Originally Posted by
surak
Have you ever bought or wished you bought a part/accessory that later became hard to source after the manufacturer discontinued it? Not talking about C&V stuff, but more recent electronics and gadgets. I bought a NOS CX bike with a Quarq Prime crankset that can be upgraded with a DZero power meter spider, which not many places sell anymore. I don't need a PM since I already have PowerTap P2 pedals, but I wonder if I will regret not buying the spider when eventually there will be no way to buy it new. Part of me likes the idea of having the freedom to use other pedals on that bike, say SPD pedals if I get the urge to go off-road, but I really think the impending scarcity is swaying my judgment since I don't honestly have a pressing need for power measurements under that hypothetical situation.
Originally Posted by
unterhausen
Yes, but I'm a hoarder
Same. Actually I am hoping to build up a new bike. I have a list of parts I'd like to put on the new frame, which I don't yet own, and one item was a hub that appears to be discontinued, or at least not currently offered through the usual source (QBP), so I found an on-line shop with stock on hand, and I bought one. Then I went ahead and bought a set of rims, and built up the rear wheel to a bike I don't have. So maybe not so smart.
Also I'll grab something if I can find it at a really good price if I expect to have a use for it. Couple of weeks ago I was planning out another wheelset, decided what rims I'd like, and decided to get an idea of the price. Happened on an eBay seller with a set of those rims, new, for 10% less than anyone else, and then eBay sent me a 10% coupon, so I snapped them up. No hubs yet. No spokes. It's actually a gamble that they'll fit on the bike where I want them, but they'll fit on some bike, some day, so now I have them.
But on the whole, I agree with noglider. Plans change, and hoarding stuff you can't use is probably not cost saving in the end unless you're really certain you're going to use it. It only takes one, expensive, unused item in your closet to offset all the supposed savings of the can't miss deals. Also, while I know we're talking about electronics, not general bike parts, I think it still applies. It has occurred to me that by buying a discontinued hub, it may be irreplaceable when/if it breaks. If I ever have to replace the hub in that wheel, the odds are good that I'm going to have to source an entirely different hub that's currently in production. At that point, I will likely wish that I had started out with currently produced part, to increase the odds of easy replacement.