what do you think of 'gear'?

[yello]

Pays your money etc...

Budget is clearly an important criteria but one shouldn't always be fooled into 'cheaper works just as well' line of thought. Remember the old adage 'buy cheap, buy twice'... why, it's probably even a northern expression!

It depends on the product and your intentions for it but I'd say two of the important differences between an expensive product and it's cheaper version are durability and reliability. To me, they're worth paying for. Tyres for instance. I KNOW I can buy cheaper but I'm happy to pay (and can fortunately afford) to buy more expensive because they tend to last longer and I have fewer problems on the road with them. But, as I say, pays your money...

 

[dellzeqq]

sometimes I consider going downmarket to, say, Ultegra, and I just can't bring myself to do it. I might see someone with Dura-Ace pedals on a club run and spontaneously combust from embarrassment!

(Is that what you wanted somebody to write? And, yes, the Alivio rear derailleur on my hybrid is about ten years old, bent over at 20 degrees and still works)

 

[lukesdad]

The rear mech has no bearing on your indexing thats down to the shifters. A mech travels a given distance and stops where the shifters dictate it to. As for XT they are probably the best Value for money in the Shimano range.

 

[yello]

As for XT they are probably the best Value for money in the Shimano range.

I think so too. For me, XT hits the quality/price balance.

 

[Chrisz]

I buy some expensive parts not because of their 'weight saving benefits' or because they function so well but because they look so nice! It is, to me, a form of art. The fact that they may (or indeed may not) be lighter than cheaper parts is neither here nor there - of they look sexy/arty/whatever then I'm happy

 

[ASC1951]

Remember the old adage 'buy cheap, buy twice'... why, it's probably even a northern expression!

Up here in Yorkshire it's 'borrow cheap, borrow twice". And If ivver tha does owt fer nowt, do it fer thissen.

Buying bike bits is the same as everything else. Best value for money is never at the bottom or the top of the price range, but the optimum point on the range depends on how much money you have available and how specialised your need is. Or more accurately, how specialised you can be persuaded it is - Starbucks, for instance, have built a whole industry out of convincing people to pay over the odds for their individual mixture of three simple ingredients.

 

[MontyVeda]

...Best value for money is never at the bottom or the top of the price range...

Perfectly put

My P7, although not the best bike on the market, is thee most expensive thing I've ever purchased, is definately the best value for money out of anything I've ever purchased due to the amount of use it gets, the ammount of fun it's given me and unless it gets nicked, it's the last bike I'll ever buy (fingers crossed).

I'm not advocating buying cheap for the sake of it, but some bits of kit are so overpriced... like the £83 bottle cage, like the £1000+ back wheel and so on makes me find the whole concept of 'gear' (being highend overpriced bits of kit for anything) questionable, yet the niche magazines and shop staff seem to promote such 'tat' relentlessly.

dont get me started on HDMI cables... wrong forum anyway!

 

[mac1]

German stuff for quality & durability; Raleigh for cheap good value for money I'm finding

 

[Alan Whicker]

I don't really have much in the way of 'proper' cycling clothing, having found that cheaper stuff from the likes of Mountain Warehouse does the job. When it comes to 'moving' bike components I get the best I can afford. My 1996 rigid Spesh Hardrock has an STX groupset which seems to be made from some sort of miracle metal that never wears out. When I bought it, it hurt financially but it was my primary transport. The Spesh is now semi-retired as my runaround when we visit the in-laws in Devon. I've done hundreds, if not thousands of miles on it and it's still on the original chain. In fact, the chain was rusted solid on my last visit due to me putting it away without a wash after riding it on the beach. I was perfectly happy to fit a new one but gave it an oiling and a bit of TLC and it's come up like new (will need replacing soon though). Just can't see that with some of the cheapo bits on other bikes i've been acquainted with over the years - even if they did get me from A to B (Cheng Star anyone?). I do tend to buy cheaper stuff that doesn't actually move - my Tioga bar-ends have been on three bikes. One of my bottle cages came free with Mountain Bike Rider magazine and it's not noticeably heavier than the titanium ones in our LBS!