Over his year and a half of adult bicycle ownership, the Co-Habitant has progressed from not knowing much about bicycles at all, to completing two full bicycle builds from scratch. In the course of that time, knowledge was gradually gained, tools were purchased one by one, and increasingly complicated procedures were mastered. I helped when I could, but mainly the mechanics are his thing. I will stick to writing about it, thank you.It certainly would be nice to write an inspiring post about what a rewarding and empowering experience it is to do one's own bicycle builds and overhauls. But the truth is, that I do not necessarily believe that to be so - which is why I do not do it myself. Assuming that we are speaking ofserious DIY here, beyond simple maintenance, these projectsrequire the investment of considerable amounts of time, energy and money.At the risk of coming across as discouraging, here is how I see it:
It is worth doing your own bicycle mechanics if......You truly enjoy it and look upon it as a hobby to fill your spare time with. That is the #1 reason in my view. If you do not enjoy it, the process can be extremely frustrating. Also, keep in mind that like any hobby, this one will require spending money on supplies - some of which will be wasted on trial and error. You will surely ruin cables and cable housing, possibly even components. You will order the wrong parts and will need to return them. Sometimes you will only realise that they are the wrong parts after you try to install them and scratch them up - making returns or exchanges impossible. You will have to make multiple, unexpected trips to bicycle shops and hardware stores for things you will suddenly realise you need. All this better be enjoyable, or it makes no sense.
...You own multiple bicycles, plan to build up multiple bicycles, and/or foresee yourself frequently changing components on your bicycle(s). Only then does it make financial sense to invest in the many tools you will need to do your own overhauls and builds - and to go through the learning process before you actually get good at it. Things like a proper bike stand and a standard tool kit will already cost more than most bicycle shops charge for a bike build. And then there are the less common, but often necessary tools, such as headset presses, cotter presses, bottom bracket tools,dremels, and so on, that raise the cost of DIY even higher, if you properly account for it all.
...You are good at bicycle mechanics. If not, then it is just plain dangerous to work on your own bicycle. While some mistakes make for good learning experiences, others - especially when it comes to brakes, steering and the drivetrain - can have disastrous consequences.
...You are, at least to some degree, a control freak and like everything about your bicycle to be "just so". Sure, a bike shop may do an all right job. But you would just feel better if you trued those wheels or tensioned that chain or installed that bottom bracket yourself.
Ifall of the aboveapply, then by all means - full speed ahead with the DIY. You will enjoy it, and it will be rewarding. However,if your primary goal is to save money, I would suggest you think twice. It is not just about buying all the necessary tools that you may seldom have occasion to use again, but also about time. While on the surface it may seem that I would save money by doing abicycle build myself, in economic terms this is actually untrue. In the time it would take me to build up a bicycle, I could insteadtake on an extra freelance project in my own line of work - and the income from it would be greater than the money I'd save by building the bike myself. Financially speaking, the wise thing to do would be to allocate that work to an experienced mechanic while using the time saved to earn money in my own field of expertise.
I am fortunate to live with someone who enjoys working on bicycles (see his description of his travel tool kit!) and is quite good at it. I am also fortunate that he had some time off this summer and actually wanted to spend it working on bikes. Now that he has accumulated all the tools he needs and sufficient experience, we can do pretty much anything bicycle-related at home - and I appreciate that very much. But I by no means think that it is every "real cyclist's" duty to be able to do these things on their own, just like I do not think it is every "real home owner's" duty to be able to do their own plumbing and electrical work. If you are passionate about bicycle mechanics and are good at it, then certainly it can be fun and rewarding. Otherwise, it is best left to the experts - for the sake of your nerves and your wallet.
I've been helping a Lovely Bicycle reader with the process of ordering a custom bike, and he sent me something rather wonderful as a Thank You gift.
It's a beautiful little antique case, about 4x3", with the tiniest, delicate latch closure. And inside of it, there is this:
An ambrotype portrait of a young lady on her bicycle, c.1893-94. The ambrotype is one of the oldest methods of photography, where the image is captured as a positive on glass using a wet plate process. Being on glass, ambrotypes are extremely fragile, which is why they were preserved in these enclosed, padded cases. And even with these careful storage methods, not many of them remain. This is a fine gift indeed, to say the least - especially for one obsessed with both bicycles and photographic processes.
Here is a close-up of the image itself. I cannot remove it from its case, so excuse the murkiness. Notice that it is a mirror image - the drivetrain is on the wrong side. The first commercial freewheel was produced by Sachs in 1898, which means that this lady and others of her era were riding fixed gears. Also, notice the absence of fenders, but the presence of dress guards - at least her muddy skirt would not get stuck in the spokes? Otherwise, the bicycle is a fairly classic lady's Roadster (and apropos the earlier gender discussion - yes, thesewere made specifically for ladies).
The encasedambrotypecame in a set with a free-standingtintype- another positive photographic process, this one created on a sheet of blackened iron. Just amazing. Again, there is the mirror image effect. The bicycle here is similar, but with a fancier chaincase and with a headlamp. The person who sent me these pictures believes the women might be bicycle messengers, though it is also possible that the caps represent cycling clubs that were popular at the time. I must admit that I liked the image of them cycling on fixed gear loop frames through the city delivering letters.
Today I would like to share with you that I have officially become a Bicycle Photographer. As you can imagine, this translates to a life of fame and glamour - and will finally enable me to quit my dayjob and live as a full-time 
A.T. (aka "somervillain") is a vintage bicycle lover who lives in the Boston area. He is an occasional commentator on this blog and a member of bikeforums. Based on the photos of my own bicycles that he has seen me post, A.T. invited me to document his and his wife's vintage collection. So far we have only done one photo session, and I post a few of the images here.
The star of these photos is A.T.'s 1950s Raleigh DL-1 Roadster - the same bicycle as the Co-Habitant's 
I must say that this DL-1 is in better condition than any other I have seen, particularly the chrome parts. When I first saw this bike from a distance, my thought was that it must be a modern replica. Of course up close all the signs of wear and age are visible, but its condition is none the less terrific.
Those who like vintage Raleigh 3-speeds know how rare it is to actually have that dynamo headlight attached to the "Heron" mount and working!
Here is a close-up of the headlight, handlebars and rod levers. The roses are distracting here (roses in November?), but it's the best close-up I have of this area.
Incredibly clean and shiny rod brakes.
Front dynamo hub.
Dynamo-powered tail light mounted on the left seat stay. What a pleasure to photograph all this stuff!
Rear Sturmey Archer hub. Notice how clean it is! A.T. did all of the work on this bicycle himself, including assembling this hub - remarkable!
Vintage Brooks B66 saddle, NOS Roadster saddlebag, rear rack.
Here is the entire bicycle again, from the non-chaindrive side. I should explain that I can't take digital photography seriously (as opposed to film photography), and therefore own no professional digital equipment. These photos were all taken with my tiny point-and-shoot camera. I could have done a much better job with proper equipment. Any suggestions? But there I go, getting ahead of myself again.
A few have already asked me about the location in these photos. All I can say, is that it is my secret magical bike photography spot, and the same "nice" neighborhood discussed in this post. It is ridiculously scenic and resembles England, which is why I thought the vintage Raleigh would look especially at home against this backdrop. I hope you enjoyed the photos of this magnificent bicycle and thank you A.T. for the permission to post these. Additional pictures of this bicycle can be viewed here.
