I bought a bike with a part 50th group and have bought other bits off eBay to complete the group (almost).
I have become a bit of a "spotter" on the subject and put this page up:
http://www.lejog4amr.co.uk/pinarello/ca ... pset.shtml
What surprises me is the variance of the same item over different sales and the odd very high price.
I have managed to collect almost a second group as well as the one I have on the bike I ride ... I have done that through jumbles and striking deals with people through eBay and buying odd bits in the hope that I can one day find the other bits to complete ....
A good used group lose is worth £1500 if it is 100% complete that is comes with HS, BB, Dust Cap tool, all the gold caps etc ... anything missing and you start knocking off £££s. No way could you assemble a group for £700 unless you can find someone who does not know what they are selling or if the components are in very poor condition.
NOS groups in the box I have seen go from £2200 to £3200 ... quite why there is such a range I guess depends on who is bidding at the time.[/quote
With patience and sensible buying you can put a groupset together for £700, as I've done it, all parts where used but in good condition. It took nearly 2 years and lots of searching. Most parts will polish up fine but be careful with the aluminium parts that if well used will suffer with corrosion, also the steel bolts on such parts as brakes once rusted will cost a fortune to replace if you can find original parts. Things like brake blocks, cables, and lever hoods can be sourced at reasonable prices so just look for good components