[greglepore]

Lots of wisdom here. One of the best parts of the "groader" bike fad is that prices are way down in the secondary market for anything that's not disc and doesn't take 32's. Canti brake cross bikes? They're giving them away, relatively, even stuff like Moots.
OTOH, builders like Firefly and Mosaic are doing some very cool modern ti that's super versatile, so if you want modern custom, you don't have to be locked into a "gravel" ride.
And there's production stuff out there for half the cost of custom that will do all of the above. Given that the industry is concerned about declining sales and distracted drivers, swiss army knife bikes are going to be a focus.