After http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/biggest-rip-offs-in-cyclingwhats-yours
Whats the best value you have had?

For me
Hope Pro II Hubs (Originals)
Hope M4 Brakes (6 Years Old)
Mega Avalanche Race Fees

Carrera Krakatoa Flex. £360 it cost me, in 1991, still riding it today.

A Singletrackworld Subscription. 😉

5-10s

Endura singletrack baggies

Using your LBS – In the long term =, free repairs, free advice, tool loan, good deals. Its a win win! Spend money in ya LBS. 🙂

I was with you in the value thing until you mentioned hope hubs!

Anyway, value (for me)=

superstar hubs
shimano brakes
maxxis wire tyres
sports direct for tops / T’s etc
DHB for proper top end bibs (proper bargain)
LIDL / ALDI chain lube / spray
LIDL / ALDI occasional bargains

The miles and miles of bridleways that start within half a mile of my house.

Decathlon Lycra shorts and winter tights.

I was with you in the value thing until you mentioned hope hubs!

I have a range from 1 year old to the original ones.

The oldest rear has had a new free hub (this year) and some bearing changes the newest have had nothing yet. Had an old XC that was running fine on just bearing changes. Couple that with unlimited warranty and back up and that equals value to me.

£5 parking at a trail centre 😉

Riding a unicycle.

Was worried I needed to spend £9 on replacing my bearings after MM, but after a bit of a clean they’re fine.

Giant Yukon FX full susser in 2009 – £310
Maxxis High Rollers – £20.99 each
A new Matt black Ebay jump frame for my lads bike build – £25
A nearly new Rockshox Recon 327 130mm – Ebay – £65
Shimano MT15 wheels – £70 the pair

Best value in mountain biking?

Two wheels and some triangles, a gear and some kinetics.

Struggle to the top of a hill and let go.

Freedom. The value’s in the word.

Sidi Bullet 2 shoes.

Hope Pro II hubs +1

RS Revs.

Exposure lights.

Pedros tyre levers (in Pink, not quite as inspiring as some of the posts but they are a marvel 😀 )

2nd the Endura Singletrack shorts.
Have several pairs, even one that was total ripped apart at the in-seam during a crash, I had repaired and they are as good as new.
Difficult to get over here so I am constantly ordering pairs from CRC for the other guys I ride with.

Shimano XTR M985 Pedals, yes I know there not cheap but boy do they work well, and work well over a long time with minimum maintenance.

shimano xt in general, it just works, its not too expensive, and it keeps working for a long time with a little maintenance.

Second hand Orange 5’s

I agree with the hope hub comment even though yesterday I tracked my bike’s creak down to a cracked freehub body. It’s in the post already, probably have a replacement mid week.

MTB/XC race entry fees. £20 for hours of fun, organised brilliantly…

My 2002 Stumpjumper hardtail picked up for £150 on eBay. Great fun – who needs any more than that?

Hope hubs & M4 brakes here too.

Buffalo windshirt.

XT shifters & mechs.

Specialised gloves.

XT shifters – still running a rear shifter from the mid 90’s – its done 1000s of miles! Only managed to break the front shifter due to my own stupidity last year!

Marzocchi Drop off. 7 years old, 1 dealer service.
Shimano XT 4 pot disc brakes. Even older and still stopping the old Kona, another great value frame.
Specialized Big Hit. Raced it downhill regularly and three trips to Les Gets/Morzine, battered regularly on anything downhill within a short drive, I wasn’t going to pedal it there with massive gears and dmr chieftains etc…
Topeak Alien. 10 years of fixing things next to trails.
Specialized track pump. .
Fox downhill/motto cross shorts.
Azonic gloves.
Working in a bike shop, the wage was pathetic but the knowledge I gained of all things Bike and I am still mates with some amazing personalities I met in my time there.

Hope hubs again.
Shimano square taper bottom brackets.
Middleburn Hardcote chainrings.
My wife’s new Cube AMS 110 was ridiculous value for the price when compared to other brands. £1.6k with Fox Float, RP3, Formula RX and SLX/XT 10spd.

Topeak alien for me too, expensive at the time but over ten years on its still my multi tool of choice despite trying several others. The mucky nutz front mudguard is good value too IMO – yes it’s only a bit of plastic but that hasn’t stopped a few others companies taking the p@ss with the price of there mudguards.

The air in my tyres.

Endura zyme 3/4 shorts, good fit – cheap, tough as old boots and keep my knees pretty well protected.
Specialized 2-bliss tyres – Good price, nice tread patterns, good weight, dual compound and tubeless ready.
Merlin built wheels – good price, well made and good service.
Truvativ holzfella stem – ugly, heavy but cheap, incredibly stiff and tough.
Shimano deore disc brake levers – shimano don’t do rebuild kits but at £12.99 a lever who needs them.

Just some off the top of my head.

king headset. no, really. got first 2nd hand 10 years ago, been greased twice, and on 3rd frame. got my other from the US for £65 6 years ago, still going strong, 2nd frame, never been touched.

thomson posts – just keep going and going whilst looking good, not breaking and not slipping.

solitude custom frame – £750 new, but 6 years old now, so just over £100 a year, and no plans to replace yet. have been through 7 other bikes in that time!!

for me It’s the lbs! took fork down there for crown race removal and they did it foc. admittedly not a massive job but you get the gist.

Buying a bike two ‘model years’ late – 2010 Marin full sus bought new late 2011 for £800 with a better spec than the £2400 2012 version

Another for the Topeak Alien – messed around with a couple of other multitools that rusted/rounded out but the alien has been great for the last three years

A Lowe Pro rucksack I brought in 1997 that’s been used almost daily since, carried all sorts from tools to mid ride snacks, been round Europe and been covered in mud and washed hundreds of times. Only just starting to tear at the bottom.

Shimno’s Deore range….it does everything you’d want from brakes and gears, is stupidly cheap and boringly reliable.

And….going to get flak for this but here goes….some Superstar stuff, not all of it be any means but they’ve got some gems in their range….Superstar Hubs are excellent and fully serviceable, likewise their custom Wheelsets are well made and incredible value for money….ditto the brake pads.

what he ^ said.

+

shimano hubs.

on one frames.

endura singletrack shorts stuff.

Lidl gilet.
DX/Magicshine lights.
DMR V12’s (mine are over 10yrs old still going strong- ‘tho they have had a new set of bearings/bushes a few years back)
Pikes – seemed expensive at the time of purchase but 6 years of hard use later still brilliant, if a little hefty by today’s standards.

The Hurtwood Control/Friends of the Hurtwood.

3000 acres of countryside, this includes Holmbury Hill, Pitch Hill, Winterfold, Shere Heath, Farley Heath and part of Blackheath Common, that allows off road cycling on it’s land. They are supportive of off road cycling, in one of the most densely populated regions of Europe.

Completely free to all but you can donate a small amount if you want. And you should if you use it, IMHO. 😀

Most things are good value if they last the distance and work as required.

Second hand parts!

Middle burn rs7 chainset with a Royce bb both just can’t kill the

That and my 2003 enduro sx still makes me
Smile

Tiagra group set for the work bike