Originally Posted by PanPanX
you can do what i did... i went to A LOT of bike shops. everyone single one that was within a 15 mile radius of my house, 7 bike shops. i test rode all the bikes they sold that was within my price range. even the ones that were well above my price range. then i went on ebay and started making bids.. so i got it for a fraction of the cost. downside is, is that its used and you cant have the warrenty anymore.. but you pay soo much less for it.. so its a trade off..
The other downside is that you haven't established a relationship with a local bike shop. After you buy a bike, those guys will do a lot more for you. They'll tune up your bike and sometimes even swap out components that aren't quite working right for you.
eBay is for experienced bike guys who know EXACTLY what they want and know EXACTLY how to maintain it.