Originally Posted by
rpenmanparker
What part of I'm not talking about what I paid do you not understand? I'm asking why with such light frames now available don't OEMs make 13 lb bikes for the money they are able to get from folks.
And I'm explaining to you that your perceptions of costs are skewed.
Specialized can't go on eBay and order up a bunch of NOS SRAM Red derailleurs. They have to buy them from SRAM or distributors, they have to buy tens of thousands of them, they have to ship them to a factory, they have to be there on a set schedule. And as Bob Dopalina pointed out earlier, a tiny increase in the price of a single part can blow the budget for a production line.
Originally Posted by rpenmanparker
I think the folks who pay the big bucks should get a lighter bike.
As I pointed out, the people who pay the big bucks generally DO get the lighter bike.
The exception is when they are paying for some other function, feature or quality. E.g. DA Di2 or high-end wheels carry a big price premium. "Aero" road bikes like the Specialized Venge are optimized for narrow uses, and focus on aerodynamics and/or stiffness rather than low weight.
Originally Posted by rpenmanparker
I just used my bike weight and price to show how much room there was for improvement by OEMs not to suggest light bikes should be going for $3,500.
...and again, what you fail to realize is that your experiences are not a valid point of comparison.
What you perceive as "room for improvement" are costs that you, as a person buying stuff as cheaply as possible, taking your time, and building the bike only for yourself, don't have to pay -- and the manufacturer does.
It'd be like buying a used Ferrari 428 for $75k and pouring another $25k into it, and saying "why can't Ferrari sell the new 428's for $100k instead of $220k? If
I can whack $120k off the costs, surely Ferrari can as well."