Originally Posted by noglider

RChickenMan, I understand. Your approach to deciding between a bike shop and online is rational. I just want to make clear the risk you are taking. Yes, the price difference is huge and therefore compelling. But the risk is also much larger than with other purchase decisions. It's not that bikes are more complex than other goods. It's that they break down more and require more expertise to keep going. The reason for this is the weight/reliability ratio. If we built them as reliable as cars or electronics, they'd be far too heavy to ride. Therefore, this is the current state of the art, and there has to be a good mechanic standing behind the bike you buy -OR- you have to be the good mechanic yourself. I bought a bike from Nashbar, and I had to correct virtually everything on it. I have experience as a bike shop mechanic, so it's OK for me, but I can't recommend it to most people.

Given your requirements, you may want to go back to your previous thread and consider building a bike out of a combination of new and old components. The more time you allot, the more money you can save yourself.