budget 2000 yuan should i buy a assembled bike or a branded bike

Seeing me tinkering with bicycle parts every day, friends often ask me about DIYing a personalized road or mountain bike, but with a limited budget of around 2000-3000 yuan.

To be honest, I find it quite challenging to meet such demands. I genuinely want to help my friends plan a satisfactory setup, but unlike a basic city single-speed bike for commuting, DIYing a well-equipped road or mountain bike with a budget of 2000-3000 yuan or even less is really not as practical as buying a branded complete bike.

Take road bikes as an example. Using the most commonly used Shimano brand drivetrain/shift kits (which include cranksets, cassettes, chains, shifters, front/rear derailleurs, and brake calipers), the lowest kit level suitable for DIY is the Sora series, or the slightly higher Tiagra series. Kits below the Sora level are essentially unnecessary for DIY bikes.

The image below shows the Shimano Sora and Tiagra kits, which are the minimum levels suitable for DIY road bikes. Using kits lower than the Sora level is really unnecessary.

The prices of these two kits alone would take up more than half of my friend's budget. Considering other major components like the frame and wheelset, plus additional parts like handlebars, saddle, and tires, the budget would definitely be exceeded.

Some friends might ask, if the budget is limited, why not highlight one or two key components of the bike and use lower-end parts for the rest? Wouldn't that look cool and save a lot of money?

However, the configuration of a sports bike requires a balance among all parts. This means that the frame, wheelset, and kits should be of the same level. If there's a significant disparity, such as pairing a few-hundred-yuan frame with a Shimano Dura-Ace (top road) or XTR (top mountain) kit, or a high-end Specialized Venge frame with a 1000-yuan wheelset, the high-end parts won't perform at their best.

Even if you use an expensive brake system but pair it with a low-end brake cable costing less than 10 yuan, this seemingly minor oversight would waste the excellent feel that the high-end brake system could have provided.

Therefore, this idea is also impractical.

Why is buying a branded complete bike the best choice when the budget is low?

1. Sufficient configuration for beginners

Professional sports bike brands consider cost, performance, target users, and product quality comprehensively when launching a product. Therefore, the configuration of low-priced branded complete bikes is sufficient for most beginners and even experienced riders who don't pursue extreme performance. For instance, Bass Cat once completed a ride around Qinghai Lake on a borrowed Merida Duke without any component failures.

2. More advantageous parts prices

When big brands produce complete bikes in bulk, they purchase thousands of the same model kits from brands like Shimano and Sram. So, compared to buying kits one by one, the price is lower. Therefore, even if we buy the same parts to assemble a low-end sports bike, the price may not be lower than that of a branded complete bike.

3. Limited variety of low-priced parts

Most brands offer very few DIY parts specifically for low-priced needs. Even if they do, we can usually find them on branded complete bikes. So, with limited options, it's better to buy a complete bike.

So, what budget is suitable for DIYing a sports bike?

Bass Cat believes that the starting point for DIYing a mountain bike should be at least 6000-7000 yuan, and even higher for road bikes. With a sufficient budget, there is more flexibility in choosing parts. For example, a mountain bike with a 1500-2000 yuan hardtail frame, Shimano Deore hydraulic disc brake kit, a 1000-yuan front fork, and a 1000-yuan wheelset is a suitable starting point for DIY. Compared to low-end prices, there are more options for parts, allowing for more detailed customization based on personal needs.

Therefore, don't blindly pursue DIYing a sports bike with a low budget. At this stage, a branded complete bike is actually your best choice. Even if one or two parts of the complete bike feel uncomfortable, like the handlebars or saddle, you can spend a little money to replace them. Blindly pursuing low-budget DIY may result in an unbalanced configuration and even lower cost-performance ratio than a branded complete bike.