Originally Posted by
mihlbach
Just because a no-name frame or bike has a lower resale value does not mean that buying one is more of a financial loss. Its resale value is still going to be proportional to its initial value.
I disagree, and I will tell you why. The same reason that you see so much discussion here about the value and quality of the frame, people who are looking for a used bike are going to be seeking known name brands (in general) rather than some no-name or mid name frame they have never heard of. Name recognition goes a long way. I picked up a bike for my son at a good price that I have no question at all that if I were to turn around and sell it right now, I might lose $50-100 on the sale after it being used, but still get a better part of my money back on it simply because of name recognition. That would be between 1/12 and 1/6 the value lost. Your example was 1/2, even though it was less money in the first place.
I would certainly consider buying a BD, or Nashbar bike for a good price on a component set I wanted, and was very pleasantly suprized at the quality of the build of one I recently helped a friend with. He could easily recoup a good bit of his money on the groupset alone, but the frame would likely only go for a small amount of the purchase price simply because not too many people know what it is, or would be interested in having an off brand...just like so many of the posters here mention.
Just my .02