14bikeco custom bike

Or, dare I say, lovers?

To their credit the worker bees in 14 are polite.

mmmm....sweet honey.

As far as I know the new hubs have been in testing by SuperTed, so I think its safe to say at the very minimum they will be strong as fuck, and 14 don't do shit parts, I know there has been a lot of bitching in this thread, and some of it with due cause, but if you look at the quality of their standard frames, for £450 i'd rather get something from 14 than Bob Jackson/mercian....etc.

Good luck getting a Mercian for £450...

I don't get why Lee Cooper frames are any less dull? because they have a 14 Bike Company brooch bolted to the front?

not at all.... the variety in frame styles for one thing.

i'm not having a go at Bj's or mercians... otherwise i'd have half the forum getting all uppity with me.... they are just not my thing.

i just dont see what all the fuss is about..... they both make stupid mistakes, just like evryone else, and they both do pretty poor paint jobs to boot.

there are far better builders than mercian, BJ and Lee Cooper out there.... i just dont get why everyones allways banging on about them.

in my opinion, if you want a damn fine frame for life, get a Roberts and be done with it.

Or, dare I say, lovers?

A love that dare not speak it's name. Or is sufficiently vertically challenged that no one can hear us?

Roberts = £$€!!

there are far better builders than mercian, BJ and Lee Cooper out there.... i just dont get why everyones allways banging on about them.

Pretty British steel for a relatively low price, probs.

A love that dare not speak it's name. Or is sufficiently vertically challenged that no one can hear us?

our secrets out man.
fuck.

@ Spaggage

yeah i tend to agree with you on most of that. people get all precious about them because they're british i suppose. In the realms of bespoke frames they all count as inexpensive. i wasn't getting uppity by the way, you just made me wonder if i should have checked out 14; I'd ruled it out on hipster grounds.

Pretty British steel for a relatively low price, probs.

+1

Can you spec the 14 bikes without the Geekhouse-wannabe badge?

@ Spaggage

yeah i tend to agree with you on most of that. people get all precious about them because they're british i suppose. In the realms of bespoke frames they all count as inexpensive. i wasn't getting uppity by the way, you just made me wonder if i should have checked out 14; I'd ruled it out on hipster grounds.

i was in 14 yesterday, and Jacob was in the middle of assembling a beautiful road frame, with shimano tiagra groupset (should have been campy).

it was stunning. beutifully fillet brazed, and an awesome deep purple paintjob by colourtech, and chrome forks.

they can make you anything you want.

I have come to a conclusion that £700(This is due to the fact that the pound has weaken significantly) is the bare minimum you need to build a **new **bike with new components by sourcing your gear from online retailers. This bike will have the absolutely cheapest bottom of the line generic recommended components. The cheapest decent track frame I found is the BLB frame(IRO?) coming in at £199, the IRO Mark V around ~£220 which is hard to come by. Then you have your standard formula/ambrosio/system kit and some rigida rims. And this is building it yourself. And NO this would not be a very nice bike, it would be a nice basic custom cheapo bike.

It is possible to build it cheaper by using 2nd hand gear, but it needs a lot of patients and time to constantly hunt down parts on ebay and various other places. Unless its a pet project or time is cheap for you, it may not be worth the time.

Looking at the BLB OTP bikes at £675 and Condor bikes certainly looks like a bargain. Maybe I can even buy these bikes break them down and sell the parts on ebay, it would be a profitable business.

Anyways, I still haven't gotten a bike. :(

I do wonder how responsible lfgss has been over the last couple of years in helping to create a situation where this kind of ill-informed calculation exists. I also wonder if this is a London thing. currency fluctuations and import craziness notwithstanding, it seems to be accepted wisdom round here that this kind of budget is required.

it is utterly ridiculous that you think £700 is the bare minimum you need for a 'not very nice, cheapo custom' bike. i feel sorry for you mugs who are desperately chucking nearly a grand at your first fixed bike (or your second or third), I really do, I've no idea whose hype you're listening to but stop rushing headlong into it and you may save youself a few (hundred) quid. Oh and when I say "nearly a grand" I mean "700 quid" so you do the math (s).

This current "fixie scene" was built as much off the back of people experimenting with colour, components, styles and builds as it was the mystical mechanics of the transmission. The hi-end bling was and remains only one approach to riding fixed gear bikes. What you have is a hi-end bling hyped mentality without realising it. In the next few weeks you will be seeing people's builds on here who have spent between £300 and £500 and they will piss on most of what's become the dull, predictable "east end fixie" aesthetic you see boring everyone to tears round Old Street. I know, cos I've been having tea round their gaffes and checking how their builds are coming along.

I don't know why I just don't care about this seeing as it's your loss not mine, but I just feel a massive part of what got people on here into riding fixed is getting lost with all the impatient prunes slinging G's here and there to ride fixed.

and lenk, I'm not saying "you" directly at you, I'm using your post to try and address the attitude you have, which is neither unique nor new.

I don't think BLB/14 has done much to suggest that you can build a decent bike for cheap, but then why would they?

I do wonder how responsible lfgss has been over the last couple of years in helping to create a situation where this kind of ill-informed calculation exists. I also wonder if this is a London thing. currency fluctuations and import craziness notwithstanding, it seems to be accepted wisdom round here that this kind of budget is required.

it is utterly ridiculous that you think £700 is the bare minimum you need for a 'not very nice, cheapo custom' bike. i feel sorry for you mugs who are desperately chucking nearly a grand at your first fixed bike (or your second or third), I really do, I've no idea whose hype you're listening to but stop rushing headlong into it and you may save youself a few (hundred) quid. Oh and when I say "nearly a grand" I mean "700 quid" so you do the math (s).

This current "fixie scene" was built as much off the back of people experimenting with colour, components, styles and builds as it was the mystical mechanics of the transmission. The hi-end bling was and remains only one approach to riding fixed gear bikes. What you have is a hi-end bling hyped mentality without realising it. In the next few weeks you will be seeing people's builds on here who have spent between £300 and £500 and they will piss on most of what's become the dull, predictable "east end fixie" aesthetic you see boring everyone to tears round Old Street. I know, cos I've been having tea round their gaffes and checking how their builds are coming along.

I don't know why I just don't care about this seeing as it's your loss not mine, but I just feel a massive part of what got people on here into riding fixed is getting lost with all the impatient prunes slinging G's here and there to ride fixed.

and lenk, I'm not saying "you" directly at you, I'm using your post to try and address the attitude you have, which is neither unique nor new.

True Dat

I don't think BLB/14 has done much to suggest that you can build a decent bike for cheap, but then why would they?

exactly. and it's not really a comment that should appear on the Bike14 thread as it's a very general comment about people's seeming resignation to hi-end cost. However, it's where i found the comment that prompted my response.

I for one would rather have a Mercian, Bob Jackson, Woodrup, or Roberts, than have a 14 frame. I think that unless you're getting a trick/polo or perhaps lo-pro frame, choosing 14 over one of the above, is ridiculous.

In terms of 14 charging a lot for components (especially for a full build), I think that that is bollocks. When i got my Mercian I enquired about a full build, and it seemed that the discount on components was microscopic. Shops need to make money/keep their head a float. They are not going to be able to compete on price with the likes of Parker Interbational etc.

Having said that, I don't particularly like 14. I have nothing against it really, i just don't like it.
(I went in once to gead a CK headset pressed into a frame - they tried to charge £45 which i thought was horrendously expensive).

...well, my hipster side like 14................................................................................................a little bit............

Pajamas I didn't plug the figure out of thin air. I've been searching online shops trying to find best prices and taking into account shipping charges (buying from same online retailer would save on shipping but trying to balance price and shipping charges from so many online retailers to get best possible price is a headache) and the best I could come up with is around £620 and its a used frame and without compromising on totally crap components which will cost more in the long run. And the price I said is for new components. I haven't even taken into account tools cost if you were to build it yourself or mechanic cost if you let your lbs help you.

I'll be glad if you can help me spec up a steel frame bike for £300-£500 and be forever grateful. Heck, I'll even buy you a pint.

I do wonder how responsible lfgss has been over the last couple of years in helping to create a situation where this kind of ill-informed calculation exists. I also wonder if this is a London thing. currency fluctuations and import craziness notwithstanding, it seems to be accepted wisdom round here that this kind of budget is required.

it is utterly ridiculous that you think £700 is the bare minimum you need for a 'not very nice, cheapo custom' bike. i feel sorry for you mugs who are desperately chucking nearly a grand at your first fixed bike (or your second or third), I really do, I've no idea whose hype you're listening to but stop rushing headlong into it and you may save youself a few (hundred) quid. Oh and when I say "nearly a grand" I mean "700 quid" so you do the math (s).

This current "fixie scene" was built as much off the back of people experimenting with colour, components, styles and builds as it was the mystical mechanics of the transmission. The hi-end bling was and remains only one approach to riding fixed gear bikes. What you have is a hi-end bling hyped mentality without realising it. In the next few weeks you will be seeing people's builds on here who have spent between £300 and £500 and they will piss on most of what's become the dull, predictable "east end fixie" aesthetic you see boring everyone to tears round Old Street. I know, cos I've been having tea round their gaffes and checking how their builds are coming along.

I don't know why I just don't care about this seeing as it's your loss not mine, but I just feel a massive part of what got people on here into riding fixed is getting lost with all the impatient prunes slinging G's here and there to ride fixed.

and lenk, I'm not saying "you" directly at you, I'm using your post to try and address the attitude you have, which is neither unique nor new.

why dont you just get a decent bike off here for like 300 quid and ride it

why dont you just get a bike off here for like 40 quid and Hide it

Fixed....thats better.

that is probly better idea

why dont you just get a decent bike off here for like 300 quid and ride it

+infinity

new parts/frames are overrated. Old crap is plenty good enough to get you hoofing it around london with the best of them. Save the bling bike for sunday best and get something NOW that you can just use to get going. This has been said echoed through the forum as long as i've been on here and i got the message pretty quick.
I intend to bring my next build in ever cheaper than the last.

That said i'd happily throw some g's at 14 if i could. But it prob wouldn't be as much fun as my first and now 2nd homebuilt bike with more on the way. Cheap is fun and easy, worry about hundreds of quid here and there is not worth the hassle for a bike imo.

I really hope you get exactly what you want out of your bike whichever way you go and that it looks/rides how you want. Just dont feel you have to spend a certain amount of money to get a good bike.

why dont you just get a decent bike off here for like 300 quid and ride it

I think you are missing the point dorr, we have already established that it is much better to just get a cheap OTP or 2nd bike to get going many post ago. What pajamas is implying is that it is possible to build up a nice bike for £300-£500. I have to disagree with him because I'm finding it difficult to build a decent bike with that budget. I keep seeing post on this forum saying that "with £500 you can build a sweet bike, very nice bike..etc." which I find difficult to archive and misleading. And we have also established with edmundro that you can build a cheap bike and be happy with it. Maybe you will be happier riding a £700 bike, but that is relative. To me a very sweet bike would be the cinelli build I saw at tour de ville going for almost £3-4k.

it's entirely possible and quick to build a decent bike within that budget if you don't always buy new stuff.