Originally Posted by
HuffyMaster3000
If I'm looking at say a 600 dollar bike most of the cost of the bike is due to the frame. I originally thought the cost of the bike is was mainly derived from the components.
I did some searching and I am beginning to see the light.
So your saying that if the frame is $100 the total cost of the bike is probably somewhere around $175. I was expecting $100 frame $400 dollar bike.
Am I on the same page as as you now?
Also never mind Ti I see the price will never come down even for Chinese.
Frame vs component cost is variable. There is no hard rule. It depends on what you buy. If you get a high end frame and slap cheap parts on it, the frame will be the main cost. If you buy a cheap frame and slap expensive parts on it, the parts will be the main cost.
Also, cheaper parts doesn't have to mean low quality. You could use high quality parts that are slightly outdated, or carefully selected used parts. Same with frames. There are excellent deals out there for high quality used frames. This spring I bought a second hand $3000 frame for $1100 on eBay.
For a mid range build from all new frame and components, I'd say the parts are the bigger cost. $500 for the frame, about $1000 for the parts. $1500 total. That's a lower-mid range build these days. Low range would be $700-1000. Below $700 you get into the below-low range, aka the consumer range. These bikes are perfectly ridable but most hobby cyclist upgrade above this after a couple of years, so here on Bike Forums there's not a lot of discussion about these consumer bikes.
If your budget is below $700 but you still want a high quality "for keeps" bike, it's still very much possible. You just have to look on the used market.