Originally Posted by
Russ Roth
Pre-pandemic, 2000 was probably not a bad spot to claim a decent performance bike after which returns would drop off faster than it might be worth. Currently I think its about 4k but you probably have to shop around to get the best deals. For 4k I got a trek cross frameset, 12sp force wireless, and king wheelset custom built with lightbicycle rims along with the rest of the parts needed to make a functioning bike.
Agreed, I would call it the pre-(massive)-inflation era, but prices have definitely soared in all sectors since then. Brand new bikes between 2K - 3K offer a reasonable edge in terms of performance and value. 4K is probably the sweet spot, including full carbon frames, wheelsets etc. and some really nice groups. For used bikes that threshold is usually around 2K.
Originally Posted by
Russ Roth
My moderately priced car is now 10 years old, has 178k miles, was new off the floor and only 28k with interest by the end of the loan period. Only wish I'd paid that little for bikes over the same time period. If it was for just me I'd have been able to keep it under that but with bikes for the whole family I've blown past my car "investment" but the car is still going so there is that.
That's funny. I can totally relate with "bikes for the whole family".
I remember my dad taking us to Walmart for our very first bikes and we loved it. Nowadays, your kids are telling you about which freehubs to get for their light gravel bike.
Originally Posted by
DUHI4GOT
My bike collection ranges from $3,700USD to $12,000USD. I'm not a racer, just a weekend warrior. Some were bikes that I simply wanted in my "stable" and some that made me want to ride more. My wife spends money on golf and I spend on bikes and nice cars.
Who spends more?
Originally Posted by
merlinextraligh
So we can actually graph this out following the concept of marginal utility. Let’s assume for the sake of argument that the return for increased spending gets steep above $5000. That is only part of the equation.
The next part is what those funds not spent on a bike could be spent upon,and the utility from such expenditure.
On a micro level, if you are struggling to pay buy groceries, the utility of buying another pound of hamburger greatly exceeds shaving 50 grams off your bike.
However, if you have everything you need, and most of what you want, that 50 grams could be worth a few bucks.
On a micro level, you can’t judge for a person in who’s shoes you do not walk
On a macro level, the market sorts it out.
Hmm that's an interesting point you're making. I think the real question is at what point necessity and utility are outweighed by indulgence, but also whether financial stability is the only deciding factor.
Originally Posted by
Mtracer
My main bike, a Trek Domane SLR 7, with my power meter pedals, radar, lights and cycling computer is right around $10,000 and worth every penny of it, to me.
Pretty much any additional amount of money you spend on a bike is going to be diminishing returns.
The point of diminishing returns is a very clear and quantifiable threshold wherein the cost-benefit ratio of bike parts in terms of performance and reliability reaches a bottleneck.
I understand what you mean, but I still wonder if you can articulate what it is in particular that makes a 10K bike worth every penny for you, which couldn't be achieved with a more cost efficient solution.