[MRM]

You may recall my thread about searching for a bike for myself and one for each of my boys. I learned quite a few things that might be of benefit to you.

First, if you are looking for a bike with a $750 budget, I strongly encourage you to look for a new Trek 1600. They don't make the 1600 series anymore; they changed to the 1.6, 1.7, etc. models, but many stores have a good inventory of them on clearance for $999. I read on the internet that the price to the bike store from Trek was about $600, so stores should actually be willing to deal with you on even a $1,000 price tag. The deal with the Trek 1600 is that it has full Shimano 105 components. The models that replaced it have been downgraded. At $1,000 for a new bike that takes advantage of all the current technology, the Trek 1600 is a screaming good deal.

I ended up getting a 2001 Bianchi Talledega from Craig's List for $750. It has a steel frame and full Ultegra components. It's a well enough known bike that others are for sale on other cities' Craig's Lists, so I know I paid ful value. I didn't get a great deal but I got what I paid for. It's very nice and I've put more dings in it in the 60 miles I've ridden it that the PO did on his claimed 600 miles (from the looks of him it was probably closer to 6 miles).

Question for the peanut gallery: does my Bianchi have the lugged frame?

The screaming deal of the year that I saw of Craig's List was a year old Trek Madone (a $3,000 bike) for sale for $1,000 because the seller got injured some how and couldn't bike anymore. It lasted almost 24 hours on Craig's List. It was too small for me and I already had my bike, or I would have bought it over the phone.

So the moral of the story is wait and look on Craig's List if you have the time. If not, or if you prefer the support of new, look seriously at the Trek 1600 and take advantage of newer technology.