Building a Road Bike?

Question

I am going to build a road bike over time as the components get cheaper what should I get?

Dura Ace or SRAM Red?

I am going to make all my components either SRAM Red or Dura Ace.

I am trying to achieve a fast, extremely light, durable enough, extremely smooth ride.

What crankset should I buy the top of the line?

What full carbon frame should I buy? Like top of the line?

Examples are like Pinarellos and Orcas

What are the best and lightest rims can you buy?

What are the best rims you can get that are never flat tire compatible?

I have been biking for 20 years now and I think now is my time to buy my ferrari.

Thank You for you help

Answer 1

Why exactly do you want to build piece by piece?  I suspect you'll find that it costs more that way.  Orbea and Pinarello, like most manufacturers, offer a lot of part options so you can price and setup (weight/price) for best match.  SRAM Red is newer and very expensive, but made in the USA for that patriotic boost.  Dura Ace is rock solid.  The new 7900 series is coming out which may mean that 7800 will go down in price.  Do you REALLY need this level of components?  Force, Ultegra/SL, and/or Campy Chorus are about 1/2 the cost of their top line components.  You may also want to determine whether or not you want compact (50/34) or conventional.  I just mounted the Ultegra level compact (FC 700) on my Litespeed and adore it.  The best wheels in tubeless seem to be Dura Ace (7801 SL, I believe).  My personal favorite is probably the Zipp 404, or Mavic Cosmic Carbone, cost no option.  For overall, cost to performance, the Kysrium SSC SL is hard to beat.  Race worthy, tough, light, great bearings.  Happy trails.