katsup

I seem to like early 90s bikes so with those, I stay under $150. Although, with 2 of them, I replaced some parts so the total cost is around $300.

With new, the sweet spot tends to be around $1500 for the bikes I prefer.

Metieval

My sweet spot is last years model clearance price on the 'exact' bicycle that I want. Usually about 30-35% off MSRP. It helps to have a good relationship with LBS.

hotbike

Buy under $300, sell for $1,200.
400% profit.
BTW, it's still not enough for a business to stay afloat.
If they customer doesn't like it, I tell him to RENT a Cities Bike, and show him the door.
$1,200 is the late fee for Cities Bike, LOL.

fatsanta92

Sweet spot is a bike that makes me happy.

I'm thinking of a custom Mosaic GT-1 next...

wsteve464

You may want to take a read of this thread.


https://www.velocipedesalon.com/foru...iff-50213.html

canklecat

Oh, about tree fiddy.

My bikes cost $200 or less via craigslist. I might go as high as $300-$500 for a used bike.

I recently rode a used Specialized Tarmac. It *felt* like a huge improvement over my 1980s steel road bike, especially on climbs. It was lighter, stiffer, more responsive and more comfortable. Did that actually translate to being significantly faster over distance, especially on my nemesis -- climbing? Dunno, my test ride wasn't long enough.

Let's say it's good for another 1 or 2 mph over distance. Is it worth $1,500-$10,000, compared with my $200 craigslist road bike? Tough choice. That would be enough to hang with a local fast club's B-group without killing myself in the process. It wouldn't magically make me fast enough to hang with the A group.

But, nah, not on my budget.

Ask me again after I win the lotto. I could probably justify a $10,000 bike in terms of enjoyment of life, etc. Especially if I donated 10x that amount to a favorite local charity to appease my conscience.

TiHabanero

The OP is asking for the price range where we think the best value can be had. For road bikes that resides with bikes equipped with Tiagra. The new Tiagra works very well and borrows heavily from 105 previous generation.
Bike companies most often have "levels" of equipment for specific frame models. Same frame different drive trains, brakes (sometimes), wheels (sometimes), etc, but the big difference, in my opinion, is the drive train (including brifters). This is why I see Tiagra level bikes represent the best value.

Jim from Boston

Quote:

Originally Posted by canklecat

…I recently rode a used Specialized Tarmac. It *felt* like a huge improvement over my 1980s steel road bike, especially on climbs. It was lighter, stiffer, more responsive and more comfortable. Did that actually translate to being significantly faster over distance, especially on my nemesis -- climbing? Dunno, my test ride wasn't long enough.

Let's say it's good for another 1 or 2 mph over distance. Is it worth $1,500-$10,000, compared with my $200 craigslist road bike? Tough choice. That would be enough to hang with a local fast club's B-group without killing myself in the process. It wouldn't magically make me fast enough to hang with the A group.

But, nah, not on my budget….

I have previously posted to this thread, “What to expect with a higher end road bike? ” :

ADAP7IVE

Sounds like an interesting experiment. I might visit that store you mentioned, too, but I'd rather not get another bike in Japan as I'll probably be leaving the country in the next couple years. Looking forward to bike shopping in the States.

woodcraft

$1500 for top of the line from several years prior.

xrayzebra 

My dream bike does not exist, no company bothers to make such a model, but among available bike models, I can get a bike that comes pretty close for about $1500 to $1800. I would be sad if I bought that bike, because it would already be built, and built so nicely that I would not feel right tearing it apart and rebuilding it.

"My custom ti bike," sorry, I mean my custom Typhoon, cost $150. Then I got an 8 speed hub laced into a new rim, and fitted it out the way I wanted, and it was more like $700, but it's still a 62 Schwinn Typhoon, and I don't care that I've got $700 in it I'll never get back.. It was about building it, and riding it, not caring that I would probably never meet anyone else who appreciated it, let alone had one like it. Sweet spot for me is that it is a bullet proof steel frame bike with an Ashtabula crank that I can make into something worth no less than a quarter to half of what I spend on it but it makes me smile. Hopefully it will have an old 1960s bike license decal from Lincoln Nebraska or some far away place. When it's done, it's sweet, and it's one of a kind, and it has a mysterious history that nobody knows. "Century" means something different to different bike people. I like "half centuries" like fifty years old, but I don't restore them, I modify them, and ride them. I've got three 50 year old bikes that are currently rideable, I'm working on some others.

The sweet spot is going to be much different for somebody interested in quality road bikes vs. mountain bikes, vs. cruisers vs. collectibles, and all these are legitimate interests. The sweet spot is also going to be different for people of different economic circumstances. For some the only sweet spot would be free. This discussion would make more sense if it were apples to apples - what kind of bike? For me, it is about salvaging a classic and mutating it into something unique that I can ride comfortably. I spent $2800 on a knife once, but I'd probably never spend that on a bike. Of course, I sold that knife for $3500 a few years later. I've got a $300 flashlight. I'm happy with a lot of bikes at that price. I let my buddy park his vintage Ferrari in my spare garage bay, but I drive a Honda Ridgeline myself. I have no desire for a $100,000 antique auto.

For at least one guy here, the sweet spot involves how much money he can make on flipping it. For me it involves how much will I lose on it if I sell it, since I'm building something I want that nobody else would pay for. For some it is about what they can get away with, as in telling their spouse what it cost as opposed to what it really cost.

All bikes are good, there are no bad bikes. All reasons for enjoying bikes are good, there's no bad reason for enjoying a bike except stealing them or flipping them in dishonest ways which is equivalent to stealing money by defrauding others. (Even flipping them for an honest profit is good if you can do it.)

It is sad when someone who can't really afford the bike that they irrationally lust after spends that cash denying their family's needs or ignoring their retirement needs or whatever. There is no bike worth that kind of bad decision. The sweet spot should be what you can reasonably and responsibly afford without harming yourself or your family financially, and what gets you a bike you enjoy as much as spending that disposable income elsewhere.. Bikes, like any other obsession, can become a sickness that makes you make bad decisions. If you break into a sweat as you fork over your credit card, or have to lie about what you're spending, you are way past the sweet spot. I totally respect a physically fit guy who can make his $2000 or $4000 bike go really fast and/or really far, as long as it was a responsible decision when he bought it. That ain't me. But I respect even more the guy who can make his $700 bike go as fast and far as the guy with the more expensive bike, but who "made do" rather than spending beyond his responsible limit.

So, asking what the sweet spot is, for some, is like asking how much money do you have or make. A lot of answers will be questionable. People with little tend to brag, people with a lot tend to hide it. My wife laid down the law. She told me she'd kill me if I ever spent more than ten grand on a bike. I told her I could guarantee that would never, ever happen. I also guarantee that I don't make enough money to ever do that, and feel right about it. I just have a very understanding wife.

Doctor Morbius

Everyone's sweet spot is going to be different based on things like their income level, their comfort zone, how frugal they are, etc. My sweet spot for road bikes is higher than for hybrids.

Machka 

Good point. I might drop $3000 on a road bicycle ... but I wouldn't really want to pay more than a couple hundred on a hybrid.

KraneXL

About 2 grand. But I've had 3 bikes stolen, so that's only because I won't pay more than I can afford to lose. And if I paid more for it I wouldn't want people to see a grown man cry.

Quality wise, money no object I'd max out at around $4500. Once you pass that the differences are so minute they're basically inconsequential.

mixteup

Max - $130
Min - $8.50

So far ............

bruce19

The Law of Diminishing Returns.

ADAP7IVE

Shopping around to meet my type of riding and preferences, $4500 seems to be the de facto limit. Still, there are some expensive technologies in the make-life-easier category that are enticing; I'm thinking of electronic shifting as a disabled rider (though one can easily get that on a bike at or under $4500) or a Pinion/Gates combo drivetrain just so I never have to clean it. That seems wonderful for someone who doesn't own a car, like me. That is, if one doesn't have to worry about it getting stolen.

toast3d

I personally would never spend more than $1,500 on a bicycle out of principle, and going that high in the first place is something I'd consider only for chasing after a specific niche.

Around 700-800 is what I consider to be a reasonable compromise between quality and budget.

If you turn your own wrenches, and you do a decent job at it, then you can afford to spend more, or spend less.

puma1552

I think with a road bike the sky's the limit depending on what you value, but for a hybrid, there's a price point beyond which it just doesn't make sense since it is good at everything but excels at nothing.

veganbikes

For me it is less price and more importantly what components and frame does it have. If it is low end stuff then it is not a good value for money if it is mid range or better than it usually is a good value for money. I say generally though most good bikes are around $1000 and go up but that can vary depending on manufacturer. Sometimes bikes are expensive but don't have great parts on it because they are banking on the frame being super special or their name being worth something.


Generally I prefer to build my own bikes rather than buy pre-built stuff, it is more expensive in the end but I get what I want not what the manufacturer decided to put on it. We saved $xx putting the cheaper cranks or brakes on it but I don't like that concept. It may not have to be the best of the best but I want high quality and I am willing to spend for it. If I am going to ride the bike a lot spending more money and getting more out of it isn't a bad deal for me. I can spend less and be unhappy with things and ride it less or I can get what I want and get way more out of it because I love it. I love my road bike a whole heck of heap and while it cost a bunch of money, I ride it a lot and plan on at least having the frame forever. I got what I wanted (minus a few minor things here and there due to cost that I could always upgrade later but won't effect performance that much) and I am so happy I did. Plus titanium looks so good.

wolfchild

Anywhere from about $ 700 - $ 1500 dollars...You can find a lot of good bikes in that price range.

mstateglfr 

$300-4000.
I have a large sweet spot.

eja_ bottecchia

Jim from Boston

What's Your Sweet Spot for Bicycle Pricing? On a current General Cycling Discussion Forum thread," Whats the difference between a $3000 bike and a $700 bike?":

Quote:

Originally Posted by Day6

The difference is largely snobbery...

I recall a quip by Paul Kassner, a countercultural figure of the1960’s, “Nobody wants the Revolution to happen until he gets a real good stereo.” Substitute “real nice bike'" for “real nice stereo.":

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

…I once read this definition on BF of a really nice bike, "Lighter than a f@rt, and more expensive than a divorce."