Originally Posted by
Dean V
There is nothing wrong with alloy bars, stem and seat post. They are not necessarily a budget option at all.
I would agree that bikes do seem to be more expensive though.
Not sure if it is because disc brakes cost more to produce, or they have bumped up the margins somewhere.
Also less discounting doesn't help either.
Basically seems like you are about 1 tier down for the same money as a few years ago.
i.e, what would of got you Ultegra now gets you 105.
On my "anything goes" custom bike that was built last year, I went with alloy for the stem and bars, and would've actually preferred it for the seatpost. Alloy cockpit components are generally lighter (at least not heavier, typically), and you don't need to strip everything down to examine them after a mishap in the garage or a crash.
And today's 105 is at least as good (likely better) than last-generation Ultegra. (That's not speculation -- it's exactly what I have hanging in my garage on two of my bikes.)
But why are we bothering? The OP came here to complain -- and now that he's got it off his chest, he probably won't be back.