Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 43,977
Likes: 6,167
From: New York, NY, and High Falls, NY, USA
Bikes: 1962 Rudge Sports, 1971 Raleigh Super Course, 1971 Raleigh Pro Track, 1974 Raleigh International, 1975 Viscount Fixie, 1982 McLean, 1996 Lemond (Ti), 2002 Burley Zydeco tandem
There are high import tariffs on bike parts. That's why it's so expensive to build up a bike. Plus there's a good profit margin in them for the wholesaler and the retailer. As a result, new IGH's are very, very high. You're better off getting an IGH by buying a bikesdirect bike, keeping the hub, and parting out the bike. Crazy, I know, but do the arithmetic, and you'll see.