Originally Posted by
photogravity
Jim, no offense taken. It's obvious that I don't get high end bicycles. My 1949 Hercules Kestrel (Reynolds 531), 1950 Norman Rapide (Reynolds 531 DB), 1984 Davidson Tandem and 2010 Bilenky 650B Constructeur Tandem are indicative of that fact.
well played. I saw a Bilenky tandem in the wild last week - with a Rolhoff - and thought about you. With jealousy.
You know high end bikes, you're just not a Paramount guy. There's nothing wrong with that, but there are Paramount guys who will pay major bucks for that bike. I'm not one either, but I think that's a $3,000 bike easily.
Bike prices and markets don't always reflect quality...they reflect what people want, and that's not always rational. You can (or could before the Confente revelations) buy a Grandis for a lot less than a Colnago...and I'd MUCH rather have the Grandis. It's branding, marketing...nostalgia. While I'm sure your Rapide is an excellent bike, and the equal or superior of a Paramount, the market likes Paramounts.
Don't hate the player
