Quote Originally Posted by Haudlady
Hello all,

I am looking at buying a road bike in the spring... my DH is a "serious" cyclist and says the ideal thing is to have a Seven made up for me. The theory is that I could buy one bike that would last me for years, fit exceptionally well, etc. He has a Seven MTB, and his road is a Scott carbon-fiber.

I'm wondering if the same thinking applies to bikes as it does to saddles (horse, that is) - instead of buying a cheap or mid-range saddle, I bought a really good one; it has served me very well for ten years now.

-GASP- a Seven is expensive!!! What do you guys think? Is it better to spring for what you really want... and have it last you a long time... or is it better to go the mid-grade route (probably about $1600), knowing you may end up springing for it in the end?

Help me... PLEASE!!!

I have a Seven Axiom road bike (not custom, off the shelf) and I love it!!!!
It is the best ride...and even off the shelf, I love the fit. The frame is a '99 and I just rebuilt it in October '05. I plan to keep it around for many more years, and when it's time to replace it, I'm saving my pennies for another Seven.

My LBS is a Top-10 Seven dealer in the US. One of the managers also leads a spinning class at the gym next door. He got one of his students - who hasn't been on a bike in YEARS - to spring for a fully custom Seven ID8 (hate the name - like Idiot - but it's an awesome bike). What a salesman! But she loves it and she's been joining us on the weekly ride and doing great.

If you can afford it and you ride enough to justify it in your own mind, a custom ride like a Seven is a great way to go. You can't go wrong with it. It'll last you for years. My friend (who also happens to be the wife of the LBS owner) calls Sevens "heirloom" bikes - because you can hand it down to your kids. It'll be around for that long. And they will love it as much as you do.

Downside...some said - jokingly of course - that it's against the law to put any components lower than Ultegra level on a Seven! Since I really think the Shimano price/value break point is at the 105 level, yeah you end up with a premium bike. But boy! What a premium bike it is!!!

Did I say I love my Seven????