In view of the other thread about the nice Rambo for sale on CList, I thought I'd start a general discussion of used Riv prices. Just because it's kind of interesting. Someone on the other thread implied that it's not reasonable to compare the asking price of a used frame to the price of a new frame, esp. if it's a different model. I disagree. Long ago I had a job processing claims. The principles apply, I argue. To use my own example, you can't buy a new Bleriot. If you want a new Riv frame that's close to a Bleriot in geometry and function, you buy a Sam. Back when they were sold, Bleriots cost $750 (such a deal!). Today new Sams cost $1100 (?) or $1500, and that is a whole other discussion in itself. In my size (small), they cost $1500. So when I paid more than the original cost for my pristine Bleriot frame/fork, was I foolish? I don't think so. Riv frames in my size on the used market are not available all that often. So the other part of this equation is depreciation: the word that insurance companies love and claimants hate. I think you have to agree that most things, Riv frames included, depreciate. If you'd rather have a new frame out of the box from Walnut Creek than a used frame from Joe on eBay, that's depreciation. If the used frame has some paint chipping around the dropouts, that's.....you get the picture. We can argue about how much to depreciate a Riv frame, or anything else. I wouldn't depreciate it down to 25% after say 10 years, like some claims payers might. So to wrap this up, my point is that it's reasonable to look at the price of a comparable new frame (bike), decide what kind of depreciation to apply to the used bike in question, and go from there. And of course the buyers emotions and wants play into this a good bit. I would have rather had an orange Sam with Hillborne graphics than the blue Bleriot. But it just wasn't worth nearly double the price to me. Cheers, Steve
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