Frames worth building on
Somebody else's frame, your dream build.
Most people who want a custom build get stuck at the very first step: which frame? So I keep an eye on Craigslist and Marketplace around the Pacific Northwest and post what I find. Including the ones I'd skip, and why. A page that only ever says "great deal" isn't much use to anybody.
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Available
FB Marketplace · Portland, OR · Listed 1 day ago
All-City Nature Cross Single Speed
- Size
- 52cm, Pink Lemonade
- Asking
- $1,000 (MSRP $1,599)
- Material
- A.C.E. air-hardened steel
- Tires
- Up to 42mm frame, 47mm fork
- Condition
- New, in the box, with fork
My take Best thing on this page right now. Brand new in the box for about 60% of retail, and All-City is winding down, so this is final-run stock of a brand a lot of us were pretty attached to. Pink Lemonade is one of the good ones.
About that scratch The listing flags a scratch on the head tube. On a steel frame that's paint and nothing else. Worth noticing that the same scratch on either carbon frame further down this page would be a completely different conversation.
What I'd build Singlespeed means no derailleurs, shifters, or cassette, so the drivetrain side of a build like this costs a fraction of a geared one. And don't let "cyclocross" undersell it. With 42mm in the frame and 47mm up front it's a gravel bike, a commuter, and a winter bike too.
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Available
Craigslist · Seattle Eastside · Spotted Aug 31
Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL8
- Size
- 54cm
- Price
- $1,740
- Type
- Carbon disc road frameset
- Notes
- Uncut steerer, all spacers included
My take Around 30% of what this frameset costs new, and the uncut steerer means the fit gets set for you rather than inherited from the last owner. Ask whether the fork is the original. "Owned from new" and "uncut steerer" don't usually go together, and a replaced fork can mean the frame saw a crash too. Check the head tube and chainstays, and run the serial through Bike Index before money moves.
What I'd build A build like this usually runs about $2,000 in parts. Roughly $1,000 of wheels and $1,000 of groupset plus finishing kit, and $499 to build it. Call it about $4,200 all in including the frame. Latest Red or Dura-Ace Di2 pushes the parts number up.
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I'd pass
FB Marketplace · Happy Valley, OR · Listed 10 weeks ago
Specialized Aethos Frameset
- Size
- 54
- Asking
- $2,500 (was $2,750)
- Type
- Carbon disc road frameset, internal routing
- Includes
- Integrated bar/stem, crankset, Enve bars
- Condition
- Used – good
My take The Aethos is one of my favorite things Specialized has ever made. They ignored the aero arms race and built a frame that just rides beautifully. Round tubes, silly light. But the listing only says "Aethos frameset" and never says which tier, and there's a big spread between the S-Works version and the ones below it. Different carbon, real weight difference, close to double the money. At $2,500 you're paying S-Works-ish prices without anybody confirming that's what it is.
And the cockpit An integrated bar and stem sounds like a freebie, but you're inheriting whoever's fit was on it before. If that width and stem length don't match you it's an expensive part to swap, so you'd be paying extra for something headed straight for a bin. Ten weeks up and already down $250. Market's kinda voted.
What I'd pay $1,900, and I'd be fine walking away. It's local enough to go put hands on though, and if it turns out to be S-Works the whole thing flips. Worth asking.