I build up dream bikes for a living – here’s how to turn your cheap bike into a superbike, for less

By Admin

May 31, 2024

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A few years ago, a conversation between a cyclist and a friend or family member could very easily go like this:

Friend: “How much did your bike cost?”

Glen Whittington

Glen’s an ex-racer who became a mechanic in 2002, working in shops and also for professional race teams. He built his first bespoke frame in 2013, and now designs, tests and sells new frames and bike builds at ÆIGHT bike.

The practice of upgrading a bike over time has become a little lost over the years. But, it’s something I do a lot for customers at ÆIGHT bike, where we create custom builds and help riders looking to overhaul their existing machines to create their dream ride. If it’s something you want to try, here’s how you can build a superbike out of a ‘normal bike’, for less money – if you’re willing to invest a little time into the project.

When it comes to groupsets, the quality of how they work doesn’t often alter that much, they simply weigh less as you increase your spend – therefore I’d recommend looking for a bike with Shimano 105 or SRAM Rival because, as you’re saving up for more bling, these groupsets will not let you down. At this point don’t worry too much about what wheels and tyres the bike comes with because they’re first on the upgrade list.

Due to various factors affecting the bike industry at present, many shops are desperate to shift stock and so there are plenty of deals to be had. Focusing on UK deals, I found a Specialized Tarmac SL7 Sport 105 that was £3250 on sale for £2350. A Cannondale SuperSix Evo 105 was £2850, but I’ve seen them for £2565. And the Liv Langma Advanced Disc 2 Pro Compact was £2700, but they’re available for £2159 at the time of writing. So, if you’re careful you can grab a bike from most brands for around 20% off.

However, if you’re serious about turning your bike into a superbike, then the first step is to upgrade the entire wheelset. This may not be as expensive as you may think – there are many small scale wheel builders out there creating carbon wheels that more than rival the big brands, at a fraction of the price; £1200-1500 spent with a precision wheel builder can easily save you 800g to a kilo on a standard budget wheelset [for more on what to ask your wheel builder for, check out this piece – Ed].

If we assume we started with a bike that weighed around 8kg and set you back around £2300, we’re now down to around 7.2kg, having spent £3800. More importantly – especially if this is where the budget runs out – you’ll have significantly improved the way your bike functions. Lighter wheels don’t just accelerate better, but they’ll brake and change direction more easily. At this stage, you’ll have spent a similar amount to many mid-range bikes, but your bike will be superior.

As per the wheel upgrade, a lighter bike will be more agile and easier to ride. However, the weight difference is around 500g when you make the leap from Shimano 105 to SRAM Red AXS, for example. This is why I recommend making this change further down the line, as there’s now a significant investment required for much smaller gains. A SRAM Red AXS groupset, depending upon where you shop, could set you back around £2000. Whilst 500g is a big saving, when we compare it to losing a kilo via your £1500 wheels, the weight weenie tax has multiplied. It’s smarter to upgrade the groupset later on, once you’ve got some use out of the orignal.