Old 05-24-20, 09:24 PM
  #31  
cpach
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Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Mt Shasta, CA, USA
Posts: 2,145

Bikes: Too many. Giant Trance X 29, Surly Midnight Special get the most time.

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This is definitely what the market will bear kind of thing, and it depends also on how thorough the assembly is.

If you do this, as a pro mechanic, PLEASE KEEP IT IN THE ORIGINAL BOX. Your preassembly does NOT help--it just means more to check. Mechanics have a routine on new builds and will be faster and more consistant if they can just keep to it, rather than checking to make sure nothing was done wrong.

I personally try to match actual build time to cost, since some bikes really do come together faster than others. Canyons, for example, really are more attaching a wheel, straightening the bars, and then checking over what is usually a good assembly. Bikesdirect is pretty similar to how a major brand ships its bikes to shops--needing rather significant assembly and adjustment, even if everything is mostly where it belongs in the box.

Something like an hour at the shop's labor rate is probably around average.
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