MassiveD

Main thing would be to get some feedback from other people who have his bikes. But even that raises the question of how they would know a good bike...

Part of what you are paying for is the reputation. If you buy a bike from someone who does a good job, but does not have a rep, the hope is that one is somehow getting away with it. One got the quality bike, but did not overpay for it. And there is a point to that. But there is also the fact that reputation is part of the package. It ads to the pride of ownership, resale, and potentially the quality of the build. And it ads to the certainty of the decisions that went into making the bike.