Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > General Cycling Discussion
Reload this Page >

Interesting article in the Wall Street Journal about bike availability and pricing in

Notices
General Cycling Discussion Have a cycling related question or comment that doesn't fit in one of the other specialty forums? Drop on in and post in here! When possible, please select the forum above that most fits your post!

Interesting article in the Wall Street Journal about bike availability and pricing in

Old 12-01-21, 01:47 PM
  #1  
drlogik 
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
drlogik's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: North Carolina
Posts: 1,763

Bikes: '87-ish Pinarello Montello; '89 Nishiki Ariel; '85 Raleigh Wyoming, '16 Wabi Special, '16 Wabi Classic, '14 Kona Cinder Cone

Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 698 Post(s)
Liked 405 Times in 251 Posts
Interesting article in the Wall Street Journal about bike availability and pricing in

Interesting article about our favorite thing:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/is-infl...hare_permalink
drlogik is offline  
Old 12-01-21, 02:14 PM
  #2  
mstateglfr 
Sunshine
 
mstateglfr's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Des Moines, IA
Posts: 16,531

Bikes: '18 class built steel roadbike, '19 Fairlight Secan, '88 Schwinn Premis , Black Mountain Cycles Monstercross V4, '89 Novara Trionfo

Mentioned: 123 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 10897 Post(s)
Liked 7,384 Times in 4,144 Posts
My take away- thankfully none of my bikes require a chip that automakers also want.

Based on this article(and a lot more), there is some real value in refurbishing an older bike, even when some components are in limited stock. Some new entry level drop bar bikes have been spec'd with Microshift or Sensah shifters, Sunrace cassettes, and various off-brand brake calipers as that reduces cost and opens up supply. In a similar fashion, maybe updating an older bike is a better decision right now than buying new since there is a good bit of availability at the 9sp or lower level.
Bikes that rely on computer diagnostics to set up or repair may have components may be in short supply, and I can see why costs have escalated so quickly for that segment, but not everything is that way.
mstateglfr is offline  
Old 12-01-21, 03:03 PM
  #3  
icemilkcoffee 
Senior Member
 
icemilkcoffee's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Posts: 2,586
Mentioned: 13 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1538 Post(s)
Liked 1,696 Times in 953 Posts
The average selling price of a new bicycle in the U.S. in September was $346, up 28% compared with 2020 and 54% higher than the average selling price of a bicycle in 2019
Wow- That is an insane amount of inflation! Then again- what the heck kind of bike were people buying back in 2019, for $170?
icemilkcoffee is offline  
Old 12-01-21, 03:14 PM
  #4  
70sSanO
Senior Member
 
70sSanO's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Mission Viejo
Posts: 5,768

Bikes: 1986 Cannondale SR400 (Flat bar commuter), 1988 Cannondale Criterium XTR, 1992 Serotta T-Max, 1995 Trek 970

Mentioned: 20 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1935 Post(s)
Liked 2,148 Times in 1,312 Posts
In 1986 I bought a new Cannondale SR400 on sale for $3 more at $349. A good bike but not close to a high level.

However, had I not ridden it, I could probably sell the parts for much more than that today.

John
70sSanO is offline  
Old 12-01-21, 03:21 PM
  #5  
GhostRider62
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2021
Posts: 4,083
Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2332 Post(s)
Liked 2,094 Times in 1,311 Posts
A container from china used to cost something like $1500 and recently hit $20,000. I paid $1.50/gal for heating oil last Fall and over $3.00 this year and similar increases in diesel, which also impacts trucking costs of transporting bikes from the ports.
GhostRider62 is offline  
Old 12-01-21, 03:53 PM
  #6  
MNebiker
Full Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: MN
Posts: 236
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 83 Post(s)
Liked 152 Times in 83 Posts
Originally Posted by 70sSanO
In 1986 I bought a new Cannondale SR400 on sale for $3 more at $349. A good bike but not close to a high level.

However, had I not ridden it, I could probably sell the parts for much more than that today.

John
This thread brings back memories: Back in the early 80s I bought a pair of Schwinn bikes - if I remember correctly they were about $180 each. An online inflation calc site says that would almost $600 today.
MNebiker is offline  
Old 12-01-21, 04:04 PM
  #7  
indyfabz
Senior Member
 
indyfabz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 39,050
Mentioned: 210 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 18318 Post(s)
Liked 15,261 Times in 7,219 Posts
Originally Posted by icemilkcoffee
Wow- That is an insane amount of inflation! Then again- what the heck kind of bike were people buying back in 2019, for $170?
I suspect a lot of big box store bikes.
indyfabz is online now  
Likes For indyfabz:
Old 12-01-21, 05:19 PM
  #8  
Koyote
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Posts: 7,762
Mentioned: 37 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6881 Post(s)
Liked 10,869 Times in 4,634 Posts
Originally Posted by 70sSanO
In 1986 I bought a new Cannondale SR400 on sale for $3 more at $349. A good bike but not close to a high level.

However, had I not ridden it, I could probably sell the parts for much more than that today.

John
Originally Posted by MNebiker
This thread brings back memories: Back in the early 80s I bought a pair of Schwinn bikes - if I remember correctly they were about $180 each. An online inflation calc site says that would almost $600 today.
Don't forget that earnings have gone up since the 1980s, too. This is why it's useful to think in terms of real (rather than nominal) values.
Koyote is offline  
Old 12-01-21, 06:27 PM
  #9  
70sSanO
Senior Member
 
70sSanO's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Mission Viejo
Posts: 5,768

Bikes: 1986 Cannondale SR400 (Flat bar commuter), 1988 Cannondale Criterium XTR, 1992 Serotta T-Max, 1995 Trek 970

Mentioned: 20 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1935 Post(s)
Liked 2,148 Times in 1,312 Posts
Originally Posted by Koyote
Don't forget that earnings have gone up since the 1980s, too. This is why it's useful to think in terms of real (rather than nominal) values.
Additional there is NOS value, which typically defies logic in that an obsolete component is deemed more valuable merely because a generation believes it represents the pinnacle of manufacturing or design technology.

This over-valuation is generally done by the generation most closely identifying with the item.

Sent from my Nokia 7110.

John
70sSanO is offline  
Likes For 70sSanO:
Old 12-01-21, 07:30 PM
  #10  
prairiepedaler
Banned.
 
Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: Winnipeg - traffic ticket central
Posts: 1,674

Bikes: Looking for "the One"

Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3 Post(s)
Liked 320 Times in 212 Posts
Originally Posted by GhostRider62
A container from china used to cost something like $1500 and recently hit $20,000. I paid $1.50/gal for heating oil last Fall and over $3.00 this year and similar increases in diesel, which also impacts trucking costs of transporting bikes from the ports.
Yeesh. Kind of makes one want to manufacture stuff in one's own Country.

Another thing that drives inflation is the continually increasing worthlessness of the dollar, a' la the weimar republic. The Federal Reserve's printing presses have run day and night for years making each previously existing dollar worth less and less. If anything, it makes you want to convert that cash on hand into a tangible - fast - like a bike!
prairiepedaler is offline  
Old 12-01-21, 08:23 PM
  #11  
Koyote
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Posts: 7,762
Mentioned: 37 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6881 Post(s)
Liked 10,869 Times in 4,634 Posts
Originally Posted by prairiepedaler
Yeesh. Kind of makes one want to manufacture stuff in one's own Country.

Another thing that drives inflation is the continually increasing worthlessness of the dollar, a' la the weimar republic. The Federal Reserve's printing presses have run day and night for years making each previously existing dollar worth less and less. If anything, it makes you want to convert that cash on hand into a tangible - fast - like a bike!
These are some odd observations. By any historical or international comparisons, inflation in the US has been remarkably low for the past 40 years or so. But we shouldn't let facts get in the way of a paranoid fever dream!
Koyote is offline  
Likes For Koyote:
Old 12-01-21, 08:34 PM
  #12  
Troul 
Senior Member
 
Troul's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Mich
Posts: 7,291

Bikes: RSO E-tire dropper fixie brifter

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6 Post(s)
Liked 2,909 Times in 1,884 Posts
Those reports are not helping matters.

IMO; I say, "just wait until the end of 2022". Today's prices will look like a bargain. Buying power for the US dollar in general may be in for some unwanted & unavoidable shockers.
__________________
-Oh Hey!
Troul is offline  
Old 12-01-21, 09:18 PM
  #13  
70sSanO
Senior Member
 
70sSanO's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Mission Viejo
Posts: 5,768

Bikes: 1986 Cannondale SR400 (Flat bar commuter), 1988 Cannondale Criterium XTR, 1992 Serotta T-Max, 1995 Trek 970

Mentioned: 20 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1935 Post(s)
Liked 2,148 Times in 1,312 Posts
The truth is, everyone wants to be an expert and none of them have a clue. And everyone can find something out there that supports their personal beliefs.

After the pandemic first started shutdowns, there were those predicting a real estate collapse.

Then everyone will be leaving the cities. Housing prices in rural America would soar.

A relative of mine took a $200k cut in price in the Summer of 2020 to sell a home. Had she waited to Summer of 2021 she would have added at least $200k to the original asking price.

As for bikes, who knows. And in a lot of ways who cares. If there were suddenly a flood of product, we might see year end clearances again.

John
70sSanO is offline  
Likes For 70sSanO:
Old 12-01-21, 09:33 PM
  #14  
Cyclist0108
Occam's Rotor
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 7,248
Mentioned: 61 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2366 Post(s)
Liked 2,331 Times in 1,164 Posts
Originally Posted by icemilkcoffee
Wow- That is an insane amount of inflation! Then again- what the heck kind of bike were people buying back in 2019, for $170?
It would be $225.

But it seems to indicate that the vast majority of bikes sold are extremely low-end.

Perhaps more indicative of the current state of affairs is the inflation on an Ultegra-level carbon or high-end steel bike in the last 10 years. The price for mine has doubled in less time than that.
Cyclist0108 is offline  
Old 12-01-21, 09:41 PM
  #15  
Cyclist0108
Occam's Rotor
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 7,248
Mentioned: 61 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2366 Post(s)
Liked 2,331 Times in 1,164 Posts
Fortunately it is the price in nearly worthless California dollars.
Cyclist0108 is offline  
Old 12-01-21, 10:45 PM
  #16  
GhostRider62
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2021
Posts: 4,083
Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2332 Post(s)
Liked 2,094 Times in 1,311 Posts
Originally Posted by Koyote
These are some odd observations. By any historical or international comparisons, inflation in the US has been remarkably low for the past 40 years or so. But we shouldn't let facts get in the way of a paranoid fever dream!
New toyota in 1978 was $4200, gas was 60 cents a gallon, a Columbus SL fully campy bike was $1200, an oz of gold was $200.

40+ years later, just add a zero to all those prices.
GhostRider62 is offline  
Old 12-01-21, 11:13 PM
  #17  
70sSanO
Senior Member
 
70sSanO's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Mission Viejo
Posts: 5,768

Bikes: 1986 Cannondale SR400 (Flat bar commuter), 1988 Cannondale Criterium XTR, 1992 Serotta T-Max, 1995 Trek 970

Mentioned: 20 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1935 Post(s)
Liked 2,148 Times in 1,312 Posts
Originally Posted by GhostRider62
New toyota in 1978 was $4200, gas was 60 cents a gallon, a Columbus SL fully campy bike was $1200, an oz of gold was $200.

40+ years later, just add a zero to all those prices.
I added a zero to my salary, so what’s the point.

John
70sSanO is offline  
Likes For 70sSanO:
Old 12-01-21, 11:20 PM
  #18  
GhostRider62
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2021
Posts: 4,083
Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2332 Post(s)
Liked 2,094 Times in 1,311 Posts
Originally Posted by 70sSanO
I added a zero to my salary, so what’s the point.

John
I responded to the silly post that there has been no inflation in the past 40+ years, proving otherwise. Good for you, many of us got mauled by inflation.
GhostRider62 is offline  
Likes For GhostRider62:
Old 12-01-21, 11:27 PM
  #19  
70sSanO
Senior Member
 
70sSanO's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Mission Viejo
Posts: 5,768

Bikes: 1986 Cannondale SR400 (Flat bar commuter), 1988 Cannondale Criterium XTR, 1992 Serotta T-Max, 1995 Trek 970

Mentioned: 20 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1935 Post(s)
Liked 2,148 Times in 1,312 Posts
Originally Posted by GhostRider62
I responded to the silly post that there has been no inflation in the past 40+ years, proving otherwise. Good for you, many of us got mauled by inflation.
Oh there has been a ton of inflation, not so much in the past dozen years or so (until recently).

As for me, to be honest, I didn’t do anything special other than make a total change to a different industry.

John
70sSanO is offline  
Old 12-02-21, 02:57 AM
  #20  
Lazyass
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Minas Ithil
Posts: 9,337
Mentioned: 66 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2432 Post(s)
Liked 638 Times in 395 Posts
11 December 2001 was a day of infamy and it changed the world for the worse.
Lazyass is offline  
Likes For Lazyass:
Old 12-02-21, 04:10 AM
  #21  
Herzlos
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2020
Location: Scotland
Posts: 501

Bikes: Way too many

Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 822 Post(s)
Liked 584 Times in 345 Posts
Originally Posted by icemilkcoffee
Then again- what the heck kind of bike were people buying back in 2019, for $170?
Is anyone surprised that by volume, the big box bike stores are outselling the specialist bike stores by orders of magnitude?
Unless you get into it properly then to a lot of people a bike is just a bike.

I wonder if it includes kids bikes, too.
Herzlos is offline  
Old 12-02-21, 05:18 AM
  #22  
indyfabz
Senior Member
 
indyfabz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 39,050
Mentioned: 210 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 18318 Post(s)
Liked 15,261 Times in 7,219 Posts
Originally Posted by GhostRider62
I responded to the silly post that there has been no inflation in the past 40+ years, proving otherwise. Good for you, many of us got mauled by inflation.
That post reads “low”, not “no”.
indyfabz is online now  
Likes For indyfabz:
Old 12-02-21, 05:44 AM
  #23  
GhostRider62
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2021
Posts: 4,083
Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2332 Post(s)
Liked 2,094 Times in 1,311 Posts
Originally Posted by indyfabz
That post reads “low”, not “no”.
Which is why I quantified it with real numbers.

In the late 70's, freshly minted engineers started at 20-22K and in 2020, they start at $60-70K. 3x. Yet, prices of cars, homes, medical treatment, college tuition, has far outpaced income. In the 70's, it was not rare or should say it was fairly common for only one parent to work to support a family. Nowadays, I cannot think of anyone that I know with a single income family.

Inflation is sort of like entropy. Hard to impossible to put that genie back into the bottle. Look at wages of workers in the distribution centers, they have skyrocketed locally by 40-50% over the past year. How does an employer remove those costs? Sorry, Mr/Mrs. Pick and Pack, we need to lower inflation and you need to take a cut in pay. (Yes, I know Amazon uses robotics to pick, few do). The notion that what we have recently experienced inflation-wise is transitory is ridiculous. The days of being able to buy a $400 Shimano 105 groupset is gone, in the best case economic scenario. Several years ago, I bought a Cervelo S3 frame from a LBS for $2200. That frame is now over $4,000. I used to buy at least six Dura Ace chains per year at $36-37 each and now if you can find them, they are almost twice that (non counterfeits)

So, I would not characterize inflation over the past 40+ years as low. Inflation over the past 11 months is eyepopping.
GhostRider62 is offline  
Old 12-02-21, 06:59 AM
  #24  
Koyote
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Posts: 7,762
Mentioned: 37 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6881 Post(s)
Liked 10,869 Times in 4,634 Posts
Originally Posted by GhostRider62
I responded to the silly post that there has been no inflation in the past 40+ years, proving otherwise. Good for you, many of us got mauled by inflation.
No one claimed that "there has been no inflation in the past 40+ years."

Originally Posted by GhostRider62
New toyota in 1978 was $4200, gas was 60 cents a gallon, a Columbus SL fully campy bike was $1200, an oz of gold was $200.

40+ years later, just add a zero to all those prices.
I could easily give you three anecdotes to prove the opposite, but that's all rather pointless. The plural of "anecdote" is not "fact."

Originally Posted by 70sSanO
I added a zero to my salary, so what’s the point.

John
Bingo. Median real wage rate is actually higher than 40 years ago - meaning that the typical person has MORE purchasing power.

Facts are stubborn things: they still exist, even when people refuse to believe them.
Koyote is offline  
Old 12-02-21, 07:12 AM
  #25  
Cyclist0108
Occam's Rotor
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 7,248
Mentioned: 61 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2366 Post(s)
Liked 2,331 Times in 1,164 Posts
Originally Posted by GhostRider62
I responded to the silly post that there has been no inflation in the past 40+ years, proving otherwise. Good for you, many of us got mauled by inflation.
Well, if you factor out housing, food and fuel, inflation doesn't look so bad. This is clearly reflected in the price of cocaine and electronics.

Also, the median (middle) de-emphasizes the extrema:


Last edited by Cyclist0108; 12-02-21 at 01:21 PM.
Cyclist0108 is offline  
Likes For Cyclist0108:

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.