So you'd like a nice bike, and your wife would like you to have a nice bike. You ride constantly so it certainly wouldn't be wasted. Yet somehow you have a need to prove that you're not selfish. I suppose I can understand that. But aren't you taking it to extremes?

Guy I ride with discovered major tire problems on his bike on our long ride on Saturday. It's in the shop and for the ride last night a friend of his lent him a new Serotta - combo Ti/CF frame, full Dura-Ace - about a $5000 bike. Now, that's one sweet bike - we're talking Maserati in the car world. Do I want it? Yes. Would it be selfish to spend $5000 on it? Certainly would be with my finances. But that doesn't mean I shouldn't be riding a nice bike.

Rather than pay MSRP for what I wanted, I bought off eBay and ended up with a $2500 bike with 130 miles on it for $900.

Compromise with yourself. Avoid being selfish by not spending the big $$. Get what you want by spending *some* $$. Budget $1000 or so, identify some lotto-win class bikes, and start prowling the used market. Then when you buy, concentrate on how much you didn't spend.