Originally Posted by halfbiked
I picked the 'one of everything.' But if you substituted 'long haul trucker' for 'cannondale' in option 2, I would have picked that. My biggest reservation about buying 'off the rack' is that you're rather stuck with how the manufacturer things a bike should be built. For instance, for the price of STI, why not go with bar end shifters, racks & fenders instead? So in that regard, I lean towards custom, but the cheap bas tard in me prefers a custom build on a factory frame to a full-on custom.
I agree, as I posted above, I plan to get a T2000 at the beginning of next month. I just can't build a bike myself for the discounted price I get--and believe me I've looked into it. I will immediately take off the STI levers, black Brooks Professional, the black rear rack, the black large chainring and swap them for barends, silver chainring, a honey Brooks B-17 and Nitto racks. I'll have to top it off with some new tape to match the saddle.
I can see it all in my head and it is beautiful.