Is the price of parts putting you off?
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Very true, I was looking at Campagnolo front mechs in the region of 90 quid on EBay... Bought one on here for 40...
Price of parts is a double edged sword, and it can work for you just as it works against you. For me the key is accepting the situation and playing the game accordingly.
Bargains come up all the time, sometimes it's an obvious deal like the Salsa stem that just sold for Ā£12, other times more effort is required in order to turn a purchase into a profit, I've bought a couple of bikes specifically in order to turn a profit with a view to raising the funds needed to complete the next project, with each project being a step up from the last in terms of the quality of the finished bike.
But at the same time I don't try to cynically profiteer in a vulture capitalist fashion, if I get a great deal I try to spread my good fortune around, whether it's offering parts for sale on here for a fair price first, before taking them to other sites where the prices go up, or giving stuff away for postage money whenever I am able to, be it frames, parts or even whole bikes.
We are dealing in goods that only ever become more scarce, every day old bikes and their parts are being ridden to death, scrapped, they are rusting away or otherwise disappearing forever, and so as they become more popular the prices are inevitably driven skywards, it is what it is, you can only do your best to make that reality work for you.
Bargains come up all the time, sometimes it's an obvious deal like the Salsa stem that just sold for Ā£12, other times more effort is required in order to turn a purchase into a profit, I've bought a couple of bikes specifically in order to turn a profit with a view to raising the funds needed to complete the next project, with each project being a step up from the last in terms of the quality of the finished bike.
But at the same time I don't try to cynically profiteer in a vulture capitalist fashion, if I get a great deal I try to spread my good fortune around, whether it's offering parts for sale on here for a fair price first, before taking them to other sites where the prices go up, or giving stuff away for postage money whenever I am able to, be it frames, parts or even whole bikes.
We are dealing in goods that only ever become more scarce, every day old bikes and their parts are being ridden to death, scrapped, they are rusting away or otherwise disappearing forever, and so as they become more popular the prices are inevitably driven skywards, it is what it is, you can only do your best to make that reality work for you.
I think the market will flip at some point. The exception is they very high end stuff /NOS etc.
As letās be honest it mainly appeals to Middle Aged men currently who have some spare cash/time to build what they wanted 20-30 years ago. These will slowly lose interest/die (I know itās harsh) and the value wonāt be there for people younger. First it will happen to the 80s BMX and then to 90s mountain bikes. The question is when ā¦. Which wonāt be anytime soon I feel.
There's no doubt that the current market is being driven primarily by nostalgia Ā£Ā£Ā£$$$, but there's also a significant number of hipsters and other younger cyclists who appreciate the actual quality of 80s - 90s mtb's, especially when you compare what you can get now for the same price, I mean we have all seen decent low mileage mid range mtb's with DX group set going for Ā£200 - Ā£400, if we're talking about quality rigid steel bikes then show me where to get something new today of similar build and ride quality that excels on and off road in equal measure, and can be used for everything from a daily commute to touring and everything in between with just minor alterations to spec.
And so I don't think this is just a momentary gold rush, quality ultimately wins through and these bikes were exceptionally well made and extremely versatile, to buy a new good steel framed bike with the kind of indestructibility of a DX group today how much is that going to set you back? I'm not saying they don't make them like they used to but they certainly don't mass produce them like they used to.
Great things will always have value, for me and I know many others share this view, 80/90s mtb was peak bike, while the sport developed and the bikes evolved there was a golden age where the industry was caught off guard and formerly little known visionaries in sheds and little workshops set all the trends, magic really did happen and the industry was actually competing against bona fide genii to produce the best quality bikes and parts, and on that journey from early atb to todays perfected mtb they strumbled upon 'does anything goes anywhere' peak bike.
There will always be a market for that.
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The only problem with that ^^^ theory is that I'm one of those middle aged men, so it's a bit of a lottery as to whether I live long enough to see the prices eventually fall 
It is what it is, prices go up, can't say I've ever really lost money when selling items on, so whatever you buy you'll at least get your money back if/when you sell
It is what it is, prices go up, can't say I've ever really lost money when selling items on, so whatever you buy you'll at least get your money back if/when you sell
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I wasn't middle aged when I joined this bloody site!
Peachy!
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Donāt get me wrong (& perhaps I shouldnāt have used the Emperors clothes phrase) I meant that regarding bang for buck I think retro still wins, take my two regular rides as examples, if I was to repeat the nuts & bolts full restoration I did to my 1992 Antaeus today it would still be a sub Ā£1k build, the Pace RC529 build got me a bike that normally would retail at Ā£3.5k+ for sub Ā£3k. What does the nearly Ā£2k extra get me? A bike thatās a little less frightening at speed downhill.As for the 29er.....im really sorry for you, i know you put some serious effort into it and it looked brill.
Kind of getting back to the original question of whether pricing puts me off, the answer is a firm "no".
I'm just having to work harder to find parts in my budget. I've picked up some great tips for cleaning/fettling/polishing on here recently and with a very minimal outlay am doing a decent enough job at tarting bits up that would otherwise have languished in the parts bin. Very satisfying, and you'd be surprised how shiny things can be made to be.
I dread to add up the cost of my P7 build as I've scoured parts over ten years, but every penny I spent put a smile on my face as I created my unicorn.
Totally agree with the sentiment around retro kit being built better and lasting (apart from some of the boutique stuff that was made of cheese) - but conversely some of the modern tech is very clever (clutched mechs).
Retro has a lovely simplicity, and surely our passion comes in no small part from the thrill of the chase.
I'm just having to work harder to find parts in my budget. I've picked up some great tips for cleaning/fettling/polishing on here recently and with a very minimal outlay am doing a decent enough job at tarting bits up that would otherwise have languished in the parts bin. Very satisfying, and you'd be surprised how shiny things can be made to be.
I dread to add up the cost of my P7 build as I've scoured parts over ten years, but every penny I spent put a smile on my face as I created my unicorn.
Totally agree with the sentiment around retro kit being built better and lasting (apart from some of the boutique stuff that was made of cheese) - but conversely some of the modern tech is very clever (clutched mechs).
Retro has a lovely simplicity, and surely our passion comes in no small part from the thrill of the chase.
