Originally Posted by sameness
I couldn't spend another $400 on a Cross-Check and get anywhere near the bike that the Poprad is straight out of the box.
The Poprad is great value, but isn't your comment here really true of any bike in a lower spec class? You can't buy a Tiagra bike (e.g. Trek 1200), spend the price difference between it and a 105 bike (e.g. Trek 1500), and have a bike with a comparable parts spec. You can, however, spend a little bit more on the Cross-Check with a 105 group, and have something that potentially beats the Poprad spec (it's in the QBP catalog - many people don't know, but QBP list complete builds on pretty much all the Surly frames, including a second Cross-Check build with mostly 105)