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Right, I usually build my own bikes - but I find myself slightly time limited at the moment.
I have all the bits in a box waiting to go.
How much do you recon an LBS would carge to build it up?
Nothing unusual - 1x11 XT, SLX brakes, dropper etc.
I've messaged a couple just waiting to hear back from them.
My LBS charges £120 for this service if internally routed cables.
This seems pretty reasonable to me.
Not had to use it, but looked it up for a friend.
Evans charge same as they do for a Gold Service - £110
Anything less than £100 they're not doing it right.
Wow... .really ? I wonder how much call for that there is.... That's quite a lot of money !
Wow… .really ? I wonder how much call for that there is…. That’s quite a lot of money !
I reckon it's cheaper than buying a full bike and having to swap out all the stuff you want to change yourself.
It's definitely cheaper than the 3-4 hours of my time it would take me to do it...
Depends where they start from.
£120 - say - is 4 hours - which don't think is too far off the pace - steerer to cut, BB to install, ditto headset, cables to trim / bleed and route (dropper).
I guess yeah... i just see that as a bit of fun myself in many ways rather than something i'd pay that sort of money for.
That’s quite a lot of money !
Is it?
You've got to cover a tech's hourly rate or what 2-3 hrs?, plus all the overheads of renting, powering and equipping a shop, and apparently as a "business" LBSs are meaning to make a profit... It all soon adds up.
Wow… .really ? I wonder how much call for that there is…. That’s quite a lot of money !
Really? For a professional mechanic to build a bike? What do you do for a living?
£120 – say – is 4 hours
Really? Maybe 10 years ago.
I would guess it depends if you're dropping off a load of mail order parts, or buying everything through them.
If the latter it might be worth their while to do it for free or charge a minimal sum. If the former, £120 is incredibly cheap.
@simon -- not sure what my LBS latter rate was, but wasn't much above £30/hour.
It was the hassle of getting there that was the off-putting bit; good work done once you'd lugged bike (usually with catastrophic blunder) to the next town..
I'd be astonished if it as less than £120 at most shops unless you've bought everything from them, in which case it may well be FOC.
LBS has come back with £100 - sounds reasonable.
As I said before usually I'd do it myself but want to get it done fairly soon and just don't have the time at the moment.
I'd expect £100 - £150 depending on how much they want to do it.
Not unreasonable IMO.
4hrs to build bike? Slackers! 🙂
As I said before usually I’d do it myself but want to get it done fairly soon and just don’t have the time at the moment.
Both the LBS’ I use have a 3+ week wait on servicing at the minute, I’d be asking when they could do it first. Most are mega busy this time of year, as everyone is starting to bring bikes out of hibernation, after the good weather last week.
LBS have said they can fit it in next week for me.
Ive built many bikes over the years and as others have said, doing it right is a 3-4 hour job (4hrs if you're doing it really properly).
I was trained by mechanics who have worked on the World Tour, Pro teams, etc...
If an LBS (or anyone) is charging less than £100-£120 to build your bike they are likely:
a) taking shortcuts (meaning you wouldn't want to ride it)
or...
b) don't know what they're doing (meaning you wouldn't want to ride it)
£200 plus for well known mtb shop outside Manchester.