Originally Posted by
RhodeRunner
Thanks again everyone this is really helpful.
Miamijim, I hadn't realized ebay was such a good resource for parts like that.. this changes everything.
I will definitely start looking into scwhinns and treks.. I'll sheepishly admit that I'm romantically drawn to the Italian and French bikes, more for the names than anything since most of my riding has been done on my Peugeot U0-8 and my Fuji fixie conversion.
Ejuste, Columbus is not necessarily my thing. The problem is that I don't really know my thing yet. I am not going to hastily run out and buy a $500 frame but I want to get an idea of what's fair and what you get for what you pay. I like my peugeot but it's got irreparable issues and I figured since I'm replacing it, I might as well step it up. I just don't really know much in the way of tubing etc..
ebay is a great resource, but one thing that you have to keep in mind is that if you buy different parts from different sellers, the shipping can cost about 50% as much as the parts total.
As far as frames go, lightweight frames are better. Anything Columbus, Reynolds 531/753, Tange double butted would fit the bill. The geometry is probably more important than the exact frame material as is your size (because the really light weights SL, SLX, 753 etc are extremely hard to find in larger frames - and not advisable to use if you weight more than 175 lbs.) So figure what you want to use this bike for, do some research on what it was made using what and how, and proceed from there...