Is this perhaps the most blatant example of us being ripped off:http://www.rutlandcycling.com/6498/Shimano-Hydraulic-Disc-Brake-Bleeding-Kit.html?referrer=froogle1&utm_source=google&utm_medium=froogle&utm_campaign=pid6498
I used an empty shampoo bottle,some windscreen washer tube and a syrigne from ebay for less than a fiver.
Any other good examples?

Santa Cruz?

got to be grease.

coppaslip with a bike on the packet £5 – 200g with a car on £10 for 3kg

brake pads my car ones are cheaper

as mentioned yesterday – little bolts that hold the cover on to the brake lever – shimano £1 each, ebay £1.69 for 20…

Shimano cleats……………

[runs away back into his pit]

Shimano chainrings is another one we should add.How is it that an XT outer costs 44t £80 yet a 32t middle only £30?
Theres not 2.5 times as much material or machining in it…….

Forks

Tyres. I could spend £80 for a pair on the MTB fairly easily, whilst a pair of superbike sized motorbike tyres is around £150…..

Oh, and anything with XTR or X0 written on it.

Camelbak bite valves. The cleaning kits are pretty pricety too, but no-one seems to sell a long skinny bottle brush.

pretty much everything really!

Thomthumb, 3kg of coppaslip! I presume you have a really huge toolbox?

How about this bottle brush? http://www.cookability.biz/kitchen-craft-bottle-brush/b_1279.htm?SRC=GB1

Jolly Green Giant – Member
How about this bottle brush? http://www.cookability.biz/kitchen-craft-bottle-brush/b_1279.htm?SRC=GB1

You’ll be hard pushed to get that up the tube though….

Avid rotors

I need a 185mm – rrp £40 !!

EDIT- Just noticed a 203mm, rrp is £48 !!!

Avid rotors

I need a 185mm – rrp £40 !!

haven’t tried these yet, but i will be doing soon! http://www.mtb-direct.co.uk/cgi-bin/index.cgi?item=MERGE080515170751

Any kind of aftermarket handlebar mounting bracket.

Oil. Any kind will do but aren’t the better known chain oils more expensive than Harrods olive oil or something?

Yeah I’ve tried to bodge a hose brush before but the official item makes it sooo much easier.

pretty much everything really!

How you figure?

With a lot of cheap things there are clear economies of scale (like thomthumbs’s coppaslip example above), they are mass market products or corners can be cut in the most hideous ways. (Think of the differences between a Halfords £80 special and what most of us ride).

I think we’re quite lucky with bike parts – you can buy very solid reliable stuff for silly cheap, or spend a bit more on very nice stuff indeed from the Hopes, Thomsons and Paul Components of this world. The only things that I’d say come into the “rip-off” category are boutique items – like Yumeya – and the people who buy that don’t care.

So many candidates.

Inner tubes are a good one though, don’t they have a 500% mark-up?

And the DH ones are particularly expensive.

don’t they have a 500% mark-up?

Not sure about the exact mark-up, it’s pretty big but

a) It’s probably all that’s keeping some bike shops in business at the moment, and

b) How many do you get through a year?

Oh and

c) I wonder what the mark-up on tubeless kits and sealant is? 🙂

Shimano m970 outer chainring. Absolutely ridiculous!! You can buy a raceface deus xc chainset for not much more which is pretty much as good as the xtr…

Oil. Any kind will do but aren’t the better known chain oils more expensive than Harrods olive oil or something?

Beer is more expensive than petrol. What’s your point caller?

Re; bottle brushes,aplogies ,that was the wrong link.How about something like:http://www.cdaquatics.co.uk/aquarium-cleaning-brush-set-of-3-p-2068.html?utm_source=Google-Shopping&utm_medium=Free-listings&utm_campaign=All

petrol has a higher alcohol content than lager, and probably tastes nicer too.

On the economies of scale thing,there must be millions of Shimano equipped bikes in the world.
With them aving a virtual monoply on many parts,I can`t see why economies of scale come into it.

Beer is more expensive than petrol. What’s your point caller?

I’d run down to the nearest petrol station with a pint glass but even they have no smoking on their premises 😕 🙄

petrol has a higher alcohol content than lager, and probably tastes nicer too.

Yes, I once tasted Stella. I’ve never tasted petrol but even a mans brownstar would taste nice than Stella..
(Edit) Just to add that Ive not tasted a mans brownstar either

there must be millions of Shimano equipped bikes in the world

Yes but not all of those bikes are running XTR chainsets are they? 🙄

b) How many do you get through a year?

**** loads thats how many!
Patches are reasonably pricey considering the amount of rubber used (more fiddly to make I guess)

This:

At £16.99 which looks strikingly similar to this:

For £4.99

Oh and those syntace handlebar cutting tools which are just adjustable pip cutters, but cost £60 instead of about £8

Where did you get pip cutters from Leon? I’ve been looking all over for some!

Must be many thousands running Shimano brakes though,which use the same mineral oil,the same hoses and small parts.

What about a pretty Lezyne track pump for £75.
Even Park can only manage to make one costing 50-odd quid!

My favorite biking rant is crash helmets, £30-100 no trouble, Lidl £8.99 same construction technique, same part count, SAME SAFETY TEST (EN1078), & the Lidl is better ventilated than the Xen (have both), just a shame the Lidl doesnt look as nice.

I wasn’t aware that Shimano hoses, oil or parts were particularly expensive. When I bought a set of XT disc brakes last year I had a full bottle of oil left over after installing, plus a couple of spare olives and fittings. And I think I assembled them correctly…

http://www.tftunedshox.com/Catalogue/Shop-RockShox/RockShox/RockShox-Fork-Spare-Parts

32mm seal kit £30 wtf? 2 bits of foam and 4 bits of rubber (you don’t even have the foam bits on the 35mm kit…)

Any spare part for Hayes – absolute rip off Hotlines!

£12 for 50ml of mineral oil,isn`t expensive then? You can buy 100ml of Bikehuts own for a fiver….
£30 ish for two bit of plastic tube,aka brake hose not expensive….?

I clean my camelbak hose by getting a brake cable and pulling through a bit of damp tissue a few times.

‘L’ shaped cranks.