AVERAGE BIKE PRICE??

[deeman]

I am curious as to what everyone,especially the more serious collectors who have numerous builds,would consider the average price of putting a complete old school build together these days.Ive heard veterans talking of when you 'could build a bike for 400 quid',i presume this was around 99-02 ish?I'm a relative newbie but even i've become frustrated with the price of things.I'm trying to do my rider on a budget,but even this is going to be the best part of 700 quid done if not more,and i've long got over my newbie excitement and have been taking my time looking for parts.Any info and opinions greatly appreciated i'm very curious!

[Discostu]

My last build. The 92 master came in at just over £1300.  

When you buy it in bits and have decals/powder etc it all mounts up. You don't realise until you add it all up!

My 1985 will be around  the £1500 mark as there isn't too much to do.

My team bashy master is going to be expensive as well. The bloody alloy fusion cranks are rare and expensive.

eBay and people asking silly money has put the prices up on everything.  I don't mind paying top dollar for a part that is rare. But paying silly prices for stuff that was cheap and nasty back in the day I think is wrong. Not even if it's rare.  I guess that's why my bikes ain't cheap to build.

[stidds]

It all depends on what parts you are looking at.  If you want Dia-Compe MX1000 brakes, Kashimax Aero seat, Redline Flight Cranks etc etc, you are going to pay through the nose and spend upwards of £1k.

Look at different kinds of seat, different brakes, other kinds of cranks i.e. think outside of the box a little and then you can build a more unusual (read not so boring) for a lot less.

[deeman]

I spent over 1500 on my first build,but I was impatient and kept changing my own goalposts!My RL-20 rider is hopefully going to come in at 700 if im lucky!I was just wondering if I was possibly being impatient this time round but it appears not!everyone has different opinions on how much stuff is worth and the max they would pay for an item.I was curious to see how much variation there would be.Some people seem to be stuck in periods when they were building hard and stuff was cheaper!Idont have these references and just go by whats available now and at what price!keep these coming!I think its interesting!

[southern andy]

Just slightly above the £300+ mark due to being very lucky with most of the parts off the bay and RAD members, also other members generosity. Also had a few spares in the attic which got used. Not all bikes need Flights/profiles/Kashi aeros and Hutch beartraps which thump the price up straight away.






Sadly my current build will not be this cheap as the F+F set and the flights alone have put it at £450 already.


Hunt for bargains and poorly listed stuff, also be patient with your builds.    MK was always handy for cheaper parts aswell.

[Jon The Bassist]

Not all bikes need Flights/profiles/Kashi aeros and Hutch beartraps which thump the price up straight away.

Good point, most racebikes (except euro BB bikes) had one piece cranks, DX or Suntour/Victor beartrap pedals, any cheap saddle or even one-piece Uni/Elina/Troxel seat+post for lightness.

[Julian347]

My 84 TA cost me about £1200. Tried to keep it era correct and went for a one piece sugino, 901's (shape suits a TA better IMO) and Shimano SX's which I used BITD. Paid top money for some bits and got bargains for others.

[rooski]

My build average is about 800/900 quid,thats with looking for bargains etc.

My nearly done JMC Shadow should be about £800, 99% era correct,nice spec, with most parts aquired over the last 2 years

[In2 bmx]

I don't like thinking about it 

Try finding cheap nice 70's parts .. 

[neil]

just been doing some calculations i recon my latest build will have cost a lot of money quite shocking really   

[Pooch]

just been doing some calculations i recon my latest build will have cost a lot of money quite shocking really   

Crazy isn't it Neil!!!  Only when you add it up you think fook

[Darren KAP]

  I don't think about it , prob because i've got too fookin many on the go , but that said i'm really going to calm things down this year ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, hopefully  

 
  

[kungfunky]

If you buy the first set of 401's or Kashy that you find chances are you'll pay top dollar for it, search around and ask ask ask for the parts you need. Buying rare parts usually demands a much higher asking price and takes twice as long to find but well worth the hunt IMO  

[neil]

just been doing some calculations i recon my latest build will have cost a lot of money quite shocking really   

Crazy isn't it Neil!!!  Only when you add it up you think fook

its mad John   thats why im not gonna say how much mine has cost me so far!

[steve69]

I don't know much about average bike prices...

                                                                          ....I try not to build average bikes anymore     

[mattuknc]

Mine usually develop over time, if I see something that would better I change it. 
My TA build is at around 900, my goose around 550 but then my cheap little ET rep is still under 200! 




(The value of your bikes can go down as well as up!)

[Pooch]

just been doing some calculations i recon my latest build will have cost a lot of money quite shocking really   

Crazy isn't it Neil!!!  Only when you add it up you think fook

its mad John   thats why im not gonna say how much mine has cost me so far!

Yep!! Keep that one to yourself Neil.. Bit of fun working out how much builds come to


Yep stevieboy!!! That secret vdc cost a bit!!!!

[oldschoolace]

I guess its a matter of patients to some degree. I have a soft spot for the more obscure and rarer bikes and parts and the prices can vary hugely. I don't like spending money at the best of times so have learnt to be patient.
Its all out there for he who waits and all that 

[hunterdubber]

What's  an average bike though?


Is your collection   Super Burner ,Ammaco freestyler, Mongoose expert  or JMC,VDC,Hutch


 7X's with suzues on a build  ?    £120


Or do you have 7B's with  Sonlite Turbo's or Sherriff stars  £1000


SR stem £15 or ESP flying W £350


They're all fantastic 

It's all  about the buzz and satisfaction,, soucing the bits for bikes at both ends of the scale whether it's  cost £250 or over £3K .

The main thing is if your truly happy with the end product ,,and not how much you spent    

I love all OS BMX , oh  Trickstar II's ,,ok almost all  


Wildon won't know what the fook  I'm on about , he does do both ends of the scale    

[gobshite]

couple of grand to £4k

[That Swan Guy]

First and foremost, build at YOUR budget.
If it's not exactly right, sit and wait, the correct parts DO appear at reasonable prices now and again.
You can always trade unwanted parts on here for part payment toward your desired component.
It's all about timing in my experience.
Have a look around the bay for badly advertised items, they are more common than you think
But above all else ENJOY YOURSELF DOING IT

[BENDYCAT ELEVENTEEN]

Some of these parts can be found cheaper if - you learn to polish - paint - resto in any way and then not worry to much if every thing needs to be nos mint and it's not  

Trading helps as well - your parts may be just what some one needs to finish off, but to you it is some thing that you can let go in a trade for some thing you need or can use for another trade

Some times the fun is not in how quick you can get the bike built, but finding the parts - at the right price and and place

this can bring down the price of a build

but if you look at the price's of a new school bike to buy as a complete - £300 ~ £800 and then £1000 + for custom bikes - so nothing has changed  

[stidds]

Some of these parts can be found cheaper if - you learn to polish - paint - resto in any way and then not worry to much if every thing needs to be nos mint and it's not  

Trading helps as well - your parts may be just what some one needs to finish off, but to you it is some thing that you can let go in a trade for some thing you need or can use for another trade

Some times the fun is not in how quick you can get the bike built, but finding the parts - at the right price and and place

this can bring down the price of a build

but if you look at the price's of a new school bike to buy as a complete - £300 ~ £800 and then £1000 + for custom bikes - so nothing has changed  

Such a great spot on Post Bendy, you are 100% right saying the fun is finding the parts, it really is 

[Peter J]

I think one of the reasons it takes me years to do builds is because I'm willing to wait for the right part at the right price 

I suppose like most on here I have parts that I've bought for builds or because they've come up at the right price and not used them.......yet

The only criteria I have is, I buy parts I remember from BITD that we all had or we saw in the mags/shops and dreamed we could have on our bikes 

I've bought completes’ for £5 off ebay

For me because I buy a few parts on here/Museum/ebay etc  every month for the last few years I don't think I could work out the cost 

With having a daughter/job/getting a new house the hardest thing to find is..............time 

[kungfunky]

Totally agree with that, I love the hunt for the cool vintage parts and  searching through some amazing vintage sites is always an eye opener and your guaranteed to learn something.

not all cool bikes need to cost the earth, my Stu Thomsen replica cost around £400 but looks ace (I already had some parts though). It did take me hundreds of hours researching and countless emails but it was a great journey.

My next build's also a tough one as its from an early advert that was in black n white