Can You Really Build a Bicycle Frame at Home?
14. October 2026How to Miter Bicycle Frame Tubes with Paper Templates and a File
One of the fundamental skills in bicycle framebuilding is getting two tubes to fit together properly.
Before you can braze or weld a bicycle frame, the ends of the tubes need to be shaped so they fit closely against each other. This process is called tube mitering.
It might sound like something that requires expensive machinery, but it doesn’t.
You can miter bicycle frame tubes using just a paper template, a hacksaw, and a few files.
How paper templates work
When you design a bicycle frame using software such as BikeCAD or RattleCAD, you can generate paper templates for the tube joints.
These templates show the exact shape you need to cut into the end of each tube, taking into account the tube diameters and the angle between them.
The process is straightforward:
- Print and cut out the paper template.
- Wrap it around the tube and tape it in place.
- Remove the excess material with a hacksaw and files.
- Keep filing until the end of the tube matches the template.
- Check the fit against the adjoining tube.
With a little patience, you can achieve a very good fit without a milling machine or specialized tube-notching equipment.
A simple technique worth learning
In the video below, I demonstrate how this works and show the finished result.
This is one of the things I like about bicycle framebuilding. Some of the most important steps don’t require sophisticated equipment. They require understanding what you’re trying to achieve and taking the time to do it carefully.
And if you’re planning to build your first frame at home, learning to miter tubes by hand is a great place to start.
Want to build your own bicycle frame?
In the Big Forest Frameworks Online Framebuilding Course, we work through the entire process, from designing your frame and selecting tubes to mitering, brazing, alignment, and finishing.
You can learn the techniques and build your own frame in your own workshop, with guidance and support along the way.
