How Much $ Do You Have In Your "Bargain" Bike?
 

Just did a spreadsheet to see how much dosh I've spent on my so called "bargain" bike and I'm in shock! :eek:

A few years back I bought a 2010/11 Giant Roam-2 from a friend for $180.00. New MSRP was $510 so I felt like that was a pretty good deal on the bike at the time, even though it had no saddle. No problemo as I had a few decent saddles in the parts bin. Fast forward to today and I have about $565 total into it not including labor. Not quite sure how that happened. And I'm not sure it's worth it either. :foo:

As the bike was used and had two previous owners I decided to strip it down, clean everything top to bottom and repack all bearings. While doing this I discovered the bottom bracket was completely shot, the rear wheel had spoke damage on the drive side where the chain had slipped between the spokes and cassette due to a poorly adjusted rear derailleur limit screw, the chain was worn to .75% and the hubs had very contaminated grease.

The things that needed to be replaced were the grinding bottom bracket, chain, rear wheel (having original wheel rebuilt would cost more than a new wheel), crappy grips, cables and brake pads. This would allow the bike to be fully functional and safe. The other stuff was all nickle and dime, but it added up - tight ratio cassette, pedals, chainring bolts for conversion to 1x, 44t chainring, new tires and tubes and free labor courtesy of myself. I've also installed some other freebie parts that were take offs from other bikes I've upgraded, such as shifters, rear derailleur and cranks.

The bike is in great shape now though. I love the ergonomics and fit. And it has become my "go to" bike in the last 3 years. However, I'm way upside down on it and I'm not sure I've made a wise decision seeing as I could have bought something like a brand spanking new 2017 Giant Escape 1 for not much more money. :o It would have had a carbon fork too instead of a heavy uber cheap shock. https://www.thegearpage.net/board/smilies/facepalm.gif

So what's your story? How much do you have in your "bargain" bike(s)? :D

You're mad. There is no way I'm going to keep track of what I spend on my bikes. Some things are best kept secret, even from the perpetrator (and I only have to justify my actions to my cats)

Paid $75 for it on Craigslist. Put a couple of new tubes and hand-me-down tires on it from my Cannondale (along with the C'dale's original seat), trued up the wheels and tightened up the handlebars and stem. Took apart and lubricated the shifters, replaced the brake pads and adjusted the travel. Cleaned the chain. Good to go.

http://shadowflareindustries.com/gal...G?m=1395124707

All in, about $100. Maybe $140 if I assign resale value to the parts I had lying around.

Yeah, about the same here. Paid about $100 for my comfort hybrid. More than doubled that cost with other stuff.

The original tires were too flat prone, and the replacements were $50 for the pair. Couple of replacement tubes, about $12-$15.

Then a spoke broke at the hub on the rear wheel. Warped the single wall rim. I figured it would keep happening so I could fritter away a few bucks at a time having the LBS replace them, or just buy a new wheel. I didn't have tools at the time so I bought the new double wall wheel, about $90. Might have saved a few bucks ordering one myself, but I'd also need some tools for the freewheel, etc.

Brake pads, about $20.

Replacement Shimano RevoShift grip shifter after one broke. Only $10 for the pair with cables, although they were cheap galvanized cables and low end cable housings.

Mirrycle, $15. Can't turn my head easily (old neck injury), so the mirror was a must.

Bontrager BackRack S rear rack, about $40. (Great rack, BTW, strong and versatile mounting options.)

Planet Bike rear rack blinky, $15.

I need to overhaul the original front hub, which feels just a bit gritty. And the MegaRange freewheel needs to be replaced -- those are cheap. New chain skips over the smaller cogs now. Probably should overhaul the bottom bracket and headset too.

And that's only the stuff more or less permanently attached to the bike. I'm not counting stuff I swap between three bikes, including headlights, video camera, helmet, tools, etc.

I'm considering selling the comfort hybrid now. Great bike my first year back in the saddle after a long hiatus, but I only use it for errands now and my flat bar hybrid can handle that chore. Haven't decided whether to include the Bontrager rack, offer it as an extra cost option, sell it separately or keep it for another compact frame bike. No expectation of selling it for more than I paid, but we'll see.

$100 + new bar tape + 2 new tubes + $5 clipless Look pedals from bike co-op +1/3 can WD40 + a couple hours time for tweaking.
Tires next but not yet. This is a Zero bike that's at one of my 'vacation' spots.
Day 1 pic included.
If not listed below, it's a Zero bike!

I got a hand-me-down Bianchi Advantage hybrid from my sister that was two sizes too big for her, but perfect for me. I rode for years, taking the kids on the back with a carrier and rides to the park, and then started using it to ride to work one day. Didn't like the upright position, so decided to convert it to a drop bar cross bike. I sourced most of the parts from the used market.

Sora STI shifters, new Short 4 brakes, new seatpost, handlebar and stem, Ultegra crankset and BB, 105 RD and 3500 FD, new chain, SPD pedals, wheelset. You can imagine the cost.

It's not about the cost. Sure I could have bought a new road bike with Sora or Tiagra parts for a couple of hundred more, but I actually enjoyed putting the bike together the way I did, and what's even more valuable is the experience I gained from the work. It gave me the confidence to do other things with other bikes.

There's cost, there's value, and there's worth.

Cost has to do with what you paid for it. That's easily determined.
Value is what somebody else might pay for it. That's usually harder to determine.
Worth has to do with how much joy it brings into your life. That's not always a monetary figure.

The Bridgestone was 'free' but it needed lots of little things.
Tires& tubes -$40
Saddle -$15,
Bar tape -$10
Chain & Cables -$25
Freewheel -$15
DT shifters -$15
Brake calipers & new hoods -$50 (not needed, but sooo shiny!)
So, about $165, plus a month's worth of evenings for cleaning, polishing, painting, and rehab.

My Softride was $250, and pretty much rideable as was, other than a fouled shift cable. (replaced from spares)
It needed a couple of minor upgrades for Century service, tho:
'Proper' saddle -$30 CL take-off
New chain, brake pads, bar tape -$45
Wheels and tires are serviceable, but i'm looking out for a good deal on upgrades. Oh, and there's a set of FSA brake calipers on clearance, and.......

I have a hard time leaving the bikes alone.

I don't own a bargain bike.

Here's my bargain bike in its current state:

Attachment 586136

Oh lord.

My Old Peugeot No. 1, a mid-70s AO-8. Bottom of the line. I bought it to be my errand bike, but of course I needed to make a few changes for Seattle’s hills. So I bought a couple Velocity rims and spokes, and built new wheels using the original Normandy hubs. I bought a DuoPar on the bay, and put on an old Spécialités TA Triple crank that I had in my box of old bits. Added a Nuovo Record front derailleur and some Suntour Barcons, from the same box of bits, and it made a pretty decent shopping and errand bike . . . Indeed, more than decent. It became one of my favorite bikes to ride.

So fast forward to this Spring. I stripped the frame and took it to a local metal artist. He added modern braze-ons for fender and rack stays, bottle stops, and cable stops. I then took it to a powder coater. Add a dynamo hub and sparkly fenders, and The end result is fabulous.

https://i.imgur.com/DUSc3KF.jpg


https://i.imgur.com/Fe54rnh.jpg

My Le Tour was $27.

It has accumulated:
Two new Pasela tires and tubes: ~$45
All new cable housing: ~$5 (I buy in bulk)
All new cables: ~$8
Bearings/Grease: $2
New Sunlite brake pads: ~$4
And an Avocet Touring saddle: $10

Guess I finally broke the $100 mark with that saddle.

Now lets not talk about my childhood MTB turned tourer....

I don't have bargain bikes as much as I have bargain frames. Most of the time the bike I end up riding has little to do with the bargain bike I started with. For example, my mutt started as an early 1990s Trek 730 with mostly original parts except for normal wear items. It now has a mix of new and used Deore, LX and XT components with a variety of bargain bin, closeout, take-off and leftover parts, with a wheel set I built myself. It would be a nightmare to figure out what it truly cost me as some parts were swapped to another frame for a bike flip, ended up on a family or friends bike, or are still waiting in my parts bin for another project.

The least expensive bike I own:
Mercier Kilo WT - $429 new (now BD is charging $499 for the same bike)
Replacement wheels after I trashed the originals: $65 (Nashbar cheap-o 32 spoke track wheels)
SKS Chromoplastic Fenders: $50
Replacement no-name stem as the stock one was too long: $20
Shimano 540 SPD pedals: $50

Total: $614

BTW, if you want an inexpensive, no frills steel single speed that can fit 35mm tires with ease, look no further. I've put thousands of miles on this bike without issue.

I'm in the same situation ^
 

because I usually heavily modify my bikes so that they're just right for my use.


My least expensive bike is my fixed gear, a Jamis Sputnik. But with a Brooks Team Pro, different fixed cog and chain, changed handlebar, brake levers, bar tape, stem and pedals, as well as replacement brake calipers, I'm guessing that I have ~$835 +/- into the bike. It rides like a dream, though. So, there's that...

It's not hard to keep the costs reasonably low if you don't mind fixing up an old bike. This is a sekine SHS 271 from the mid 70s I'm working on. I've completely overhauled it and the bearing surfaces are in fine shape. The parts are almost all original. I have right around $100 in the project. By the time I add better quality tires and brake pads, my out of pocket costs will be right around $160. The bike has a very nice frame (a full tange chrome moly butted frame) and decent middling quality parts. Heck I think I'll even keep the turkey levers, : ) The paint and parts are in great shape (after some elbow grease on my parts) for a 40 year old plus bike:

I currently have $80 + $8 for pedals in my Trek 950. Road oriented tires and saddle are on the list, but have not gotten around to them.

However, I am going to make this a comfort bike so I can start riding again (recovering from an injury), the cost will likely be over $200 once I purchase new handlebars and stem.

I really don't want to know how much I have into any of my bikes.


I know I just put over $500 bucks into a mtn bike that I bought for $400 from Bike Island. I try not to think about the road bike money at all.


Kit???? Not even going there.

I found a Raleigh Sports 23" ladies' 3-speed bike at the curb on trash day about 20 years ago. Kept it untouched and boxed until we moved here four years ago when I bought a gear cable for it to get it working, probably $5. Just bought two gumwalls yesterday in case I ever need to ride it on something other than the original tires, $30.

I was given another Sports and have about the same amount it in for similar parts.

The men's bike has about three times as much into it, mostly for the purchase price. I also got a Raleigh Tourist DL-1 for $10 and it looks to be worth every penny.

The other bikes in the house are not the bargains these were.

Attachment 586268

This, OMG, this. :thumb:

^ Aaannd another one of these from me.

This bike was $96.00 new in 1977. Like a genius, I bought it for $100.00 in 2015. :o


https://www.pedalroom.com/p/caramel-...r-21856_15.jpg



I did all the labor, so no expense there. I bought many inexpensive components, and some not, but it's still horrifying how ten bucks here and eight bucks there adds up to a scary (and embarrassing) total.



Bike $100.00
Headset $9.99
Headset reducer $4.61
Head Badge $12.00
Stem $18.22
Handlebar $10.80
Grips $5.78
Bar Tape $60.75
Bell $13.91
Saddle $116.00
Seatpost $12.00
Saddle Guts $3.99
Seatpost Clamp $6.00
Bottom Bracket $15.20
BB Converter $18.99
Crank Set $70.18
Pedals $28.00
Chain $9.00
Rim Tape $10.00
Spokes/Nipples $18.00
Tubes $10.00
Front Hub $86.93
Rear Hub $28.30
Rear Axle Nuts $4.18
Brake clip $6.00
Rear Rim $80.00
Front Rim $80.00
Rim Freight $50.00
Compass Tires $156.00
Powder $15.07
Powder Coat Job $65.00
Misc. Freight $116.05

TOTAL $1,240.95 :eek: :o








https://www.pedalroom.com/p/caramel-...r-21856_28.jpg

Maybe, but it is gorgeous. Hard to put a price on that.

Plus, you have encouraged me to get my own Speedster stripped and powder coated, so we can be brothers/sisters in Silly Spending on Speedsters!

Tape, bar, stem - $50
Different stem - $25
Adapter - $6
Brake levers - $21
Calipers - $25
Saddle - $20
Different saddle - $20
Cables - $6
Housing - $0
Chain - $10
Freewheel - $12
Shifters - $ unknown

Total - $195

Bought for $125 in 2016.
Originally sold for $375 in 1987.

I buy a lot of things on sale, lightly used, take-offs, etc.

I haven't got an updated (or better) photo with the new calipers & housing as I am doing that now. I also haven't started with the chain, freewheel, & shifters yet.

As she is, and how she was when bought.
I'm putting the other cage back on when I get the side mount for the pump.

Including the initial purchase price in '90, I have about $1400usd in my Schwinn Crosscut Frankenbike...which makes my MTB the current bargain bike at <$800 including initial purchase price new. So, I have more money in each of my three bikes than I did in my first two cars combined...LOL.