pepsiblue

Just to make it clear, I am a noob at bicycle mechanics. That is about to change! I am mechanically inclined, be it cars, lawnmowers, whatever. I have lots of tools...bike specific, not so much. That too shall change.

I have a 2012 Trek 7.5, and love it. So much so that I decided i needed one with a carbon frame! After a little sticker shock and searching, I stumbled upon what I think is a great compromise. I found a 2006 Trek Pilot 5.2 carbon frame and fork. It is in great shape as far as I can tell. I like the looks, and its not gonna break the bank. I can buy a piece here and there, as the budget allows and end up with exactly what i want!

Now the tricky part. How do I find out what fits what?? Is there a magical cross reference that lists sizes and specs? The simple things like wheels, bars, seat posts I got. But cranks, shifters, BB, etc..... Where do I look? My lbs could probably help, but I'd rather do it on my own as I probably will try and buy some stuff used or online. Any help or suggestion are appreciated!

Thanks!

cny-bikeman

I'm mechanically inclined and want a nicer car, but can't afford it, so I'm going to just buy an engine for now.

10 Wheels

https://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycli...rek-pilot.html

2006 Trek Pilot 5.2 - BikePedia

AnkleWork

No substitute for taking some measurements.

pepsiblue

I'm hoping all 4,470 of your posts were not as worthless as this one.

pepsiblue

Thank! I had checked this out as well. For example, I see it originally had the Ultegra groupset. Are there certain models of Ultegra, or would any set fit? If I wanted to go 105, are all the 105 sets gonna work?

I appreciate your input, and dont mean to be a time waster!

Thanks again!

Al1943

My first concern with that Pilot bike is the condition of the rear wheel. Does it run straight? Is the spoke tension good and even on each side? Is there any sign of cracks in the rim near the spoke holes? The big gaps between paired spokes make maintenance difficult and if the wheel(s) have not been maintained the rim could be bent or damaged beyond repair. As you can tell, those are not my favorite wheels. My wife's Trek has the same wheels and they were FUBAR when brand new out of the box.

AnkleWork

To be fair, there's something of a logical disconnect in your approach.
You are constrained by budget, but bought in before checking what else you need.

pepsiblue

There are no wheels, just the frame and fork. Thanks!

alcjphil

Building a bike from scratch when you don't have anything but the frame is usually the most expensive way to go. You are wrong to think that bars, stems, and wheels are the simplest part of building a bike. Wheels, especially the rear wheel have to fit the dropout spacing of your frame and you have to make sure that they are compatible with the type of cassette you will need to go with your drivetrain. Derailleurs and shifters have to be designed to work together and you have to buy chain and cassette that are compatible with shifters and derailleurs. You have to make sure that the brake calipers you buy match the pull ratio of your brake levers. Some of this can get complicated, especially if you are buying stuff piecemeal. Handlebars have to match stem clamp diameter and stem has to match steer tube diameter. Manufacturers component groups today are designed as a system to work together for optimal performance. A lot of the components that went into your bike originally are now out of production having been replaced by subsequent generations of components. If you wanted to rebuild with the original components you would either have to search high and low for used stuff or try to find new old stock components that might well cost as much as current versions. Building a bike is a nice project but you should go into it with eyes open realizing that it could well cost as much as that bike sold for when new.

pepsiblue

There could be some non logical thinking there, for sure. I have bought cars and Jeeps in the past that didnt run, or were missing the motor for example. I knew that a few dollars and a little time down the road and they would be fixed. Thats kind of how I was looking at this project. I bought a frame with full intentions of building it. I figure I can spend $1000 dollars on it over the course of a couple months and finish it up, and still have less in it than a comparable carbon framed flat bar bike such as 7.9.
I also thought no better way to learn than by doing! Maybe I was wrong?

alcjphil

Since that bike was built there have been 2 subsequent generations of Ultegra. The current generation has pretty much zero compatibility with the Ultegra that bike came with
105 components are the same in that there have been 2 subsequent component series since 2006

pepsiblue

Thanks for the insight all. I will continue to research and see what I can find out! Thanks again!

BCRider

With some care and time you can learn and build as you go. But it WILL cost you more than if you shopped for a similar condition used 2006 Trek Pilot 5.2. But you're in now, you may as well enjoy the ride.

The first place to go for information on what MECHANICAL options there are for things like wheel hubs, bottom brackets, seat posts and headsets, just to name a few things is the Park Tools website. There you can look at the specialty tools you will require as well as check out their Technical section for one of the best How To information sources you're going to find. When you find the little picture of the bike with labels that pop up for each part these are links that take you to a full discussion on selections and how to remove and install and service.

As for your buying decisions you'll need to do like the rest of us. Go look at the Shimano web site and get a feel for the hierarchy of their model lines. Then go shopping at online and local stores to see what things cost. A hint though. If you stick to XT for things like the rear Derailleur and shifters that would be a big plus. And for the weight saving you will want to go with some manner of external bearing BB and crank setup such as the current XT or maybe the SLX. Both of these feature the Hollowtech design which I like for the stiffness to weight ratio.

When you're shopping for wheels I'd avoid the boutique style low spoke count wheels for now. Get a nice burly 32 spoke setup. Yes, it'll weigh a touch more but they'll stand up a lot better and will be easier to learn to tension and true them. Which is something you'll need to do right away if you buy an XT or SLX hub wheelset which is priced to indicate that it was made by a machine. You'll need to look around at how to stress relieve, true and tension the spokes to bring the cheaper to mid cost pre-built wheels up to snuff. Especially if you will be off road riding this bike.

AND.... that's more than enough to think about for now.....

Oh, one last item. Search around for articles and other forum postings about how to assemble carbon frames and forks so you avoid over stressing the frame by tightening stuff too much. For example with carbon frames there's a special "gritty grease" you need to use on the seat post so it bites in a little with less collar torque. The same assembly paste is used for the stem if the fork has a carbon steer tube.

cny-bikeman

Thank you ajcjphil. To the OP: My analogy was broad but appropriate. AJC just touched the surface. Even something as "simple" as stem and bars is deceiving, because if you are going to have control of what you put on it's important to put on something that fits your body, not just the bike.

There is no master list because many decisions depend on other decisions, and the permutations are just too numerous. Besides, just following by rote a list that says "this matches that" will not teach you anything at all that is relevant to the future. You would just have to come back to the same list. If you want to learn then get thee to Google and:

• Learn about chainline and all the factors that need to be addressed to get it correct.
• Learn about proper fitting of the bike, starting with the saddle, and look at the options available for meeting your particular needs.
• Learn about the pro's and con's of different cassette cog counts and the different brands of drive train components.
• How will you decide on rim and wheel spoke count, or what tires to buy?

Before any of that, though - have you checked the frame/fork to make sure it is straight, dropouts and derailleur hanger are aligned, and the BB shell is faced square? Specialized, expensive tools are typically required if any of those items are not correct, and things will not operate properly if they are not corrected.

hueyhoolihan

i disagree with the OPer, yours was not a worthless post.

however, if the OP cares to single this one out as worthless, i won't argue.

Retro Grouch 

Here's the thing:

A bicycle is a simple machine but the devil is in the details.

No matter how mechanically adept you are, if you're new to bicycles, the details are going to drive you crazy. Cable pull ratios, cog spacings, handlebar clamp sizes, bottom bracket interfaces, I'm sure there are lots more. Components made by rival manufacturers won't usually work together but sometimes they will. None of that stuff, individually, is very hard to learn but to ask about it in general, all at one time, is just too big of an ask.