I understand you--I feel the same. The bikes that I sell have to function as well as if I were riding them, regardless of component level. That tends to mean they are comfortable, capable, stop well, and have good gearing. And I've usually spent a lot of time getting it right, either in the time before selling it as I built it to ride myself (and discover everything about its character), or in making it very sell-able yet without me losing my shirt price/cost-wise. Plus they always seem to ride sweeter right before you sell them... I figure if I can break even, that's a great outcome as I gain knowledge, experience, and appreciation for the bike and/or components, but it doesn't cost me anything but time. I work hard to repair or restore or renovate a bike or frame--the redemption of something lost or discarded yet still very good and useful drives me to pick up bikes. And since I ride 63cm+ size bikes, those are very often discarded as the market for them is small. But us big guys need cool rides, and I aim to deliver on that account. I basically run an orphanage for huge bikes, and I am happy with it.