Framesets

Building from the Frame Up: The Custom Advantage

Purchasing a complete stock bicycle is convenient, but buying a bare bicycle frameset gives you absolute freedom. When you start with a bare frame and fork, you avoid paying for stock components you plan to replace immediately.

Building from the frame up allows you to:

• Dial In Exact Ergonomics: Select crank arm lengths, stem angles, handlebar reach, and saddle widths tailored to your body geometry from mile one.
• Select Your Preferred Gearing: Choose the exact front chainring sizes and rear cassette range suited for your typical climbs and riding style rather than settling for factory standard gearing.
• Migrate Cherished Components: Transfer your favorite wheels, electronic shifting groupset, or custom cockpit from an older bike directly onto a modern geometry chassis.

Choosing the Right Frame Material

The material of your frameset shapes the personality of your ride, dictating weight, lateral stiffness, road compliance, and long-term durability.

Carbon Fiber

Carbon fiber remains the benchmark for high-performance road, gravel, and cross-country mountain bikes. Because carbon sheets can be layered in directional orientations, frame designers can engineer microscopic vertical flex into seatstays to smooth out road vibrations while keeping the bottom bracket and head tube incredibly stiff for explosive acceleration. If your priority is minimum weight and maximum aerodynamic efficiency, carbon is the premier choice.

Hydroformed Aluminum Alloy

Modern aluminum framesets have advanced far beyond the harsh-riding alloy tubes of decades past. Using complex hydroforming processes, engineers shape aluminum tubes with variable wall thicknesses, making them light, responsive, and exceptionally durable. Aluminum framesets deliver outstanding stiffness-to-weight ratios at an accessible price point, making them popular for criterium racing, rowdy trail hardtails, and rugged commuter setups.

Chromoly Steel and Titanium

For riders who prioritize ride quality, timeless aesthetics, and ultimate longevity, steel and titanium frames hold legendary status. High-end chromoly steel offers a springy, forgiving feel that naturally isolates trail chatter on long bikepacking expeditions. Titanium delivers that same supple ride quality while cutting substantial weight and providing total immunity to rust, corrosion, and trail scratches.

Frameset Categories and Disciplines

Matching your frameset to your riding terrain ensures proper geometry, tire clearance, and handling characteristics:

Mountain Bike Framesets

Modern mountain bike frames fall into two distinct styles:

• Full-Suspension Frames: Paired with a tuned rear air or coil shock, these frames feature engineered linkage designs (such as four-bar, Horst-link, or virtual pivot systems) to keep your rear wheel tracking over chunky rocks and roots. Look for modern trail geometry with slacker head tube angles for high-speed stability and steep seat tube angles for efficient climbing.
• Hardtail Frames: Built without rear suspension, hardtail frames provide immediate power transfer, simplified maintenance, and a direct connection to the trail. They make exceptional platforms for cross-country racing, pump tracks, and bikepacking.

Gravel and All-Road Framesets

Gravel framesets balance road efficiency with off-road capability. They feature relaxed wheelbases for stability on loose dirt, generous tire clearances (often fitting 700x45c or 650bx2.1-inch rubber), and integrated mounting bosses along the top tube, down tube, and fork blades for frame bags, extra water bottles, and fenders.

Road Racing and Endurance Framesets

Road framesets prioritize aerodynamics, low weight, and razor-sharp steering:

• Aero and Race Frames: Feature aggressive rider positioning, truncated airfoil tubing, and integrated one-piece cockpits to slice through the wind at race speeds.
• Endurance Road Frames: Feature taller head tubes and slightly longer chainstays to provide a more upright riding posture and smoother vibration damping on century rides and rough asphalt.

Key Technical Standards to Confirm Before You Buy

Modern bicycle framesets use specific mechanical standards that determine which parts will fit. Double-check these five specifications before purchasing components:

1. Bottom Bracket Shell Standard: Confirm whether your frame uses a traditional threaded shell (such as BSA English threaded or T47) or a press-fit standard (such as BB86, BB30, or PF30) to ensure you purchase the correct bottom bracket bearings for your crankset spindle.
2. Wheel Axle Spacing: Mountain bike framesets typically require Boost spacing (148x12mm rear thru-axle), while modern road and gravel disc framesets use standard 142x12mm rear thru-axles. Older rim-brake frames utilize traditional 130mm or 135mm quick-release dropouts.
3. Headset and Steerer Dimensions: Most modern performance frames feature integrated, tapered head tubes (such as 1-1/8 inch upper to 1.5 inch lower bearings) to support stiff, tapered carbon fork steerer tubes.
4. Brake Mount Types: Verify whether your disc frameset utilizes flat-mount calipers (standard on road and gravel bikes) or post-mount calipers (standard on mountain bikes), as well as the maximum compatible rotor size.
5. Seatpost Diameter and Dropper Routing: Check whether the frame accepts a 27.2mm, 30.9mm, or 31.6mm seatpost, and verify if the frame includes internal routing ports for stealth dropper posts or electronic shifting wires.

Custom Builds and Technical Support

Piecing together a bicycle frameset requires precision tools, including torque wrenches, bottom bracket presses, headset cup drivers, and hydraulic brake bleed kits. Facing bearing surfaces, chasing threads, and routing internal cables correctly are critical steps for ensuring a quiet, creak-free ride.

If you have questions about frame sizing, axle dimensions, or component cross-compatibility, our experienced team is here to help. Reach out to our customer support specialists online, or order your frameset with fast delivery straight to your door.