[Closed] a loss of the urge for bling?

For me it was starting as an LBS mechanic that did it. I work on sooooo much low end stuff (I'm talking Acera level here) and it works brilliantly. It's cheap and effective.

Exactly that. Shimano Claris is a fine example of this and is actually really nice stuff. Its not going to get you a light build but the stuff is fantasicly functional. I have stuck with 9 speed tiagra for the winter bike where a lot of the lads in out road club are running ultegra 6700/6800.! It looks nice but they are no faster for it.

I have to admit was out on my sub £300 fully rigid home build and did not miss my full sus what so ever only thing is could do with being a little lighter but not to silly levels

I was talking to somebody that had just bought a new bike to replace one he had got less than a year before, not a different bike just the latest model. I mentioned that I'd been thinking of getting a new bike with 3 years interest free credit to which he replied that he couldn't imagine keeping a bike that long. In his defence he has a good relationship with his local shop and he is a guide/coach so he needs a reliable bike but I just found it a bit depressing. I hate the consumer driven world we live in where people are obsessed with the latest shiny thing and things stop working or become obsolete in a couple of years.

If it's anything like the people I know in that situation he will be able to sell on a 1 year old bike for close to what he paid for it so the "upgrade" fee to next years model will be negligible and the money spent running the bike will be low for 1 year from new. Economically it makes perfect sense and somebody will still get a 1 year old bargain so good for everyone.

As for the bling question, I like my bikes. I enjoy riding them and I like them to be right. I will upgrade what I want to and make an effort to get the right stuff on to make the ride how I want it to be. I'm positive about the future and that things have got so much better over the years once you remove the rose tinted specs.

Having had to replace a set of sale-bought bikes thanks to local scumbags and a new for old insurance policy in 2007, I ended up with a garage fairly full of bling. It was not a fun experience, and now I'm older I just don't care any more.

I spend a fair bit of time and some money getting what I have set up perfectly, and this seems to continually pay dividends. New stem and setup on the Patriot, and now I'm grinning more than I ever have on a bike and going faster.. again... Cost £20 🙂 I would actually not want to shop for a new bike if you gave me £3k - I've got so much knowledge and feel invested in these bikes, I'd have to start all over again. It took me years to get them set up well!

Yes.

I think part of it is growing up / the money aspect.

When I was younger, I saved for parts. They were a treat and something I looked forwards to. I remember breaking a mech at the start of a summer holiday and if it hadn't been for generous parents, I'd have been off the bike for a few weeks.

Now, I have the money to buy pretty much anything for my bike and that's kind of taken away the thrill. If I break something that needs to be replaced, I do so quickly, but with SLX / XT. Not getting excited for weeks and weeks and imagining how the new XTR is going to transform my bike!

I wonder if another aspect is how good mtbs are nowadays. SLX is great. Most full sussers (and forks) perform well. It's not a like a few years ago where there really were gaping holes in performance.

I've just moved country with minimal possessions. including my excellent mountain bike.

That involved getting rid of a [b][i]massive[/i][/b] amount of spare biking stuff before I left. That felt great, although no doubt I shall miss some of it. The game-plan is to keep the one excellent mountain bike running perfectly, probably by doing an annual replacement of the groupset with good but not super-flashy stuff.

I've always aimed to run my biking on the basis that I try never to want or need anything I can't easily afford, so that emergency spending is painless and going on trips is easy.

🙂

That involved getting rid of a massive amount of spare biking stuff before I left. That felt great, although no doubt I shall miss some of it.

True dat.

Mind, on my first ride here, my fork's damping blew up. I did not have a spare fork before the clearout. 🙂

New shiny fork then 🙂

We've reached the point where new stuff isn't better. Or at least, improvements are rare. 10 speed and clutch mechs are great, but that's about it for the last 5 years.

as an engineering problem, bikes are solved. All that's left is to roll them in glitter.

I think the bike industry is too interested in tech and not enough in riding.

As others have said, even basic level kit is very very good these days. I was looking for some cheap brakes to put on the HT over winter and found some new Shimano 446? 555? 445? 554? etc (can't remember the actual model designation!) that would come as OEM on part of the Acera or Alivio groupsets, they were less than £40 for both ends and came fully bled ready to install....all I did was use some 180mm rotors I already had on the bike and ordered some soft/organic pads from Superstar...they are like hitting the proverbial brick wall, made me question whether I really need the Zees I have on order for my FS.

We're at the point now where the bicycle is essentially a very simple machine that works so well with existing tech that genuine 'game changing' ideas are now few and far between, certainly not coming at you so fast that you need to upgrade your bike annually anyway.
The FS I have now rides the same trails I rode on the previous FS back in 2012, it is no better in any measurable way that I'd notice, it just has a different suspension system and feels different, same Shimano kit, same width bars, same tyres etc...if the previous one hadn't been stolen I'd have kept it (26 inch wheels and all!)...

....electronic shifting will make life easier but it won't change what I can ride on my bike, ultimately that comes down to skill level, bike geometry, tyres and suspension....whether the chain is moved from cog to cog by me pulling on a cable or electronically by hitting a button doesn't actually give me anything to my advantage over the trail so to speak, more research and development into rubber compounds and suspension will do....but this is difficult and time consuming, much easier just to stick Di2 on a bike and 'bling it up' instead...people go mad for that crap!

I'm deffo now a "jump on it and ride" kind of person rather than spending money on it.

Although I did spend a rather extortionate £120 on a new headset for the Charge recently... but I wanted it done quickly and with top class kit, so sucked up the price and went for some Ceramic bearings which certainly should outlast the bike in my ownership

It's got to the stage now where I'm close to selling my AM29 bike and will not replace it with anything (well, a different motorbike, but not a pushbike)

ultimately that comes down to skill level, bike geometry, tyres and suspension

Yes, however geometry is evolving possibly more than anything else currently.

I'm not auric it is conscious but I'm pretty meh when in bike shops these days. Not because I don't like bikes, by because I can't justify the RRP's on stuff.

I'd say that I've got two quite nice MTB's but bought carefully. On the face of it the forks on both are bling, but the Devilles were bought secnd hand and below what they normally sell for and the Fox forms on the other one were ex demo ones from Mojo. I paid less for them than some entry level jobbies from CRC. The rest of the stuff is functional and not bling...Zee mechs, old Atlas AM cranks etc. The few nice bits (wheels and reverbs) were all bought in th sales way below RRP it's voucher codes etc to lessen the pain.

The big thing of new stuff that is good are clutch mechs and dropper posts. Most other tech makes very little difference. With limited time, I'd rather ride the damn thing than read about stuff that I can't afford!

Yep, same here.
I'm all about VFM and reliability these days.
I'll probably buy another road-bike in a couple of years to replace my Defy 1, however it'll be something similar with 105 level kit.

My MTB is a 2010 'Triggers Broom' Boardman with various kit on it. I recently bought new brakes, and am more than happy with the £65 Deores, which feel like they could stop a train (I'm 100KG with all the finese of an angry rhino)
The wheel size thing has annoyed me, and will probably delay me getting a new MTB.

I also have an entry level Boardman Hybrid, which might get replaced with a 105 level Arkose at some point.

I feel there are ever diminishing returns above around £1200-£1500 (maybe £2500 in the case of full-sussers) and couldn't ever see me spending more.

I would normally agree, but I've just forked out for some Hope cranks... nothing wrong with my XT chainset, but it is 6 years old and scratched up pretty bad.

Just felt like treating myself to some bling. 🙂

yep +1, about ten years back.

I ride a 275 quid cx bike SS every day and leave three ti bikes at home.

I've no idea what the latest/greatest bike thing is, not interested really.

I'm a sucker for nice stems and flat pedals but other than that the whole 650b thing has really left a sour taste in my mouth regarding the bike industry. I'll be holding onto my 26" stuff as long as I possibly can and hope that common sense will prevail and 26" will continue to be viable.

I'd love to have the time and money to still be interested in the bling side of biking. But I now have two small kids, so I have neither time nor money. It has forced me to stop throwing good money after bad at my bikes though and consequently I have focussed on improving my fitness and skills and just being happy with what I've got. I'm enjoying my riding more than ever.

I went through a brief period of bling buying a few years ago which was probably more about celebrating my shop finally paying reasonable money. Otherwise I'll pay for genuine performance and durability but not for bling for it's own sake.

X Fusion over Fox every time
8 speed Sora on my road bike is just fine
Chris King singlespeed hub on the winter bike -- no regrets
XTR rear mech that now sits on the full susser -- Why did I do that?

Every Friday I look at 'Fresh Goods' and hate myself afterwards for wasting the time.

I sort of keep up to date with what's going on in the world of new and shiny, via the interwebz, but actually chuck my own money at it? Nah not right now thanks...

It's all the stuff I might own in a few years, But I'm more interested in "Covering Riding Bases" with several, not particularly posh or new, bikes, rather than one super expensive jack of all trades...

The thing is with the various forum's Classifieds ads and ebay you can assemble just about any sort of bike you might want for £500 or less, it might lack the shiny newness but functionally it will meet your needs...

Spending twice as much say £1K for a new bike obviously get's you a (limited) warranty and this seasons paint job but in terms of actual functional benefits do you really get much more?

If I do buy new items it tend to be drivetrain or braking components and at the mid-lower end of shimano's ranges as they do what I need at a fraction of XTR/DA prices and I can live with a bit of extra weight...

OP does not compute.