First 'build' - PreCursa

Hi,

thought i'd take the leap and build my next bike instead of an OTP one.
got some bit lying around that i can use (spare wheelsets, pedals, stems).
In the process of getting a frameset for 140 (inc. seatpost/saddle/stem/Drops)..

What i have:
Stem: Deda / 3T 100mm
Wheelset: B43 Wheelset

Soon i should have the following:
Frame: 50cm Dolan Precursa (initially wanted black..as above, but only the white is on sale on the dolan site)
Fork: Alpina fork w/ drilled
SeatPost: Stock Alpina
Crankset: Miche Primato Advance Crankset 49T 170mm
Pedals: Undecided (have some old ones lying around)

unsure on the headset or bb?? (the things i havent a clue on when building up)

I'm a bit confused...you have posted more recently a wanted ad for a Dolan.

Anyway, buy the Alpina 45-45 headset for the Dolan.

Your BB should match your cranks for good chainline. If you have Miche cranks, you should buy a Miche BB, think the size is 111mm or 113.5 for the Primato Advanced but somebody should come on and confirm...

I stand corrected. 107mm is the one you want.

had to postpone my order till payday.. still looking around at options for the frame set.
piecing everything together for the meantime

thanks for the info tho

Ok so i have pretty much everything i need:
dolan f+f
alpina seatpost
Alpina headset
Various saddles
Miche crankset and bb (attached)
B43 rear wheel
Spare bontrager front wheel
Drops and stem

As its my first build i got a quote to see how much it would cost for my LBS to fit..£30 to fit the crankset & £15 to drill the fork..

..fitting a crankset should be easy enough right? (Checked youtube) and the tool is quite cheap..

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yep. piece of cake :)

Ill give it a go...was slightly put off when the LBS guy said they would check the threads and clean everything...for a first time install how the hell am i supposed to know how good the parts are?
All used parts ..

it's worth giving the threads (on the bike) a once over, sometimes bits of metal get stuck in the threads from machining, but you can wipe them out easily.

apart from that, just make sure its all greased nicely.

cool thanks all done.

anyone have any thoughts on what pedals?

atm just installed some cheapo VP pedals with toe clips...noticed there is abit more toeoverlap on this than my old langster..

undecided on:
bmx pedals w/ straps
MKS GR9 w/ toe clips OR straps
OR CLIPLESS pedals (never used them before)
..or just play it safe with Shimano M324s (only issue is they only come in silver)

picked up some 3T Ergonova Drops..
does anyone know if these can take a cross top brake levers?

Brakes/ levers sortrd..
Any suggestions on pedals? Looking to go clipless..

From someone who is new to clipless pedals which do people find easier to use? (Preferably if youve tried both)
Bare in mind i'd only be cycling approx 15 miles a day (1/4 mile uphill), with a gear ratio of 50:15..

I was just pootling past slowly and wanted to say bigups on the ratio. thread needs more pictures, top tips for backgrounds include brick walls, graff on a cafe and corners with single street lamps.

with a gear ratio of 50:15..

Why???

i currently use shimano XT spd, if you get them in the sale they are £40 or so. but i'm sure the m520 or m540 would be totally fine and half the price.

they are double sided so really easy to clip in. they cleats are small, and the shoes tend to have lots of tread which makes walking pretty much normal. I like them for commuting for this reason, its not totally necessary to take in a change of shoes.

i would never go back to toe cages, clipless just feels so much more connected and efficient.

lol...thanx...gear ratio wasnt by choice, it's all i had. I do have a 48T sugino crankset in the shed pending installation...as for pics...here is the last photo i took a few weeks ago of it...not so much graff...but close enough. have since aquired some airwing bullhorns and a goldfinger lever..

cheers for the info...was actually looking at m540s..nice...but may have to go for the cheaper 520s and some ugly shimano shoes :(...

why ugly? theres plenty of sub £50 quid shoes that look decent.

if you can, try them on. fit is quite important, they need to be slightly too big, so your toes don't touch the end of the shoe.

what shoe size do you wear?

RT33 any good?..I tried on some Specialized ones and was told to get them 1/2 size or full size up...(ie.7 1/2 > 8 ) Shimano XC31 look nice too.....was trying to compromise as wasn't sure getting expensive shoes that i'm most likely to fall in the 1st few months would be such a good thing.

one thing about shoes is that each brand fits a certain way, I tried on a bunch and the giro fit the best in a low volume shape. I've got a road and mtb pair now, they were a bit more money but I can be in them all day and feel comfortable.

if your budget allows, get the shoes that fit you.

I've never fallen whilst using clipless, just keep the tension on the pedal really low for first week, then you can pull your foot out if you start to fall very easily.