Well that does it! F........

[2manyoranges]

I yesterday had the slightly distressing experience of finding a frame and forks for the Grom, just the model I wanted; at 1650.00 this was relatively reasonable for a full chassis without wheels, transmission and brakes, but everything else, and good spec too. Gave a deposit, only to have the buyer pull the sale. Oh well, these things happen. But then today I find a year old Propain carbon frame, for only a few pounds short (1900.00) of the new 2021 retail prices. Curious, I email the guy, who is perfectly pleasant, who says 'well, I have two offers of 1700.00'. Well, I can and have exercised my right of not buying it....but it's a YEAR OLD carbon frame, no warranty, no real record of what it's been through...what TF....last year I bought a 2,000 shop soiled Transition for 850.00. That's reasonable. But goodness me the COVID EFFECT....

 

[2manyoranges]

I know it's about new stuff but it seems to be invading everything....

 

[d8mok]

Supply and demand ........

For example

Sold my 5 year old faded Hope E4 brakes for 20 quid less than I’ve paid for a new pair. Downside is I’m 8 weeks in and still no new brakes.

If someone has to have it now and new isn’t available for a while then it naturally pulls the used prices up

 

[2manyoranges]

Yep....and the guy selling the frame made much of the poor supply at the moment. Yes supply and demand...but then the dynamics also reach a point of exploitation and irrational behaviour.....

 

[d8mok]

I somewhat agree but I guess it depends on which side of the sale you sit.

I managed to sell my wife’s Carrera last year at 20% more than I paid new , 7 years prior. Crazy really but allowed her justify a new Cannondale which wouldn’t of normally have happened


New bikes/ bits have in history lost lots of value in a very short period making it a expensive hobby as when you want to upgrade the gap is huge. So if this all makes used parts a bit more expensive surely it’s not a bad thing as it will allow more frequent bike/part swaps.

 

[troje]

It’s just that everyone wants to get rid of their money at the moment. Covid times, government spent billions to protect everyone’s job, nobody has been spending on holidays, travel, restaurants. People are overloaded with created currency.

 

[konacarl]

Got outbid on nos Xt thumbies today. They were from abroad and eventually went for about £195 including shipping and tax. Just a little more than I bid I hasten to add.

 

[MartinYorkshire]

I've experienced this too lately but I can't help feel there is a bit more to it.

Your average person isn't going to know the difference between Deore XT and simple SIS that you get on BSO's (its shimano innit). Of course theres access to information on the internet, but that doesn't mean someone with little prior experience is going to be able to successfully build a bike from scratch, even if they had the right tools. It's quite an in depth subject to even know what to buy, so how come the price inflation on something as obscure as XT thumbies?

Are there really that many people out there who have enough knowledge of this stuff and who happen to have recently returned to MTB due to Covid, to drive the prices like this?

Modern kit I can understand, but retro stuff is a whole other ballgame, surely?

This is more of a question than me attempting to offer any useful info. It just all seems very odd.

 

[hookooekoo]

For much of the last year, most of the population could count the available means of exercising on one hand.
1. Walking
2. Cycling
3. Running

Think about that for a moment. All of the following, and more, have often been unavailable: Gyms, tennis, golf, football, basketball, cricket, badminton, squash, swimming, yoga classes, spin classes, pilates classes, the list is almost endless

And with the tighter forms of lockdown, in the absence of an approved reason, it's effectively been illegal to stray more than walking or running distance from home, unless you happen to have a bike. The demand for bikes is feeding into all areas of the cycling market, including supply of retro parts, and incomplete bikes, rebuild projects, bare frames etc. etc.

And as another post noted, there is a surplus of cash to spend, as people haven't been able to go on holiday, have meals out etc. etc.