i don't see your point??? you're talking about fairly big names, one model being a fairly limited run. Have you looked at the prices of stainless steel by comparison to standard steel. I'm just talking scrap steel. When you start looking at purchasing specialized tubing made for bikes, i'm willing to bet there's a huge price gap between the two.

there's a saying too that 'there's stainless steel, and then there's Stainless Steel'. i've had supposed stainless knives rust. usually the first place they rust is where they're stamped SS which i've always found amusing. I'm going to assume the stainless steel used in bike tubes is some pretty decent grade stuff.