Self-build

Hey, thanks for reading. Despite never having built a bike from scratch I wanted to give it a go - hopefully this post will encourage others to have a crack at it.

I got into biking pretty recently, and after a quick succession of XC bikes I wanted a low cost DH rig to give gravity riding a go, and I wanted to build it myself. I'd stripped down, serviced and reassembled everything on my Camber:



enough times to know that I had the most of the skills and tools I needed, so I started shopping around on Pinkbike for used frames. I'd lusted after the Demo 8 in it's heyday, so I picked up this frame which had been sat in a garage since the rider decided he wanted the next size up. Apart from some alpine gravel rash around the swingarms and cable rub marks it was in mint condition.


Life got in the way for about six months but in the 2015/2016 off-season the UK was being lashed by storms, so I went online and started shopping. Decent second-hand forks weren't that much cheaper than new ones, and it looked like Marzocchi were going to be shut down after Fox bought all the IP. CRC slashed their prices and as I intended to do my own servicing I didn't care much about after-sales and took the risk on some new 2014 C2R2 Titanium sprung forks for less than half the RRP/cost of the Rockshox/Fox equivalents.


The colour-match to the frame was a coincidence, but triggered my OCD to drift away from my budget to build something special. Here's the full spec:

Frame: Specialized A1 Premium Aluminium Demo 8 2012
Shock: Fox DHX RC4 shock 450 (Supplied with frame)
Fork: Marzocchi 380 C2R2 Titanium / 2014
Chain Device Blackspire DER Guide, Red, 32-26T
Rear Derailleur: SRAM X01 DH Type 2.1 10 speed short cage
Number of Gears: 10
Shifters: SRAM X0 10sp Trigger Rear Shifter
Crankset: SRAM X01 Crankset
Chainring: SRAM Narrow Wide Single Chainring, Black, 94mm, 32T
Bottom Bracket: Shimano SM-BB91-42
Cassette: SRAM PG1070 10 Speed Road Cassette 11-26T
Chain: SRAM PC1091 10 Speed Hollow Pin Chain
Pedals: DMR Vault V10 (already had these)
Front Brake: SRAM Guide RS Disc Brake, Hope floating rotor, Red
Rear Brake: SRAM Guide RS Disc Brake, Hope floating rotor, Red
Handlebars: Race Face SixC Carbon Riser Bar, Red
Stem: Race Face Atlas Direct Mount Stem, Red
Headset: Hope Step-down
Grips: Race Face Good n Evil Grips, Red
Wheelset: Hope Pro4, Red Hubs
Front Tyre: Schwalbe Dirty Dan Super Gravity TL Easy Folding MTB Tyre Black 26 x 2.35
Rear Tyre: Schwalbe Dirty Dan Super Gravity TL Easy Folding MTB Tyre Black 26 x 2.35
Saddle: Race Face Aefact, Red
Seatpost: FSA gravity seat post (supplied with frame)
Seat Binder: QR

CRC let me down a little with their order, even if their prices in the January sale were crazy low:
Although I ordered the red/black XO1 DH crankset, they sent the plain black - I couldn't be bothered to wait for a swap though.
The front brake came boxed with all the right bits, but the rear brake was loose in a bubble-wrap bag and didn't have a spare olive or hose end-pokey-thing (technical term). Either this was a returned item or they were pulling their old 'sell OEM components' trick. Again I couldn't be bothered to call them out on it, but it meant I couldn't shorten the front brake hose straight away.

As the build progressed I made a couple of trips to my LBS: Brink Cycleworks - the guys there were super helpful in helping me find the right headset, Bottom Bracket and chainring. I also got the Hope Tech DH Pro4 wheelset from them which they set up for tubeless for free, when I joked about red rims Ste told me about invisiframe - again my OCD kicked in and I started ordering decals! I could have mined them for information then bought the parts cheaper online - but that's such bad trail karma. My LBS didn't sell me the whole bike, but they'll still welcome her through the door like they built her themselves which is worth a lot more than online headset discounts (and yes, 'it's' a 'she' now).

Unfortunately they didn't have a SRAM direct mount 32T in stock, I wanted to drop the XO1 spider to clean up the drive train but that would have to wait until after I trash the 94mm spider mount chainring they did have. I didn't want to wait another minute to get her finished.

Lifting the bike off the stand for the first time was a shock, the weight blew me away. I knew DH rigs weren't light but jeez she's a heifer! the spec doesn't leave much room for a diet other than a carbon seatpost. A carbon wheelset would be too much of a risk on my first DH rig as ropey landings and crashes are highly likely until I get used to the new style of riding.


At this point I was desperate to get that first ride in and start dialling in the suspension, so went to Chicksands Bike Park to try her out, and to Aston Hill the next day, despite the snow and wet ground. Normally I wouldn't ride Aston in the wet, but a couple of runs wouldn't hurt.


As expected with an incomplete build I wasn't entirely happy, but a couple of short rides gave me some ideas to get her just right:

- The crap winter we were having made me think the Dirty Dan Tyres would be a good idea, but they were slow rolling and super heavy. I ordered some Magic Marys instead.
- I'd hoped that with an 11-26 10-speed cassette that the 32T chainring would be right, but the gearing ratios felt a little high. As I wasn't really hitting full speed I'll stick with the 32T for now, but might swap it out for a 34 or 36 later (and go direct mount to lose the weight of the spider if I do swap).
- The suspension felt wrong, way wrong. I was just guessing with adjustments and went from soft and bouncy to hard and rattling with nothing in between. With a choice of SIX adjustment points on the fork and shock each, I was way out of my depth. Servicing the shock at home would mean buying a very expensive bleed pump so I booked a service and tune-up with Mat from Plush suspension who help me get the settings just right - this transformed the bike and I can highly recommend a proper tune-up for any rider, not just the pros. I easily dialled the suspension on my Camber myself, but this bike is in a different league of complexity.
- The black crankset stickers were annoying me, I ordered a set of red protective decals from Slik graphics which should work with the crank boots to keep the carbon crankset safe.
- The black rims were annoying me (thanks ste..), invisiframe didn't have the template for the tech DH rims yet as they are so new to market, so I'll have to wait for the Red decals.
- The brake hoses were both still a little long, I ordered olives, inserts and compression fittings and will shorten the hoses when the next bleed is due.
- The white print on the Brink fender - those guys were so helpful I'm gonna fly the flag a little longer, but will pick up a red or plain black fender if I see one.
- The weight was way more than what I was used to riding, it was like I was a beginner again. I'll get stronger over time, but might fit a carbon seat post and swap out the steel spring on the Fox Shock for a titanium one once my wallet recovers from the build. I'm not a weight weenie but this rig could do with a diet.
- The race-face GoodnEvil grips were a bit fat for my paws, I ordered them out of nostalgia as I had the same ones on a hardtail that got stolen. I'll swap them out for some snipers once they wear out.
- The zip-ties holding the cables to the shock look messy, I'm going to try some 3M adhesive frame clips and see if they stay on.

I'll post a 'finished' photo when I've done the finishing touches listed above.

I fear she may never be truly finished, but I'm pretty happy with how she has turned out so far.

What I really like about this build
- I specified and built it myself - Me! Getting compatible parts involved a lot research, a bit of trial and error and some help from my LBS. I definitely could have bought a built bike for less money, but it wouldn't have been so high spec - I was able to choose where to invest in quality components where I cared about it.
- I know every part of the bike, maintenance and servicing at home 'should' be simple. We'll see ;-). the shock will go back to Plush for servicing as I don't need the tooling for anything else and Mat will do a way better job than me anyway.
- I could have gone for the 7-speed DH drivetrain, but the extra 3 gears gives a bit of flexibility - even the steeper UK trails involve a lot of peddling.
- The Hope wheelset is so stiff it's insane, and with the matching hubs and rotors looks pretty sick too. The sound from that rear hub is just ear porn. If only Hope offered a choice in rim decal colour they'd be perfect.
- The RaceFace cockpit looks awesome on that frame - the Aefact saddle is almost a perfect match for colour and pattern. The bars may turn out to be too flat once I start hitting really steep stuff, but that's an easy fix.
- The Fork also takes a 650b wheel, so I'm just a frame and wheelset away from a big 'big bike' at a later date.
- I love that the Hope stuff is designed and made in the UK, and that I was able to support my LBS.

HUGE thanks to:
Brink Cycleworks & Plush suspension - Check them out if you're riding Chicksands Bike Park (Brink) or Aston Hill (Plush)