame and fork? how long did it take to ship to where you are? that's a good price, I am also on a tight budget and am considering getting one of those x-fu frames.

I have added the total weight in the original post. It came out to 14.09 pounds or 6389g! I got the Hong-Fu FM015 used so no waiting from overseas. The guy I bought the frame from was waiting on a boutique brand frame to be warrantied, this was only used a few months. The frame price includes fork & headset! The $0 KMC chain was from a friend. It was taken off a new bike that had a drive terrain upgrade. The only part not on the bike & not listed is the headset top cap. I'm working on customizing the cap so a tiny pump & patch kit fits down the forks steer tube!

[Irish]

Love it, great work Bender.

[kavitator]

excellent! Will you put some deep wheels on it?

[victorduraace]

Great to hear about such low- priced WW. Superb bargains on RD, Frame etc.
Did you get a chain for free? You can always drill your cassette to shave weight.
Wheels seem to be very limp, can you comment??
Great build, love it

[elviento]

Hard to imagine the frame is only $277. Not sure how this works...

[Breomonkey]

Nice build, I've got the ISP model in a 57 and am really happy with it. It was a great jump up from the old school Klein I had. I had about $1600 into mine and it was right there at 14.5 pounds give or take. I thought about casting it off now that I've bought a new BMC but it's to good to part with. Unfortunately it has been pointed out to me that 6 bikes might be a bit overkill....

[Bender]

Hard to imagine the frame is only $277. Not sure how this works...

eBay is how this works http://www.ebay.com/itm/carbon-3k-Road-bike-frame-54-7-cm-top-tube-/320714606034

[djconnel]

Very nice! Could have done a bit better on crankset, but I'm gram-picking.

Very impressed by handlebar/stem combo!!!!!

[Bender]

Very nice! Could have done a bit better on crankset, but I'm gram-picking.

Very impressed by handlebar/stem combo!!!!!

The stem was from Cambriabike.com brand new. They had it listed as cosmetic blemish. The Ritchey logo is a bit smudged. I sniped the Syntace bar on eBay. The Racelight 2 is slightly heavier than the original but I hear less flexible. I really don't think I could have done better on the crankset even for a lot more $. The crank, BB & all fixing bolts weigh only 688g with 53:39 rings. My MTB Hollowgram SL setup is 610g and that has smaller 44:29 rings. I could have saved a few g more on the tires and tubes. Instead I went latex tubes and Michelin Race Pro 3 lite tires for the low rolling resistance. Using standard wheel parts and alloy rims the 1265g BikeHubStore wheels are extremely light. The deeper dish Kinlin rims aren't much deeper and the weight goes up significantly. I went 16:8 spokes on the rear. The DS & NDS tensioned up nicely but I would hate to think what happens if you brake an NDS spoke. If your heavier the XR-270 rim would be a better choice. If a few more logos are removed no one will know what this bike is!

[djconnel]

Yes -- improving much on the crankset would have required more money short of dumpster diving for warranty returns in the Stronglight customer service center and gluing them back together. I failed to initially appreciated just how cheap your solution was.

[wolfesquire]

You are making alot of people upset that you put such a nice bike together for so cheap hahaha. Im so jealous!

[djconnel]

Definite WW BOTY candidate. Everything's nearly perfect. Even the heat-shrink brake hoods. And I love the wheels: I have a similar front wheel and I love it. I wouldn't change it for any branded wheel.