Serendipper 

Voice your opinion. What do you feel is more integral to the overall performance and asthetics of a bicycle? Is it the frame, or the components that hang off it? This is a 'Deserted Island' type of question, so, if you had to choose between a mediocre* frame and the absolute top of the line components, or a high tech, hand made top of the line frame and mediocre* components for a bike you had to ride for the rest of your life on a (paved) 'deserted island', what yould you do?

*the term mediocre here does not mean substandard, cheap, or dangerous, just basic and boring i.e. without flair, appeal, or enchanced features that better performance.

bhh

tough one but I think the frame is the "soul" of the bike so I would have to go with that.

Mariner Fan

I agree completely. Second would be the Wheelset. Third Componants.

jbhowat

^^ Exactly. My next bike is going to be built using a new S-Works E5 frame, with Veloce components, and some nicer wheels (for racing).

jschen

Well, let's see... if your desert island is flat enough, you could ride a fixie with no brakes, and there would be little in the way of components. But you'd still want a frame. Imagine two bikes:

(a) This bike feels great, but the shifting is a bit tricky.
(b) Wow, those shifts are smooth! Too bad I don't like the ride.

I'll take (a) any day.

55/Rad

Frame.

Great frame, good wheels, 105 drivetrain. Fine with me.

55/Rad

.:Jimbo:.

yeah i suppose the frame, i plan on purchasing a specialized roubaix elite triple, the msot basice carbon fiber version of the roob, with mostly just shimano 105 parts, ride it out a bit and upgrade the parts eventually, as i become more advanced of a riding, needing lighter and more state of the art components.

14max

The frame. Always the frame.

jhota

are the components or the frameset more important? yes.

but i'd weight the frame a little more over the gruppo.

my "build":

though you can't get it as a frameset (as far as i know), a Bianchi Pinella frame & fork.
match that with a Campagnolo Mirage gruppo on Vento hoops. as for handlebars/seatpost/etc., just use the generic Nashgoformance stuff. i'd be content.

jschen

You mean Mont Ventoux just got towed out to sea and I'm stuck there? Okay, well, I hear the new Cervelo Bayonne (with Zipp Z3 wheelset!) is nice for just such an island. I guess that means I'm stuck with selling off the DuraAce components that came with it, replacing it with whatever comes on those Costco bikes.

Serendipper 

I have moved the game to a seperate thread titled 'Deserted Island...'
Sorry about the mix up, I should have framed the post as a game, not as a question. Hopefully it will catch on, because it can be fun and imaginative.
Moderators, this is not intended as spam.
Users that would like to continue this thread as a general debate, carry on.
Those wishing to play the game...Enjoy

nova

I dont know a decent frame say one like my old t400 with good components like a 105 group good rims can make a great bike. Now i say parts on a decent frame. Simple reason you cant get a great riding bike while you save for a great frame. My personal choice is a synapse.

My over all plan is get the 105 group then save up for a synapse frame with a good fork then swap over the 105 group. Slowly upgradeing to somethign even better. Corse if i end up painting the old t400 and it ends up lookign like a million buck i may just forget the synapse heh.

I think it realy depnds on what you can spend. I mean realy would you want to slap on bottom of the barrel parts on a 1000 dolor frame? Wouldnt it make more sence to spend 1000 bucks on the parts and put them on a 200 dolor frame long as its a good frame?

bernmart

Adequate components are a must--otherwise riding is miserable. Shimano 105, which I and others seem to have--is an example of a level of quality such that it doesn't get in the way of your riding. And wheels are important. I just upgraded from the stock Alex 290s that came on my bike, and there's a subtle but real difference with good quality wheels.

But the frame determines fit, which is all-important, and the kind of riding you want to do--the balance between stability and responsiveness, etc.--so must be the most important single consideration.