What do you think is the biggest gimmick in bike equipment?



I'm no expert in components, but $300 handlebars.....Also, as someone has stated, any bike that cost 6,000 is a gimmick unless being used by a pro. Very sleek, cool looking gimmick, but gimmick none the less.

6k isn't to much to spend on a bike these days.
 
5 years on.

Electronic shifting
Wireless shifting
Strava
Aero frames
Rapha kit

I totally agree with you that these are equipment no one would really ever need. Unless you ride 20k miles a year on your bike.
 
Sorry bro, I was trying to be funny. I should have added disc brakes on road bikes to the list of stuff that will never take off.

That awkward moment when you realized the marketing and sales guys convinced the rest of the world you were wrong. Wireless electronic shifted aero frames with disc brakes are what everyone seems to aspire to owning...and riding them in their Walmart Rapha $300 jacket, $250 jersey and $250 bibs.
 
almost anything that is sold in bike stores!! The most expensive gimmick is the CF bike stuff, all this fancy lightweight expensive CF aero frames, forks and wheels and the average speeds in the TDF haven't gone up by more than 3 mph over the last 45 years. But in reality that 3 mph difference is only there because in the 70's the course mileage was longer so in reality I doubt the speeds have gone up at all. Heck I even go out on a limb and say that since the 1940's speed hasn't gone up much at all, sure on the records they show about a 6 mph increase since then to now, BUT not only was the course miles longer then even in the 70's but they had to ride on a lot of gravel and dirt roads.
 
When you hear something that's suppose to be made in carbon fibre, that's a ripoff. Prices here in the Philippines are absurd when it comes to Carbon fibre bikes but when you try it, it's weight is the same as a normal bike.
 
When you hear something that's suppose to be made in carbon fibre, that's a ripoff. Prices here in the Philippines are absurd when it comes to Carbon fibre bikes but when you try it, it's weight is the same as a normal bike.

Your right, low cost generic CF bikes won't save you any weight over aluminum, so save yourself some cash and get an AL bike. Heck I know a guy who's older CF bike weighs 21 pounds...I have a steel bike that weighs less than that!! But the biggest problem with Chinese generic knockoff CF bikes is how well they'll hold up over the long haul and the track record hasn't been very good, I don't think the cost saving is worth the physical risk to the body.

Not sure what's all available in the Philippines but a quick search did show a Giant Contend 2 for about $515 American dollars; there is also a Trek store in Manila where you should be able find a really nice AL bike. That's about the extent of my knowledge of bikes for that area, the one place I did look mentioned a whole lot of brands but I had never heard of them so I can't comment on the quality of those. Of course if you want something to hold up for a very long time you may want to consider finding a well maintained used vintage steel bike...IF you can get parts easily enough in the Philippines for it.
 
There's this brand here Air Wolf and their selling Carbon Frames at $500-$1000 and it's from China and rich people keeps on buying their products.

IMG_20180325_233430_041.jpg
 
Look
IMG_20180325_234554_909.jpg
Here's a sample of the prices here of carbon fiber and non carbon Frames.
The more expensive one is made in China. You would think that the more expensive carbon fiber frame is lighter right? Wrongo_O
 
That's because those are generic bikes they slapped on some fancy sounding name to. With those generic brands if you ever have a warranty issue good luck in getting it resolved, at least with a major brand they have much more control over the quality and you have the support of a major company to go to should there ever be a problem. That is why that website I went to for bikes that are sold in the Philippines had so many brands I've never heard of because they were all generic bikes with decals of made up companies. And because of where you live you have to be really careful of bootleg products, these are products with big expensive names like Colnago that have all the right decals, and the frames look similar but they were made in China and not under license to be made by Colnago or whoever, and sold for cheap to the unsuspecting fool thinking they're getting the real deal.
 
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That's because those are generic bikes they slapped on some fancy sounding name to. With those generic brands if you ever have a warranty issue good luck in getting it resolved, at least with a major brand they have much more control over the quality and you have the support of a major company to go to should there ever be a problem. That is why that website I went to for bikes that are sold in the Philippines had so many brands I've never heard of because they were all generic bikes with decals of made up companies. And because of where you live you have to be really careful of bootleg products, these are products with big expensive names like Colnago that have all the right decals, and the frames look similar but they were made in China and not under license to be made by Colnago or whoever, and sold for cheap to the unsuspecting fool thinking they're getting the real deal.

You got that right Philippines is just beside China and they're flooding our market with their fake products and knockoffs, when it comes to other products like electronic equipment and mobile phones and even shirts and clothing their they have the lowest quality possible so that means these bikes are super over priced but still is low quality.

You're right better buy well known branded products but you still have to really check if it's fake or not.
 
You got that right Philippines is just beside China and they're flooding our market with their fake products and knockoffs, when it comes to other products like electronic equipment and mobile phones and even shirts and clothing their they have the lowest quality possible so that means these bikes are super over priced but still is low quality.

You're right better buy well known branded products but you still have to really check if it's fake or not.

This may be why you need to go to a factory store like the Trek Store in Manila, I thing your odds will be a lot better if not 100%.
 
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You're right with the price of my GT being a bit high saw 1 being posted for $300, I sold it earlier for $275 I needed some money for the Holy Week and besides I'm not using it anymore.

Yep there's a lot of cons here when it comes to bikes and parts, best to go straight to the manufacturer because even distributors and shops sell fake parts.
 
Road bikes that cost more than $200 when the ones at WalMart will do.

This is quite funny, but the truth is that there are those that enjoy buying expensive bikes and we should understand that they have that desire to do so. It is just like footballers that buy expensive boots to play while they are simple ones that you can get in the market.
 
I don't care if someone who wants an expensive bike, what I can't understand is how you can buy a KTM racing motorcycle, not to mention a slew of others, for less money than a lot of road bikes when a motorcycle has a heck of lot more technology in them then any bike would have no matter the Price! And then then consider that most of the speed increases witnessed by racing is due to illegal doping not to all the wiz bang expensive aero stuff a bike will feature. Cycling enthusiast are being gouged by the biking industry, no if ands or buts about it...but we love the sport and got to have what we got to have.
 
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I don't care if someone who wants an expensive bike, what I can't understand is how you can buy a KTM racing motorcycle, not to mention a slew of others, for less money than a lot of road bikes when a motorcycle has a heck of lot more technology in them then any bike would have no matter the Price! And then then consider that most of the speed increases witnessed by racing is due to illegal doping not to all the wiz bang expensive aero stuff a bike will feature. Cycling enthusiast are being gouged by the biking industry, no if ands or buts about it...but we love the sport and got to have what we got to have.

I agree some of the lesser known manufacturers and their distributors with regular quality merchandise are packaging it as grade A specialty products but it's a scam they're just looking for a quick buck. They could easily make a profit of $1000 + because they're selling a regular bike for $1800-$2500. Well, that's how marketing goes.
 
I would recommend cyclists and novices to do some research or even basic googling first, whenever you're buying a bike or a bike part, and always be wary of new brands, always read product reviews. The best thing to do is opt for an old brand that is proven.
 
I would recommend cyclists and novices to do some research or even basic googling first, whenever you're buying a bike or a bike part, and always be wary of new brands, always read product reviews. The best thing to do is opt for an old brand that is proven.

The sluggish attitude of some of us to do deep research before buying bikes or any bike related equipments has made some buy the wrong ones while others spent more than required to buy the bike. So, I am of the opinion that ensuring that we get the best and affordable bike out there is important as well. This can only be achieved when we make better enquiries.
 

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